Drumstick Dash 5k and Thanksgiving!

We've watched Kim run the Drumstick Dash 5k on Thanksgiving morning when we were visiting her the past two Thanksgivings. Since we live here now, we decided to participate in the family walk. We registered all 8 of us (4 Seths, Kim & Chad, and Nana & Grandpa) but unfortunately Owen had a fever the past two days so he stayed home with Dada since it was going to be so cold (high of 35 but only 28 at "race" time). 

Mama and Willow are ready to "dash!"

We had plenty of company!

This is about half way...with everyone walking about the same pace without much option otherwise =)

The 5 steps across the finish line that I forced Willow to take. The rest of the time I pushed her in the stroller. I think she would've walked more had it been 10-20 degrees warmer =)

Willow and Nana did a great job weaving placemats for everyone. Looks like we could use a bigger table!

Chad did a great job entertaining the kids while we cooked.

Owen, still not feeling the greatest, had one bite of stuffing and two bites of roll for his Thanksgiving dinner =(  Poor Buddy.

Willow was determined that she wanted to eat the drumstick!

Alli gets a special Thanksgiving dinner, too!

After-dinner shenanigans.

Preschool Thanksgiving party

Willow's preschool class had a holiday party that parents were invited to. Thankfully Daddy and Nana (and Owen) were able to attend and video for me (and you!) to enjoy as well! Here are a couple songs they sang: "I'm Glad I'm Not a Turkey" and "The Turkey-Pokey."

Books, blocks, and an artist-in-the-making

We're excited that Nana and Grandpa are moving to a town about 45 minutes away from us! Nana flew here a few weeks ago and Grandpa drove in a couple days ago. It'll be great to have them so close for the majority of the year!

Pretty impressive block stack for a 19 month old!

Daddy's impressed by the cantilever. Mama's impressed he thought to lay the cylinder block down.

We knew Daddy is an artist but we're super impressed with Willow's drawing of Daddy's drawing!

Christmas (aka Candy) Parade

Since we're new to the area I sometimes check out a website that has events for kids in our area listed. I came across a Christmas parade in a neighborhood we'd actually been looking into so we decided to check it out. We got there pretty early, not knowing how big it would be. A few minutes before the parade started we noticed that most of the kids around us had bags and were talking about candy. Little did we know, the people in the parade were going to hand out candy! It was a fun surprise and a pretty decent parade as well!

The guys from the co-op definitely had the most fun participating in the parade. They didn't have candy, but threw leaves instead =)

 Wasn't expecting to see this:

or this:

Santa on the firetruck:

It was like Halloween all over again!

Willow's PreK "report card"

We had our first parent-teacher conference with Willow's preschool teacher this year. She had wonderful things to say about how great Willow is doing in preschool. We asked about how well she listens and interacts with her peers and it sounds like she's doing great overall. Her only request was that Willow respond better when it's time to clean up. 

They also administered the PALS literacy screening (which I'm very familiar with from school!). It may seem foreign when looking at the chart below, but essentially she's at or above where the goal is for preschoolers to be in the spring! Good job, Willow!

Turkey Art

We enjoyed a quiet Saturday afternoon of painting and making turkey art. We haven't painted much with Owen so we weren't sure how he'd react to having his hand painted. After watching Willow, Mama, and Dada paint their hand and put it on the paper, he was more than willing to have his painted also! Good job, Buddy!

Our turkey family!

 Willow and Owen enjoyed making paper turkeys the next morning too! Willow did a great job of writing her friends' names from preschool.

What a festive door!

Mayhem with Grandparents

We always enjoy visits with Gramps and Gramma. Here's evidence of the laughter (chasing) we hear when they come to town. More fun times here (catch). They came by for a few days before heading to a wedding nearby. Gramma isn't one to wear dresses often so we were sure to get a picture of both ladies dressed up:

The kids (Gramma included) enjoyed some mayhem in the leaf pile in the backyard:

We went up to a scenic overlook of town from a mountaintop, but unfortunately this was all we saw:

The drive up was still scenic and they had a fun playground so it was still worth the outing.

We have to ensure that Gramps and Gramma get their fill of Chick-fil-A when they're in town. And you can't miss out on the seasonal peppermint chocolate chip milkshakes!!