Fancy ~ FANCY!

Today while I was driving around, Jacob was chatting in the backseat.  Sometimes he was talking to me - sometimes just chatting about life to himself.

I heard him start to say some P words - and then Pa, Pap - Pap --- Papillon.  
"Hey Mom, did you know Papillon is butterfly in French?"

"Wow Bud - I did know that, but how did YOU know that?!"

"Oh, I learned in in my class in a book."

"What book was it in - one you read with Ms. Rachel?"

"No, it was just in a Fancy Nancy books - she uses really fancy words for everything."

speaking of fancy - check out Jacob's newest "fancy" glasses...it's part of his spy-gear that he got for Christmas and he wore these around for about a week straight.

I love that he learned this amazing word in his new class - and it cracks me up that it's from a Fancy Nancy book.  I do love that sassy little character and if her books teach my child to have a fancy vocubulary -- Hooked on Fancy Nancy works for us!

Jacob's fancy life keeps us in a state of smiles and laughter!  The first few days that the older kids were in school, Jacob and I would hit the DI (Deseret Industries - I am seriously liking that place!) looking for a few things that we needed in setting up our home....we thought we'd lost the iron (turns out it was just in a random box), but we found snow shovels and all sorts of needed "junk" there!  Jacob would always find a toy that he'd talk me into buying - and since they aren't super expensive it was fun to have him walk around so excited about his new treasurers!  The astronaut helmet in the picture was a mere $1 and it talks to you in your ear....how super cool!  Also, that same day Jacob found a Buzz Lightyear arm control that was again a whopping $1, and it did all these super cool tricks when you pushed the right buttons - and well, I'm a sucker in a store is the bottom line.  It was very cute to see him come right home and put on his Buzz Lightyear pajamas and run around with the Buzz arm control and the astronaut helmet on his head.  

And - so that I don't sweep the obvious part of this story under the rug...Jacob's new class.  There is of course a story with this - so get comfy!  When I went to enroll the children at the public school in the neighborhood, I gave them all the papers for each child and they stopped when they got to Jacob and told me that he wouldn't be allowed into Kindergarten due to his birthday.  His birthday is on September 24th, and the deadline for entering Kindergarten in Utah is September 1st.  I asked the secretary if I could speak to the Principal about this, and within a few minutes I was standing before the Principal trying to plead the case of Jacob - that he had already been enrolled in Kindergarten back in NYC and that he had not only already completed a 1/2 year of Kindergarten there - it is full-day Kindergarten so he's already done the same amount of hours for Kindergarten that the Kindergarten children will do here in Utah.  I also told her that we had Pre-K in the school last year, and that was a 1/2 day program, 5 days a week - much like the K program here.


I then tried to sell her on how well Jacob was doing in class and that he was socially ready for Kindergarten....however that is when I think I lost my sales pitch.  For it was right at this time, that the boys behavior got the better of them, and true to character someone had touched someone else, and that lead to another touch, and then the touch become a hit and the hit became a pinch and the pinch became a kick --- until heaven help me they were on the ground wrestling while I was still trying to talk to the Principal while also realizing that I needed and started to pull them apart.  I was shooting daggers at them from my eyes -- yet, I was trying to keep a very sweet look on the Principal who was again going through Utah law and they just don't accept children that aren't 5 by September 1st.  The boys were swinging punches at each other around my body and I decided that today was probably not the day to convince the Principal that my children were extraordinary and that Jacob would add to the Kindergarten program.  If anything, I was worried that she would tell me they had NO room for us in this public school.

I left the school firmly holding two boys hands on either side of me, and they definitely found out that mom was very, deeply disappointed in them.  Oh, some day I will laugh on this --- even more than I am right now, because I get how funny the moment was...irony is not lost on me!  However, at the moment I thought Jacob's chance to get into Kindergarten at that school was over.  Thankfully - it's really not up to the Principal...I got this loud and clear the day when I went back to register all the children and have them start their first day of school - only to have it told me that due to State Law and that the Principal had called down to the District Office - Jacob would not be allowed to start Kindergarten this year.  I told the Principal that I needed to make the phone calls myself to try to see if they could appeal the process and so I started to make my phone calls.  I called and got a no from not only Granite School District but also the top of the State Board of Education that they absolutely, without any chance of appeal let any child enter Kindergarten during a school year where they have already started a Kindergarten program in another state ---- if they do not meet the Sept. 1st deadline.  Can you talk about extreme frustration?!  Where is the good neighbor policy when you need one?  How can they deny a child an education that they have already been accustomed to, and why would you pause/stop a child's growth only due to that his birth date does not make up to your records because (gasp) --- said child started their education in another state because that is where they lived at the time!  I couldn't believe it when the lady told me that they have had families move here in late Spring (April and May) from out of state, and Utah will absolutely not let their child into Kindergarten if they don't meet the deadline - these children would have been attending K in their other state for at least the past 8-9 months and they don't let them into a class here?  Well, it's good to know that our children's future and education is placed into such caring and considerate individuals who make these laws!

