I decided to fly Bags in over Thanksgiving weekend. It was decided that she would spend Thanksgiving with Dustin and then come to us the day after. In contrast to past years, Jim and I didn't get any Thanksgiving invitations. I certainly wasn't going to make a Thanksgiving feast for my little, unappreciative crowd. Bags and I planned to make a relatively simple Thanksgiving dinner on Friday, which meant that Jim and I had a lovely free day on Thursday with our family, no obligations.
We decided to go for a six-mile hike. It took pretty much all day and wasn't the nicest. It was mostly unshaded and desolate. The water feature at the end was fun but hard to enjoy with adventurous littles (particularly Wrenzo) who don't want to stay put in safe places. We enjoyed strawberries and whipped cream by the water and then headed out pretty quickly. Ever had to go to the bathroom on the trail multiple times. That was rough, although Jim dealt with it. I gave Ever and Wren unlimited chocolate bunny snacks on the way back. Ever also periodically got taffy for the "taffy power" it (theoretically) gave her. It was a long hike for her, and it was slow going. The snacks got us through.
Lunch break:
We tried to take some shenaniquin shots. They didn't really work out:
The strawberry break:
Strong finish by Missy:
During the death march, Jim offered Ever treats and a movie for her efforts. We hit McDonald's on the way home and then had treats while watching The Wizard of Oz (continuing our tradition of watching the movie after reading the book).
The hike was a little ambitious and not the prettiest, but it was really great to get out. I think a Thanksgiving hike should be a tradition from now on.
Tyna has quite a head of hair. Rooster top, bald spot, and mullet:
During a joint bath, Ever and Wren started washing each other's bellies. It was cute but also a little uncomfortable for me.
I think Wrenzy is saying she's "coldy" in that video. I taught her that word. She has since added y's to other words. She calls the moon "moony" and spoons "spoonies."
The first week of November, Jim took Thursday and Friday off to study for his peds boards. He hit his weekend goal early, so we went on a family run that Saturday morning.
We saw some trails and decided to explore. The family run turned into a little exploratory hike with our two giant strollers. This hill was exciting:
Jim with the double stroller
Me with the single
On the Monday before election day, Ever learned all about the election in preschool. Miss Paula told them about Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, and then they had an election to choose between two fictional characters (from TV shows, I think). One candidate campaigned on a promise to provide extended outdoor play time; the other promised to give them doughnuts. When I picked up Luc and Ever after school, they were very excited and told me all about it. They started calling Trump "Donald Trumpet" and Clinton "Hillary Kitten." It was pretty funny. I loved that Miss Paula taught them about that. They even had "I voted" stickers, to which they were very emotionally attached.
Speaking of Luc, we continued our Monday afternoon play dates. He and Ever drive each other crazy a lot of the time, so the play dates weren't usually super-relaxing for me. When they play nicely, though, it's very cute. A friendly game of doctor:
Susan seems to think they do pretty well when they're at her house, but I think that's because she keeps them busy with crafts and other activities:
In other news, Wrenzy's body-slamming continues:
Nothing warms my heart more than sister love:
Chubby Cheeks started rolling onto her side and then her belly. How's this face?
Wrenzy pointing out the rolling:
Sometimes Wrenzy slides behind Jim on the couch and then pulls him back so he crushes her. This time Ever was in on the crunch:
Sleepy eyes:
Coffee table dance party:
Often Wrenzy's version of dancing is doing circles (apologies for the vacuum sound):
Ever took the dance party featured below very seriously. Wrenzy sometimes circled and sometimes downward dogged. Each had a small sticker stuck to the hair in the back of her head.
Wrenzy did some more legit bopping when we listened to cousin Anders (via video) killing it on the piano:
When Ever lies down on the floor, Wren immediately lies down next to her. Copycat:
Laundry basket fun:
Always-happy Tyna:
Wren usually puts at least one foot up on the tray of the high chair when she eats. It's cute but also makes me crazy because of the added mess. I love this picture of her:
After about 18 months, Wrenzy started talking a ton. In no time, she went from saying a few words to saying four- or five-word sentences and repeating everything. It was amazing. I tried to capture a few of my favorites. "I love you" usually sounds like "I la loo." This video doesn't quite get it:
"All dirty" is a cute one:
I've turned her into a clean freak already. I started calling yucky/dirty things "yuck-yuck." She uses that term all the term, but when she says it, it usually sounds more like "yuck-luck":
Wrenzy has gone through a good gibberish phase. As far as Jim and I recall, Ever never really did that; she just went straight to talking. Some Wrenzy babble:
Goosey is the best reader (listener). As of mid-November, we'd read The Wizard of Oz, Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little, Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass (those were a little tough), Thimble Summer, Fantastic Mr. Fox, James and the Giant Peach, and The BFG. Pretty impressive for a four-year-old, eh? We went on to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which she loved. I made her pose after we finished The BFG:
Tyna got sick, and I ignored it for a while. Finally took her in, and the doctor confirmed she had bronchiolitis. We had to use a nebulizer for a while to help open her up. Poor little thing:
Susan suggested we meet at the park one day. It was so hard to get out that I vowed never to do it again. I had to neglect the kids to prepare for the outing. Tyna was left crying on the couch because I couldn't put her down for her nap. Wrenzy wanted to eat and/or be held. I was trying to get food ready to take to the park but had to keep stopping to feed her. Then Ever wanted to start eating her lunch. And Tyna spit up on herself and me. We got about 45 minutes at the park before we had to leave to get back for late afternoon naps.
We enjoy some nice sunsets from our house:
Jim was tasked with buying Lucy's birthday card. He came home with a few options, none of which were very good. The best of the bunch said, "Guess what?" on the outside and "chicken butt" on the inside. (Like I said, not good.) I wrote a note to Lucy and then gave the card to Ever to draw a picture. I laughed when I saw it. She traced the imprint of "guess what?" from the outside (so it was all backward) and copied "chicken butt" and the picture of the chicken, of course having no idea what she was writing:
Tummy time:
Wrenzy beating up on her big sister:
Lastly, I said something once about when Ever is a babysitter, and she said, "I'm not going to be a babysitter. I'm going to be the president." So that's exciting.
