Thanksgiving Break

We had the entire week off, and Kevin and I were determined not to waste the time. But we really weren't successful, I guess sometimes having a slow week and just hanging out can be okay too.

We started with a fashion show. I like to watch Say Yes to the Dress, so Braelyn got out all her dress-ups and would try one on, then stand on a stool in front of the mirror and we would each give our critiques of the outfit, what we liked and didn't like and if we said Yes or No. She posed for some pictures and Berkley just kissed her reflection in the mirror.

The next day Braelyn got to go to a princess party at her friend Gracie's. She loved making a crown and helping Gracie opening her presents by plopping them in her lap then yelling, "Open this Grace!" She was just as excited as the birthday girl was.

Later that week Kevin knew we were a little stir crazy so he took us to McDonalds for dinner and playing and then we went to the last farmer's market of the season, "Shop by Lantern." This was so much fun for me. There were booths with crafts and yummy food everywhere, and everything looked really special because of the lanterns. There was a man singing old songs and his little daughter was dancing in front so both of my girls joined her and the three put on such a cute show that there was a crowd gathered around after the first song. They had organic produce and one farm that produces eggs had a chicken named Cleo at their booth. It was in a cage but I still watched Kevin and the girls check it out from across the parking lot. We kept seeing people with bags of kettle corn and when we got to the booth it was our friends the Corks. They gave us a huge bag of the yummiest kettle corn. Someone else was giving out balloons and Braelyn handed me hers, but I didn't notice in time and it slipped into the sky. She cried and cried but Kevin saved the day by running and getting a new one, and he told her that he jumped up high and saved her balloon. I'm not sure if she fell for it, but she was happy to have a balloon nonetheless. I just wish we had discovered this fun activity sooner. Everyone was so nice and the girls had fun looking at all the crafts and trying the fresh veggies. This small town feel has been one of my favorite things about living here, there is such a strong sense of community.

We also spent one day in Savannah. We went to the Jepson Art Museum. There are 3 museums on this block, 2 are in beautiful historic buildings and the third is a very cool modern building. We started there and I loved walking through the exhibits. Berkley took a particular interest in a statue of a mother holding a small boy. She walked around and around this statue staring intently, then walked up to the backside, pointed and said, "Bum." The reason we picked this place is because they had a children's ArtZeum. They had lots of interactive exhibits and things that taught kids (and me and Kevin) about the history of art and different kinds and artists. Kevin loved building with the wooden blocks, and Braelyn spent a lot of her time at a little table where she said she was the teacher and she would draw each of her pretend kids names on little squares of paper. She was very proud when she had the entire wall filled up. I followed Berkley around while she ate marshmallows. They had a phone set up and you were supposed to pick it up and answer the question, "What painting would you take with you if you went to the moon?" Braelyn picked up the phone and after listening for a second, she looked at me with a very surprised look and said, "Mom, I'm moving to the moon!" (Lots of pics!)

Then it was time for lunch and we drove all around finding a parking space and we found one across from River Street but soon found the restaurants there were way more than we wanted to spend, but we did wander through the shops and the candy stores. We eventually found this little place called B&D burgers. They had like 50 different kind of burgers and sweet potato fries. Our food was really yummy and the staff was so nice to the girls. They have an eating challenge where you have to eat a 3-lb burger and 1-lb of fries in 40 minutes, and Kevin is determined to go back and do that next time.

After lunch we went to Forsyth Park. This is the park in Savannah with the huge fountain you often see pictures of. The day was kind of overcast so it made the huge trees and hanging Spanish moss look even more dramatic. The fountain was lovely and the girls played on the playground while we listened to the speakerphone when my brother Taylor opened his mission call. He got called to the Long Beach California Spanish speaking mission! We are very excited for him. Last stop was a walk through the mall where they have a another playground for the girls and an ice cream cone. It was late by the time we left and we were very grateful for the DVD player to keep the girls quiet on the trip.

Thanksgiving day was very relaxed but while I was making the mashed potatoes our garbage disposal broke, so poor Kevin spent his day cleaning that out. Yuck! My dyer also broke that week so we had clothes and dishes making a mess everywhere. My mom had sent the girls a family home evening lesson with a magnet story about the first Thanksgiving and pilgrim and Indian finger puppets and a letter for each of us to write what we were thankful for. Braelyn's mostly focused on her toys and Christmas tree, but she loved telling me the story of the pilgrims with the magnets. We went to dinner at a family from our ward' house. The mother is Braelyn's nursery teacher and my visiting teacher and we were so glad they invited us. I am used to lots of people and kids and playing since I have a big family on both sides, so it was a little different to actually sit down and serve off the dishes in front of you, as opposed to doing it buffet style and waiting in line! The food was so, so good! Berkley sat in her high chair and ate and ate, then when we put her down she went to the kids table and climbed up and proceeded to clean off each of the plates left there. We played some games, and Braelyn had a fun time playing with their son Zach, who has autism, but seemed to like playing with her, and Berkley decided she needed to be undressed down to the diaper, though everyone said they didn't mind. After dinner we went over to the Van Tassels to finish with some playing and talking. We missed family but couldn't have asked for a better day.

Kevin loves the Black Friday madness and wanted to get up really early but I did not want to so we didn't go until about 9:30. A lot of the big things were gone but I did pick up a few gifts and Christmas dresses for the girls. It is very hard to navigate the crowds with little ones and we were all worn out by lunchtime. I think I will stick to online shopping from now on.

We ended our week with a bang unfortunately. Kevin had Berkley on our bed to watch a movie with Braelyn and she nose-dived off and scraped her nose off on the carpet. We were going to have a friend take family pictures but I decided to wait. Although I could have dressed her up as Rudolph I guess!