Novemeber 2019

We kicked off November by digging into the Christmas bins. I like to tell myself I'm not that person, but October brought really cold temps and several snow storms, so I figured getting in the Christmas spirit would help make all that winter (in fall) weather more bearable. 

And trust me, that winter weather wasn't going anywhere ...

I snapped all those photos on Nov 6th, to memorialize my final moments with a two-year-old. Man, two-year-olds have consistently been some of my favorites! Mara was pretty happy to go to Target and pick out her own new toy with the money Grandma and Gradnpa B sent. Little did I know that same day Grandma and Grandpa S bought it for her via amazon, ha! She's pretty spoiled by all the people who love her. 

I called Ben to say goodnight when he was down at his work conference on the 6th. Reid and Nell came up to tell me to be quiet, but instead the whole conversation turned into a big party with Ben going through every photo filter possible. This was right after Halloween, so some of them were pretty scary and the end result was that all four kids slept with me in my bed! Nell was at the foot of the bed, and at about 3 am I snuck out and tried to get some sleep by myself in Mara's bed. Quiet the night! I guess this was probably about the start of months of terrible sleep. 

The next several photos could be titled, "Mara sleeps everywhere (but her bed)"

This was at like 10am at a High School Veteran's Day assembly. That gymnasium was not quiet and we were basically the front row. Coraline loved wearing my school board name tag. 

A few days later, in my bed (cause mom needs naps too!)

A few days later, snuggled in the rocking chair downstairs. 

And yet a few days later, all by herself, while watching TV and with hand on toy! Girl needs more Zzzzs!

All the Christmas gifts started arriving mid-November, and the kids saw this as even better than Christmas. I can't tell you how many fights there were over who gets what box, who drew on who's box, etc, etc. Things turned south real quick when Nell started using one box as a chair. Aren't I such a good mom, to take a photo while trying to stifle giggles before rescuing her from a clearly torturous situation? 

A few things not photoed happened in November as well (shocking, I know). Reid and Nell had their piano recital and both did an excellent job with their pieces. Right after the recital Nell had a birthday party to attend in Appleton. Well, now that I think about it I probably could swipe some photos of each of these events from facebook. Perhaps I will! Lucky little Boops actually had a birthday party the following day as well! It felt like a weekend straight out of heaven for that sweet 7-year-old girl. 

She also had her school concert in November. The theme was Disney Heroes and Villians, so the kids were given some creative choices for dressing up. She was the most animated little princess on stage! I should up load the video here. I must have watched it four dozen times the next day. It was absolutely wonderful. Girl's got a future in musicals, I'm sure. 

Her sisters obviously had to dress up as Princess' as well. And Coraline was over the moon excited when her friend Kora came to sit with us. 

We finally, finally had some nice Fall weather. And good thing cause we have tons of leaves to rake up each year. The kids only had about an hour to play in them before we shoved them each in bags and sent them away to compost in a friends' private wetland. 

Reid and Nell each made posters to hang up at school. Reid's was about saving the ocean and Nell's was about creating a bully free school. There teachers were so kind to let them bring them to school. This was all after the Church's new roll out of the new Children's program. It'll be fun to see what other goals they set for themselves in the coming years. I have big ideas on how to tackle that coming up soon. 

Coraline and Mara shared their 3 and 5 year old well check ups. Reid and Nell shared theirs back in October. I'm all about efficiencies here. Also in November, Reid had his final check up for his kidney issue (the one they caught at my 20 week ultrasound). The tube leading in (or out) of his kidney is finally down to normal size (which is why it was his last check up). For the most part I'd completely forgotten about the issue, and was even a year or two over due on this visit. But all along they said "It'll probably just resolved itself." Sure seems like a lot of trouble though when I look back at all the screenings and procedures they did right after he was born up until about his fifth year of life. I mean, they shoved a tube up his urethra at just a few days old (so much for avoiding that kind of private part pain by forgoing circumcision). This one health issue sure does exemplify the changes in health insurance through the years though. This last visit cost over $170 and those first ones (that were more frequent and intense) were never more than $25-$50. It's nonsense. Anyway, check out these two best friends!

On the first day of Thanksgiving break the kids were invited to Ripon College for a special read in. The whole day was Hogwarts themed and absolutely adorable. They got donuts, hot cocoa, butter beer, and pajama fun with some of their favorite friends. I sure love our little Town of Algoma, Oakwood/Lakebreeze neighborhood. 

Thanksgiving was wonderful. We were invited over to the Horton family's house. That thrilled Coraline beyond explanation. Her excitement was all worth it, of course. Debbie had crafts and games all planned out for the kid crowd. We also played a handful of adult board games afterward. The meal itself was delicious. The whole evening sure made us grateful for such wonderful friends.