Extra-Thankful Thanksgiving

We were especially thankful this Thanksgiving because besides being Thanksgiving, it was also Catherine's first birthday.  Yes, I really did say that........Catherine is one!  Boy, that year went quickly, and it certainly is true, time flies when you're having fun!  There was much to celebrate.  Catherine is, quite simply, pure joy.  She is such a happy girl, and she loves being around her family and friends.  She loves people.  She is always ready with a smile and a wave, and her face lights up when she sees someone to wave to.  She is very curious.  She loves the world, is full of wonder, and loves to explore everything around her.  Catherine is very snuggly and loves holding hands and giving hugs, but she is also very independent.  She'll let anyone hold her and is at her happiest out and about.  I didn't think it was possible, but my heart became even more full with Catherine in my life.  I had no idea I was missing her so completely until she filled me up so perfectly with her love, her warmth, and her joy.  She is the greatest blessing, and we are so very thankful for our sweet, sweet, baby girl.  We love you Catherine!

Cars, Cars, Cars

The cars in our house have it pretty good.  On special days, they all line up to watch the big race.  Then, of course, when it's over, they crowd around the winner to congratulate him.  Those cars sure are thoughtful!

Back to the Park

It seems like forever since we've done what we used to spend all our time doing......hit up the park.  Lately, I'm not sure where our time goes, but it feels like the days pass so quickly and we're so busy with school.  We've scaled back our after-school activities, and we've all been enjoying some serious playtime in the afternoons.  On a lovely afternoon, we decided to take a bike ride to the park.  It was awesome.  Our day went from blah to great in no time flat.  The kids were so excited to break out their bikes and I put Catherine on the back of my bike and we were off.  There's just nothing like riding a bike together.  It's so freeing, so fun, so liberating.  We rode to the park, played all around, enjoyed the swings and the play structure, and just had fun.  I felt, well, like me.  The me that loves to be outside, watching the kids playing, joining in their games and fun.  It was so great to break out of the monotony of school work and chores and to just enjoy being outside together.  What a great reminder to take more time for bike rides and parks!

And.....

......she's off!  It's amazing to watch......truly, it never gets old........little by little, inch by inch, babies put it all together and they figure it out.  They learn how to go from total immobility to off and running.  It's miraculous, when you stop and think about it.  Catherine has been cruising for quite some time, and walking pretty steadily holding our hands.  We would see her take a step or two here and there, and then she'd sink down and start crawling around.  Well, now it's all clicked.  She's mastered that amazing combination of confidence and skill and she's walking all around.  I love this stage!  I love, love, love, seeing babies toddle around, checking their balance, smiling at their new-found skill, so happy to see the world from a new point of view.  Those first few steps are so precious, because they're not slow and  cautious for long.  Before we know it, those steps will turn into running, and then we'll really be busy.

Leaf Pile Fun

We had probably our best Fall walk the other day.  It was one of those afternoons I just didn't want to end because the kids were so happy and we were all having so much fun.  We went for an afternoon walk, as we often do, and we were admiring and looking for fall leaves to decorate our home.  That's a pretty easy task as there are so many breathtaking leaves around.  Truly, I just love all the bright colors and unique shapes.  Some of these trees stop me in my tracks because they are just so beautiful, like a colorful painting waiting to be admired.  We saw Trevor and Connor playing outside, so they joined us on our walk.  We decided to swing by the "leaf pile."  The "leaf pile" is, quite literally, a giant leaf pile that one of our neighbors leaves in his front yard all during the fall.  He has an enormous tree that drops thousands of leaves, and all the kids love raking and then jumping in the enormous leaf pile.  On this particular day, the kids just couldn't get enough.  They rolled around in the leaves, buried themselves, jumped in them, and piled them as high as they could.  There was tons of laughter and silliness, and it felt like one of those magical afternoons we'll all remember for a long time.

A Wonderful View

If I look down these days, this is my view........a tiny, adorable little body walking next to me, pointing, waving, and enjoying the world.  It's pretty awesome.  Catherine is taking more and more steps these days, but most of them are while holding onto my hand, which is just perfect with me.  I love her slow, careful, pace, and the wonderful way she happily takes it all in.  I know very soon she won't have to hold my hand all the time, so for now, I'll cherish each step we take together.

Halloween

Halloween..........it was one of those storybook days that I'll remember for a long time.  It was so lovely, so fun, so dreamy, so weird how it went off without a hitch.  It was just a great day packed full of fun times with our kids and wonderful friends.  We started off early.  We picked up Grandma at the train station and raced over to Lizzy's school for her special snack.  Grandma loved walking Catherine all around, and Lizzy loved getting to zoom around in her butterfly costume.  Next, we went to Peter's school for his parade.  Miraculously, Catherine fell asleep for a short nap, so we were able to focus on Peter and his darling classmates as they paraded around school and sung Halloween songs.  Next, we zipped over to the mall for a quick lunch and then headed to Lizzy's school for her parade.  Lizzy was in heaven walking around with her eighth grade buddy, Lizzy.  We ran Grandma back to the train station, then, miracle of all miracles, all three kids took a nap!  I told you, this day was incredible.  We woke up just in time to head over to a neighbor's house for a super fun pizza party, meet up with our friends, and then hit the town for some trick-or-treating.  Whew!  What a day!  Every minute was busy, but boy were the kids having fun.  I was amazed at how well everyone hung in there, and what a special, magical day it was.  Happy Halloween, indeed!