Thankfully - I have a name of someone in Legislation here and because I'm starting to go a little crazy not having a project to keep me busy --- I'm going to try my hand at politics and trying to get a bill proposed in the Utah Legislation.  I hope they will see that there should at least be an appeals process for families, like ours, that move here from out of state and have proof of the child attending another school.  It just makes sense this way - really, I'd love to know what person came up with the current law....I'd love to have them be the one to explain it to the children that aren't able to go to school and continue on with the class level they have just left.

Anyway - the good news is....there are Kindergarten programs at private schools and after looking for a few, I am thankful that I found out about the U of U program through a gal that I bought a chair from on Craigslist (there are some amazing blessings that come when we open our mouths and share stories that I think at times must be dull to the other person...however, many times it turns out that by opening my mouth the Lord is answering my small prayers of what needs to be done in my life).  I went on a tour of the U's program with Jacob, and although he was hesitant and wouldn't talk to anyone I was immediately in love with the entire program.  The director is from Scotland and has her master's in Early Child Education and creates the way that they teach the Utah State Curriculum (so Jacob is learning exactly what other K students are as well), however the way she approaches education is very child centered and wanting the child to be in charge of their own learning and develop their own love of learning.  That is where my heart lies as well - NYC was too caught up in the rat race of education and while there are some pros to being that on top of education and pushing for your child to be and get the best...sometimes its just too much and the focus in not on the child which is where it should be.  The other bonus to this program is that it uses the students that are studying education and they get practicum hours for working in the classroom.  For a class of only 15 students, there are usually 5 adults in the room!  I still can't believe it when I stop to observe his class from the little concealed window and I'll see Jacob working with a small group of 3-4 children and at least one adult...many times I've seen just Jacob getting one-on-one attention.  It was such a wonderful program that landed in our laps & although it's a crazy time of day to have his class (1:10pm - 4pm) and I wish the commute weren't so long it's only 20 minutes each way and thankfully our lives are not busy as we have just moved and I'm committed to keeping the schedule for family this go-around....in the city it was a priority among too many other priorities!

Jacob in his classroom as captured through the "secret window" - Bryson Jr. likes to pop in here and say he's spying on Jacob, which makes Jacob mad at B....and so goes the circle of brotherly love....

Anyway, I had no idea that we would have a UTE in the family ever - or this young - however, I'm grateful to the university that it has this program and that Jacob is benefiting from it.  We are BYU fans through and through - and yet I can appreciate the U for the great job it does with its education programs...especially this education program.  And I'm so grateful that our Jacob just loves his class, all his new friends, and the fancy new words like Papillon that he is learning!

We'll just have to remember to save all the BYU shirts to wear just around home for the next few months :) 

Memories

Each day there is a moment where I miss NYC. Perhaps it's seeing a friend, running to Debbie & Lillian's to borrow something or to send the boys to say hello or show Lillian something, missing the beat of the city or the treats that we enjoyed there.  Thankfully --- we can recreate the latter.  The other things, we aren't really homesick for them, but there is a part in my heart that misses much of what was our life the past 2+ years.

Today, we must have all needed to do something about our NYC memories, as it seemed the afternoon was full of city trademarks right within our home way out here in the good ol' west.

To pay homage to the city that we just left we went all out & I made the copy-cat recipe for Banana Pudding (I call it Banana Mousse since it's SO thick!) from the one and only (well, not the only one as there are quite a few in the city!)....MAGNOLIA BAKERY

Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (Mousse) Recipe

1 package instant vanilla pudding
1 1/2 cups cold water
1-14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups heavy cream
1 box Nilla wafers
4 ripe bananas

Put vanilla pudding mix in a bowl. Whisk in water and sweetened condensed milk. Once it's whisked together, refrigerate for at least 15-30 minutes, preferably an hour.

