::tidbits::

a few snippets...

finn could spend hours right now coloring and cutting.  he is currently really into The Lorax and wants to spend his days drawing trees.  

some zoo lights.

crosby spent about an hour watering this tiny spot in our yard last night.  he thought he was big stuff and i thought he was hilarious...

::a very texas thanksgiving::

we have so much to be thankful for this year.

we desperately missed being with our families on this day of thanksgiving, but we tried to enjoy everything texas had to offer.

we kicked off the day by participating in the houston turkey trot.  it was a tradition you could count on in my family growing up (followed by starbucks for the drive home!.) and i am happy to say it has definitely become a tradition for our family, too.

we got up bright and early and packed the kids, and blankets, and breakfast, and snacks and strollers into the car.  we got there to realize that a texas sized turkey trot is a very different beast than an indiana or virginia sized turkey trot.  we had to part far away from the start line and rolled up to the start amidst the masses to the gun already going off.  we quickly wound our way into the starting corral and started the run.  we found that we and the kids were way overdressed for the weather and quickly had to peel layers off.  we enjoyed running with the thousands of houstonians and the entire time lily was very eagerly awaiting her very own turkey trot.

after we finished our race, lily and finn were very ready to head to their start line for the kids' trot.  i had not planned on them participating in the race, but lily was so excited about the prospect that i could not turn her down.  she and finn practiced "racing" both in and out of our house for days leading up to thanksgiving.  there were two nights in a row she couldn't sleep because she was so thrilled about her race t-shirt.

when the time to start came, lily took off and finn decided he'd rather ride than run.  lily was adorable and loved every minute of the race.  she and finn wore their medals until bedtime.  she just seemed so free and alive that it almost brought tears to my eyes and she ran to the finish.

this is the part of the race where a man running the kids' 1K race almost takes her out.

then we were able to celebrate texas style on our deck this evening with ryan's wonderful co-fellows.  we played outside and enjoyed a feast in the backyard.  this may be the only year we can ever eat thanksgiving dinner outside and we decided we ought to embrace the opportunity.

we hope you all have had a wonderful thanksgiving.  we are abundantly thankful for all of you.

happy thanksgiving!!

::thankfulness::

there is nothing quite like time spent with sisters.

they know you so fully.  the good.  the bad. the beautiful.  the truth.  the history.

and love you so deeply.

it was so refreshing to be with ash and whit this weekend.  and to have time with ashley's precious family.

we spent so much time talking, eating, walking outside and just cherishing our time spent together.

i am so abundantly thankful for my beautiful, beautiful sisters.

we spent a morning walking through downtown Littleton.  whit and i spent the bulk of the walk holding griff's hands and lifting him up to swing.  by the end, he wanted to be held up, but did not want to put in the effort.  we looked like we were abusing him as he dragged his feet through the streets. 

i love you girls so much!!!

::besties::

playing "school" on lily's half day.

(and yes, finn is not wearing pants)

::storybook parade::

lily's amazing teacher.

ladybug girl lily

even principal patton got in on the action!

::my loves::

::some indy to texas love::

we were so thankful to ring in november with a visit from kathy, brandon and nakita.  they made a whirlwind trip down to texas to be with us.  we packed our days with some of the best the city has to offer and spent the evenings eating good food and catching up.  it was so much fun to share our lives here with them and have a taste of home here with us.  

thank you guys so very much for coming to visit us!!!

::texas sized halloween::

we've all heard the saying, "everything's bigger in texas."

i always thought it was just a mindset that texas residents liked to proclaim about themselves.  however, now that i've celebrated halloween here, i believe that statement to be true.

in all of my trick-or-treating days, i have never experienced a halloween like the one we had last night.  and i would say i've trick-or-treated with the best of them, in some of the greatest neighborhoods (colony woods circa the '90's!).  but, nothing could hold a candle to what we experienced last night.

let me set the stage for you...

most of our neighbors had extensive halloween decor in their front yards -- blow up pumpkins, skeletons, ghouls, ghosts, you name it.  some of it even scared me.  and i felt pretty lame with our pumpkins out front!

but, the most amazing part happened the afternoon of halloween.  everyone brought out their tailgating tents and set them up in their front yards.  and then proceeded to put several tables under the tents and hold awesome dinner parties for their families and friends.  everyone was just outside enjoying halloween with great food and drink in hand.  it made me long for my family so much and wish i had them all sitting next to me on my front lawn!

and in addition to the party atmosphere in our whole neighborhood, a house down the street from us put on a show every thirty minutes.  complete with about 10 mic'ed actors, lights, fog, sound machines and a backdrop.  at the end of each production, kids could line up to win prizes.  not treats, mind you.  prizes...as in an easy-bake-oven or boxes of matchbox cars and things of that sort.  it was phenomenal.

needless to say, my kids had a blast.  finn ran around like a fierce shark the entire time and hung with lily's grade school friends.  crosby was in a chocolate coma by the time we got home.  and lily felt quite beautiful the whole night.  

while i have often felt really homesick so far this year, last night i really embraced the texas lifestyle and felt thankful for this adventure we have this year.  it was fun to experience a different state's traditions and i am thankful the Lord has given us this opportunity this year.

happy halloween!