November 2008: week 4 - Thanksgiving

Otherwise, weeks 2 and 3 were a huge blur to me in November. I just survived having Sam gone for his trips and then worked on recovery once he got back.

Week 4 started off with Elaine turning 5 months old!

Happy 5 months birthday, Elaine!

Elaine also hit a couple of milestones lately. She started to respond to her name on Thanksgiving day! She also has mastered the art of rolling back to belly to back again. She actually learned to roll onto her belly a month or so ago (that's when the longer naps started). She just figured out how to get back onto her back. It's a little painful to watch, but here is one of her earliest moments:




By the end of Thanksgiving weekend, she made the switch to formula milk. Yes, I was just a month shy of the 6-month goal, but felt like I needed it to happen. Elaine took the switch very well. In fact, she started to sleep longer through the night on formula, which was SO NICE!!!!

Aside from having the stomach bug going through our house Thanksgiving week (that was a lot of fun and laundry), this is how we spent our 2008 Thanksgiving:

Natalie did become quite the drummer!

Having not fully recovered from Sam's long trips to Hong Kong and Minneapolis, we decided to get Thanksgiving food from the Bread Garden. It was quite yummy and nice not to slave in the kitchen. I did cook the less stressful garlic/lemon chicken and potatoes meal (sort of looked like a turkey) the next day. I guess I had a little guilt about not cooking some sort of bird for Thanksgiving!

The busy month of November 2008 - Week One

The month of November started off to be a busy one. Sam left on November 5th for his teaching trip to Hong Kong. He would come home on the 17th for one night then leave on the 18th for a workshop (conference) in Minneapolis through the 21st. So, I tried to prepare myself for about 2 & 1/2 weeks on my own with the 3 kids. However, I didn't quite get mentally nor physically prepared by the time Sam left that Wednesday afternoon.

Thursday, Novemeber 6th: I had just finished a simple dinner of noodles with the kids when the doorbell rang. I opened up to find my dad, mom and brother standing at my front door! They'd come for a short yet surprise visit! What perfect timing!!!

An added surprise came Friday night when my Aunt Livia from Bakersfield, CA came for one night! She was in Bloominton, IL for a State Farm function and had an extra free night before flying back to California out of O'Hare. Driving alone in the unknown was a big deal for her, so I really appreciated her bravery and efforts to come out to see us! I helped ease her nerves by describing highway driving through Iowa similar to country driving. Mind you, she is from California where highway traffic is of a different world!

It also turned out to be the first weekend of snow in Iowa. It wasn't much but for my family from Georgia, it was a nice rare sight, especially for my brother who misses snow so much! We stayed warm at home for the most part, which was nice to just spend family time together. Peter, Natalie, and Elaine enjoyed the extra company. As always with my family, there was a lot of action in the kitchen and we had some delicious meals that could only come from "Home." Best of all, we had great memories that could only from from FAMILY:

Like Peter giving Gung Gung a kiss goodnight...

Elaine getting face time with Cau Cau Anthony...

Natalie giving Po Po a goodnight kiss...

Gung Gung meeting his 5th grandchild Elaine...

Great Aunt Livia reading to Peter...

Our family group picture...

All smiles and fun with their uncle...

and finally nap time with Po Po.

Sadly, everyone had left by Sunday afternoon, all was "quiet" again, and I had to prepare for week two alone at home with the kids.