Whip cream with an electric mixer until it gets soft peaks. Fold the cream into the pudding base.  Be sure to mix completely so there are no more yellow streaks.

Slice up bananas. Arrange1/3 of Nilla wafers along the bottom of a pan or bowl (I like to make mine in a deep glass bowl we got for our wedding - it's almost like a Trifle bowl so that you can see the layers) and then top with half of the bananas. Top with half of the pudding mixture. Top with another 3rd of your Nilla wafers and the rest of your bananas. Put the rest of the pudding on top and then crush the remaining Nilla wafers until they're a powder and sprinkle over the finished pudding.

Cover with plastic wrap, keep in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours.  I just learned with this 2nd time of making it....that it really is that much better when it gets almost 12 hours to set....I'm eating the left-overs now and I like the consistency that the wafers have become with how long it has sat in the fridge to soften them up.  Oh this is divine --- it's almost scary that I know how to make it, as now I can have it anytime when in the city it would be a rare treat when I'd let myself stop and get this nectar of the gods! 

I had started the pudding the night before, however Madeleine & Bryson were so excited to help me finish making it, and then Bryson Jr. talked me into making Black & White cookies.  To make a long story somewhat short :)  I went in on Friday to his class as he had been Friend of the Week in his class.  I had already done a presentation just about Bryson on Wednesday - showing pictures and the two of us told about who he was and what he liked.  On Friday I got to go in again, and this time he and I did a presentation on what it's like to live in NYC.  We had talked about making the Black & White cookies to share with his class so earlier this week I had collected all the ingredients and then Thursday came along and it was a crazy day -- our van windshield wipers has stopped working when I was driving to get Jacob from school and it was pouring rain!  The older kids and I had to pull over and Bryson left work to pick up Jacob and pick us up so that we could run him back to work and then drive home.  We were off-schedule, cranky and the timing was not working in the first place to make the cookies...so that by 8pm when I started to finally pull things out and realized I didn't even have a cookie sheet (mine were old & nasty so I threw them out when we moved)....I just figured I'd find some at a local bakery and serve those to Bryson's class.

Bryson had really wanted to make these cookies for his class with me - that boy loves to cook!  As we have church from 9am - 12noon we had most of the afternoon to bake and play games...so after the pudding was finished we started on the specialty of almost every deli or bakery in the city, the famous
Black & Whites! 

And a funny part to this story - I found the Black & White recipe while browsing many magazine articles while at Dr. Lord's office (the Dentist Dr. Lord the first week we had moved here).  I came across the recipe and wondered why I hadn't tried them before - which I know why as our kitchen was so small in the city I really gave up most fun cooking...but now, with a kitchen that I can actually work in I knew I'd have to try these.  


I pulled out my iphone and took a few photos of the recipe, which I told this story when we got to Nana & Papa Lord's house for Sunday dinner when someone asked where I'd found the recipe.  Papa Lord laughed and said that was the difference between our generations - he would have asked for a photo copy of the recipe, Nana said she'd probably have written it down by hand & I pulled out the phone to take a picture....I wonder what trajectory path our children are on....will there be some gadget that can produce the item on the spot?  Probably not, but I'm sure it will exceed what I did in "copying" the recipe down.  

I made a few tweaks in the recipe - I doubled the recipe and even then I don't think it made near the amount I had expected.  I need to get a cookie scoop so that I can get even amounts for each mound.  The spoon worked fine, however some of my edges were really scraggly and it would be nice to have more of the moon look of a perfect circle for these cookies.  Also, I put a little more lemon zest into the batter...probably by just 1/4 tsp. but I liked how it picked up the lemon flavor and then also I squeezed fresh lemon juice into the white frosting mixture as it tasted too much like powdered sugar.  I didn't measure, but I'm guessing 1/2 - 1 tsp. of lemon juice according to what your palette likes.  

The frosting takes awhile, so listen to music you like or bake with someone that you want to catch up with and enjoy talking because you'll be there for some time frosting these cookies!  The key is to do the white first - if you have time let it set up and then do the chocolate....we didn't have time so we did them at the same time and I was surprised how well the dividing line worked between the vanilla & chocolate.  There was no problem  with that - the only issue was that the frosting hardens up rather quickly so I made it in 1/2 batches or someone else on a blog I read put a little butter in hers which kept the frosting smooth and easy to work with.

