Santa Visit 2018

It's not difficult to get into the holiday spirit in Virginia. It's cold enough that one begins thinking of hot chocolate and putting up the Christmas tree much earlier than in Atlanta. With hopes of avoiding the craziness of holiday shopping, we got our Santa visit done earlier this year, too. Jack asked for a Nintendo Labo Vehicles Set. Luke asked for a Minecraft Lego Mountain Cave. This is the second year in a row that Luke has asked for this Lego set. We are hopeful that Santa and his elves will have more time to make the set this year since we gave him plenty of advance notice by visiting him early. Our elf, Buddy, returned this morning. I heard the boys searching for him throughout the house before I was out of bed. They were delighted that he arrived right on schedule, December 1st. 

School Pictures 2018-19

Kind of a funny story goes along with their school pictures this year. Luke's is a retake. I obviously didn't remember what shirt Jack wore when he took his on the original day. I got Luke's back, and they are wearing the same shirt. 😂

Jack- 4th Grade

Luke- 2nd Grade

Thanksgiving Vacation 2018

It's become a family tradition that we take our vacation for the year over the Thanksgiving holiday. It seems to be an easy time for John to get away and school has been in session long enough that it feels good to escape for a few days. The only turkey we had this year was these chocolate ones that John's friend from work sent over to the lodge for us.

This year we went to Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown. We stayed at Great Wolf Lodge in Williamsburg where the kids enjoyed the water park and had their own sleeping quarters which means all of us slept better.

Jack's class has been studying Jamestown, so we went there on Thanksgiving Day. We saw a replica of a Powhatan village, the colonists' fort, and the ships the colonists arrived on. There was a lot going on with the holiday. They serve all the volunteers a Thanksgiving feast prepared in either the fort or the Powhatan village, so we got to see a lot of food preparation. 

On Friday, we went to learn about the Battle of Yorktown during the American Revolution. The history in this area of the county is fascinating. 

Between the waterpark at the lodge and all the historical fieldtrips, we had an epic Thanksgiving this year. 

Luke- 8 Years Old

Luke turned 8 recently. I asked him to tell me a few of his favorites.

Color- Green
Food- Scones (Publix Cranberry Orange)
Fruit- Strawberries
Vegetable- CornTreat- Hershey's Cake (Just homemade chocolate cake with chocolate icing)
Ice Cream- Double Dunker
Subject in School- Reading
Book- Dogman, Warriors, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Minecraft: The Island
Sport- Swimming
Hobby- Playing in the Toyroom, Reading, Video Games
Movie- Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters
TV Show-Garfield
Toys- Legos
Animal- Cat
Song- Cupid Shuffle (Megan got him a birthday card that plays the song!)
Restaurant- Chick Fil-a
Place to Visit- Grandma's, Aunt Kathy's, Annie's
Friends- Oliver and Aruush
Thing to do with Jack- Play with Legos

We celebrated Luke's birthday on the Sunday before his birthday so John could eat cake with us. Then on the actual day of his birthday, I took Luke and Jack to Chuck E. Cheese since they didn't have school.

Lukey, you always tell me you love me more, but I know there's no greater love than the love I have for you. You inspire me to be a happier, kinder person because that's who you are. Happy 8th Birthday!

Lake Amelia

You know you've had a great vacation in Minnesota when the kids are talking about how much they love it there as you pull out of the driveway and turn the car towards home. This was the first summer my Grandpa Chuck's cabin was back in the family after about 10 years. My brother who is nearing retirement decided he has more time for lake life now than he did when he was bringing up his kids, and the cabin just happened to be for sale when John and Brenda started searching for a lake home. The memories are strong on Lake Amelia. I couldn't begin to count how many days I've spent there. It felt like going home. 

Throughout the week, all but one of my nephews and nieces showed up for at least a couple of days. I had to travel to Odin to see my nephew, David, and his wife, Dusti. I also got to see my three grand nephews and nieces! Jack and Luke got to spend a lot of time with the Thorns. They are a fun bunch. Between tubing, fishing, and yard games, we were well entertained. Jack was a huge fan of fishing off the dock. He caught a northern pike and many bass and blue gills. Uncle John took a crew out in the boat to fish where Jack got to be the official netter of the team. Luke was more excited about tubing and talking with Aunt Kathy about Minecraft and Mabel (pugs). I'm sure her ears are still sore almost a week later. 

Love to all the Minnesota crew. Thanks for making our vacation amazing.