And so it goes....

That I never make time to blog. I would rather sit with my kids than blog on the computer! I am shooting for just once a month, at this point. Anyway, we had a good month of November, despite spending a good amount of it sick. We've all had our turns throwing up. Most recently myself and J. It isn't fun when the kid throwing up doesn't quite understand that he needs to get sick in a bowl. This just means a lot of laundry and carpet cleaning. Fortunately, it was time to clean some of the carpets anyway.

So, we are home sick today. I am getting over it and J just got sick last night. He seems a little better this morning.

We had a really nice Thanksgiving break. I love that being a teacher allows me so much time off. On Wed. of break, the boys had a dentist appt. C was awesome and J did better than last time. At least he sat in the chair, but he threw a toothbrush, so we're working on it. My cousin J babysat the boys that afternoon, so that I could do some Christmas shopping and errands. It was a really nice break and I got some things done.

The boys made some really fun Thanksgiving crafts at their schools and we made a little Thanksgiving tree on paper at home.

The day of Thanksgiving, we had a nice dinner at my mom's house. Some of her brothers and sisters were there with their kids and everyone had a good time. The kids had a little table of their own and they liked the turkey. This is the boys with my cousin's little girl.

The day after Thanksgiving, I attempted to get up early and go shopping for a toy that I wanted to get for the boys. Little did I realize Wal-Mart didn't close at all, so people got there early, took everything and just waited for hours in line. I left, went home, got back into bed and went back to Target later in the morning. This ordeal just reinforced the fact that I hate Wal-mart. Grrr....

After I shoppped, we got out all of the Christmas decorations. The boys really had fun helping sort the different branches of the tree. Once they did that, J helped Dad put up the whole tree while C relaxed on the couch. J is such a big helper and always is looking for ways to help out. They really enjoyed putting the decorations on the tree this year. I guess because they are getting bigger. Many of the decorations were clustered around the bottom of the huge 9 ft. tree that we have, but, hey, they can only reach so high. C especially enjoyed looking at the decorations he made last year in preschool and putting those up.

That Friday evening, we visited the Durham Western Heritage Museum for the tree lighting ceremony. They also had cookie decorating, some crafts, and of course, Santa and Mrs. Claus were there. C actually sat on Santa's lap and asked for a camera and the game Mousetrap for Christmas. After he was done, he ran over to me and said, "Darn it, I forgot to ask Santa if he can really fly." J kept his distance the whole time. After the Durham, we walked around Gene Leahy Mall to see the lights.

Saturday we finished with the decorations and Doug started to not feel well. The neighbors invited us over for wings and beer, so I took the boys next door to play with their favorite little girl, G. We had a really great time, and Adrienne next door makes the best wings and homemade bread. Doug was really sad to miss wings. They are probably one of his favorites. I ate a lot and the boys loved playing. We made plans with them for New Year's Eve--a nice dinner with some good snacks and the kids can play. I can't wait.

Sunday of that weekend was spent picking up the house and getting ready to go back to school. Doug also put up the outside lights. So now we are officially done with decorations. We also had an inside picnic because it's getting so cold outside. The boys had fun with this.

So now November is over. I don't know where the time went. It snowed this morning, and I can't believe it's almost Christmas. My shopping is done, so I am hoping to spend the remaining days making cookies with the boys and enjoying some holiday activities. Once Christmas is over, C's birthday is right around the corner-just four days after. We are in the process of planning his birthday and he is so excited for it this year. The big 5!! I can't believe it. How time flies.

So, probably until next month.....

Odds and Ends

So, I have a feeling when I do get around to posting this is how it will be. I will write about a whole month's worth of activities all in one post. It will be a bunch of odds and ends all tied in together.

This month we've done quite a few fun activities. We started with making pumpkin tie-dye shirts. The boys really enjoyed this and they turned out really well. They wore their shirts to the pumpkin patch. Here are some photos of that....

Friday night of this weekend, we took the boys trick-or-treating at the mall. We've never done this before, and it was a last minute decision. The boys had a lot of fun. They are going as Power Rangers this year. Let it be noted that I am not a big fan of Power Rangers.

Hmm, let's see, what else....Today is my birthday. I got up early and went for my Sunday run with my friends. Then we sat and had some gooooood coffee at a local coffee shop by the local running store. I had the Nutty Squirrel and it was fantastic. We chatted about politics and running stuff and it was so nice. When I got home, the boys and D had made me brownies and some really nice birthday cards. Each of them made me a card telling me why they loved me.


It's been a really nice birthday, so far!

The Chicago Marathon

Last weekend, I ran the Chicago marathon. It was my first in Chicago, but my second marathon. I loved it. Well, actually while running, I hated it. But by the next day, I had decided I would run it again. Hopefully, I can get there again in 2009. I had a great trip to the city. I arrived early Friday morning and met my long lost friend, Jeanne, at Union Station. We got coffee and sat and talked for a while catching up, which was so nice. Then we walked all over the city and ended up at Potbelly's for lunch. It is a great sandwhich place. We went to the marathon expo, Trader Joe's and finally to the condo where we were staying. It was such a fun day without kids! So relaxing.

Saturday we headed downtown to meet my running friends at the Hilton. I met up with Krista and Dave and we went to the expo again. We walked around a bit and then went for a big pasta dinner. I had an excellent night of sleep the night before the race. The race itself was fantastic. So many spectators, so much to see. I loved running through all the neighborhoods of the city. I felt run down and tired while running. It was a hard run, and I was glad it was over eventually. Here are some photos from the weekend. Unfortunately, I don't really have any of me and Jeanne. : (

Me picking up the very important "packet."

Me and Krista at the expo on Saturday.

Me and Krista the morning of the race.

A photo of the runners.

Here I Go Again

Okay, so I finally broke down and decided to do another blog. I figure it will be a good way to record things and keep friends and family up to date on what we do. I might not post very often, and it probably won't be very exciting or innovative, but oh well!
I decided to title it Full Circle, because I kind of feel settled and feel like I am right where I should be. We love being back in Nebraska and I love my teaching job.
We have a good weekend planned. Last night we made monster cookies with the boys and this morning we made tie-dye pumpkin t-shirts. Now we're settling down for a movie, while the shirts dry. Later today we will get our pictures taken down at a local park. I try and get our photos taken at least once a year as a family. I love having them done in the fall. A girl I run with will do the photos. Hopefully J cooperates, as he usually hates having his pictures taken.
Tomorrow, I will go running and then head out to a local pumpkin patch! The boys are really looking forward to this.