Either way - these are delicious cookies that are enjoyed....the biggest question is how you'll eat them?  White first - or black first - or trying to get the perfect mix of black & white in every cookie (this last one is attributed to Jerry Seinfield in one his episodes, which I'd love to find....the classic episodes (meaning the clean ones) are so true to living in the city, Bryson and I laugh with new appreciation for that show!

While we were busy making the cookies, Jacob had taken our last game of Blokus and turned it into his art masterpiece where he created his version of The Empire State Buildling (the building is in red, blue clouds in the sky and then some trees or the playground (at Madison Square Park) is on the left. It looks like in the eyes of a child the tallest parts of a playground are close to that of the tallest building in NYC!

We had a fun afternoon enjoying time together, and making some memories of our time in NYC.  We are definitely enjoying many of the perks of living in a home, and being by family - however it's nice to give into memories and recreate things we loved about one of the great places we have lived.  

I'll make a list/post soon of all the things we love about the changes and the things we do miss.....as I said we are more than grateful to be here, and yet at the same time We Love NYC!  

Sparkles

Jacob just came out from his bed & I was waiting for whatever new tactic he has to get out of going to sleep.

He sat on the couch and started to fidget & when I asked if he needed to go to the bathroom he jumped up and started banging his foot on the ground.

"Is your foot asleep Jacob?" I asked

"No!", he said, "I just have sparkles!"

Sparkles - such a better name for having your foot asleep. Why don't kiddos invent more words?!

-----------------------------------

Author's Note:

Our home has a similar layout on the first floor as we did in our apartment - I'll take pictures eventually but imagine you walk in the front door and immediately is the living area and off to the left is the Master Bedroom with a small hallway and the upstairs bath and Jacob's bedroom at the end of the hallway...it's only a few steps from the Front Room :) I immediately felt so comfortable in this home on the walk through and since then everything has felt like it's in the right place. I love that it's similar enough to what we had in NY so the transition was easy, but it has a basement and doubled the square footage. What a great bonus!)

Now on to the story:

Jacob is now in his bed and trying to talk to Bryson & I out in the Living Room.

"Dad - do you have to go to work in New York tomorrow?"

"No buddy, I'm here working. "

"That's great! Dad, I like you here working."

.....I'm not sure that Jacob fully comprehends that we have moved

here and that we aren't moving back to NY. However, he does get that we have seen Bryson/Dad more in the past 3 weeks than we did in a few months back in the city.

That is indeed really great!

Merry Christmas!

It's been a month since my last post, which I very much dislike not posting more regularly....however our life has gone from the every day busy & crazy to all out, over-drive crazy!

We are moving to SLC, Utah in 5 days - we are packing the POD in 4 days. Life right now is in a holding pattern of Christmas magic for at least two days as we enjoyed a Christmas Eve & Christmas without packing any boxes. It was wonderful to just focus on the children and this important holiday - that was the deal from the beginning of last week when Bryson came home with an offer after his trip to Salt Lake. We talked about possibilities - he needs to work on January 3rd, but should I just stay here with the children while he travels back and forth, should we all just make the move & be ready for the New Year in a new state? We decided to take the opportunity to just jump - I've realized with our moves that whatever time frame we have, we'll take the full amount right up to the end in getting ready, saying goodbyes and preparing in whatever way we can on the moving side. There was no need to wait anylonger --- we knew that this NYC chapter is closing and it's time to open a new chapter in our life.

We have many feelings about this move and change at this time - excitement, sadness, anxiousness & relief....finding a job right now has been a huge blessing and we are really grateful that this job fits so many of the points Bryson wanted.

I have more thoughts - so many more & I didn't even touch on the drama and craze that was the PTA the last two weeks. It wouldn't be the school & PTA if I wasn't living in the middle of one of the most craziest times in that organization that I have every seen! I have told everyone I am writing a book on this experience there - I think it will mix the genres of comedy and tragedy, and it will be epic. I am not kidding when I say that many of us have stood with our mouths open many times this year at some of the scenes playing out, knowing that they can't write day-time drama like this....it's too real and golden for something to think this up!

As much as I want to write now - I need to pack. I'll continue to mull over my thoughts and feelings and get them ready to write down when I have some time after our move. We aren't sure quite yet where we will be living - we will stay with my mom and look for a home to rent in that area....because true to our life this adventure will most likely pave way to the next adventure which would be that we move to Logan with this company in the summertime. We were in shock when we heard that the owner of the company wanted to relocated up to Logan in about 6 months - however, the thought has really grown on us and if that is where we are to be than we will go there.

We are grateful that prayers were answered, and doors have continually be opened as we are preparing to move. We have been blessed and we know that we are watched over. We are thankful that the Lord has been mindful of our prayers and the prayers of our loved family & friends on our behalf. Those experiences as well will be written down - until then we will be packing, moving & trying to settled and unpack in a new place.

It has been the most wonderful and definitely the busiest time of the year!

very thankful

It might sound very materialistic...but today one of the greatest things I am thankful for is my wedding ring. I love it for all it symbolizes...however, I just love IT. And for having it back.

I haven't been able to find it for over a week. I went to put my ring on last week, and could only find my wedding band in my jewelry case. I looked through the little boxes where my other jewelry is housed, thinking I had dropped it into the wrong area. It wasn't there. I thought it might be in the car, up front where I dropped it into a water holder when I was putting lotion on my hands after church - however, I finally drove somewhere yesterday and the ring was not in the car like I hoped.

I asked Bryson (Sr.) if he were planning some surprise with my ring, and had taken it out to SL with him last week - that was about the last time I had seen it. He promised he hadn't - and I was partially relieved, but then frantic because I had no idea where my ring was. I offered the children $10 if they could find my ring. Where was it?!

Today, as the children were helping me to put up the Christmas decorations - they found a set of boxes that I have which stack inside each other and they decided to play a game where they put a treasure in the smallest box, and make someone open larger boxes first, then smaller sizes until they get down to a box that is jewelry size. I overhead Jacob getting excited about his turn to find something special to put in the boxes & then he turned them over to Madeleine to open.

She opened and opened and then I heard her say, "Jacob, where did you find a ring like Mom's? Is this a play ring?" I thought he had perhaps taken a play ring which I did have and put into the garbage last week and so I came over to their play over slowly - but then when I saw the ring Madeleine was holding, I exclaimed, "That IS the ring - that is my real ring!" I was so happy and a bit frustrated at the same time - where had Jacob had my ring?! I asked him, and he told me that he loved my ring so much, he had taken it and put it into his drawer. I tried not to think how easily it could have been lost by this point - but thankfully it wasn't lost and now the entire situation was figured out and I put my ring back on and gave Jacob a hug and also a reminder NOT to touch Mommy's jewelry! I gave him a $1 since the ring was returned....I just didn't realize I would be paying the person that had taken the ring in the first place!

Thanksgiving Day - Part I

Thanksgiving is brought to our family this year in 2 parts....Day 1 and Day 2. This option was given to us due to the fact that our family is sick. Again. and STILL! There is nothing like feeling and being sick to help you realize how thankful you are for good health!

We have been sick since Sunday - the crazy day when Bryson and I were sick, and Jacob was throwing up (see post from that day) and then Madeleine had the stomach bug on Tuesday night - we had everyone stay home from school on Wednesday as the coughing was going strong, and we hoped to have it clear the system so we could enjoy the parade, dinner and all the parts of a Thanksgiving celebration.

I went out last night to buy all the things for our dinner - yes it was the night before Thanksgiving and I was out trying to find food....I don't recommend that again, and yet with being in an apartment it's hard to buy food too much earlier! I was worried I had missed the chance for a turkey, as the grocery store I went to first was out, I called Costco to see if I could run by there to buy one - and they were out! I drove home by a different grocery store, and thankfully they had a few birds left. I had no idea turkeys could sell out! When I came home, the kiddos were busying to get ready for bed, excited to be up early so we could go to the parade. After they were in bed, Bryson and I were up talking and then started to pack up backpacks and getting out chairs for the parade. We decided on a plan to have him take Madeleine and stake out a place, and then the boys and I would follow a little bit after. We decided to have our Thanksgiving Dinner on Friday, so that we wouldn't have to worry about getting up even earlier to start the dinner, or to hurry home to finish it up....one event each day with how sick we all were sounded fine - and realistic.

Game plans are nice ideas - I'm just wondering if they work better on other families, because rarely do we actually do the plan that we talk about. Bryson work up feeling worse than the day before (he has some major swelling to his face, where the Dr. thought a saliva gland was clogged and a sinus infection - he gets at least one a year and they are terrible!) and so he decided to stay home and sleep in as the boys did not want to get up either....and I got up and went to the parade with Madeleine.

We left the house a little before 9am - there was no way at this time we would get great seats, let alone good standing room. We knew we'd probably not get close to the front at all, but we just wanted to see some of the balloons and check off from our bucket list that we went to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. And now that we've been - I have to say that seeing it from home is SO much better! You get better views, you don't have to wander down the maze of NYC streets trying to figure out which are closed and which are open, and you aren't standing behind crowds that are about 10 people deep to catch a view of the parade!

The best view we had of the parade was a fluke - we hopped off the subway at 57th Street and walked over to 7th Avenue where the parade was coming down & after going up and down the street twice, we ended up on the walkway part of the sidewalk, where the police officers were insistent that people continue to walk - there was no standing! That is we couldn't stand until we got caught at the red light (there were letting the traffic cross in between times of the parade) and we waited there for the light and had the best view of the balloons and floats that were coming by.

It was hard to have to move on (yet there wasn't any choice with so many NYPD officers hovering over), when I had the feeling that we wouldn't get quite the same view at another spot....and I was right. We tried walking down multiple streets and we could not get close to the parade again....sometimes we were back about 1/4 of the block - like here...thankfully the zoom on the camera got a better view than we did!

We did think that this balloon of the world was so cool - it looked like it was just floating through the streets and that there were no strings attached. We loved this one!

We finally made our way over to Columbus Circle and went inside the Time Warner building, to see if we could catch a glimpse of the parade from upstairs...which the view wasn't close, but it was a very unique view!

I love these glass stars that hang from the ceiling - at night they light up into different colors for a light show to music - we need to come back at night to see the entire show, yet they are still magnificent hanging from the atrium ceiling at any time of day!

This was a piece of artwork on the top floor that Madeleine and I loved. It has major places from around the city printed over each other - it was fun to stop and see which places we love that we could find!

After we viewed the parade from all 3 stories and realized we just didn't get the view we wanted, we went downstairs to the basement to get a hot chocolate from Whole Foods. That set us back about 40 minutes, as the machines broke while we were there and they were trying to serve about 30 people their hot drinks and it was CHAOTIC! By the time we got back outside, we saw the end of Kermit going down 59th Street....

And then we saw the little Macy's men floating along which signaled the coming of....

Santa Clause! Thankfully there was a steel post near us that opened up, so Madeleine was able to stand on it to get a better view & we watched the jolly old man wave to the crowd and shout out 'Merry Christmas'!...at least I assume that is what he was shouting, we weren't actually close enough to hear him, so it could have been 'Ho, Ho, Ho!' as well :)

After we saw the Believe balloons floating by, people turned and started to walk past us, which meant finally the front of the parade route was finally open! Madeleine and I boogied right up to the gates and positioned ourselves where everyone had left & then I looked around....everyone was moving - what was going on? It took me just a few moments to realize between everyone moving away from the parade and no more floats or balloons or people walking along the parade route....that it was done. What?! I suppose the 40 minutes spent getting a hot chocolate had something to do with that!

Although the event did not go exactly like I had thought or we had planned....that is life. We have realized with a bit of a laugh, relief at lowering some expectations and perhaps a tinge of sadness with letting some ideas go to the wayside - someone(s) in our family is usually sick during most holidays. And unfortunately, with a day like today - having a glitch in the idea is hard because you can't really recreate the event next week, or month....it's a yearly thing! We have made our bucket list of things we really want to do here in NYC, and because our time here might be trickling down if a job offer comes through - we are working to get our items checked off in case there isn't a next year option for us. Just in case :)

We did miss the boys, yet it was nice to have some time with just Madeleine and myself....and it was a lot easier cruising through the crowds with just the two of us. Bryson doesn't have a lot of patience for crowds & the way I work to get to the "perfect" spot - the way Madeleine and I moved locations the entire time we were at the parade would not have bode very well...and the boys can get a little crazy (all the time) - so as much as they were missed, perhaps in the end we each did what we all really like to do.

And now we can say CHECK off for the Macy's Day Parade. And just a note - it is worth it to do it once. Once was great. And other years are really great watching it on the couch, and seeing everything close up.

Happy 1st Day of Thanksgiving ----

and tomorrow we will have Celebration Take 2!

kiss & tell

After Jacob gave me multiple kisses on the cheek - he looked at me and said,

"I give you so many kisses, maybe I'll marry you Mommy!"

I love this boy's tender heart!