Who's the Wise Guy??

So I leave for ONE morning to run an errand and this is what I come home to! Who put daddy in charge of the wardrobe?!?!

Through the Thanksgiving Holiday

Well, we made it through the first big holiday experiences : ) Over the past few days she has enjoyed:
* Extra time with daddy during his long weekend away from work! She had her first attempt at Wii bowling : )

* A big family gathering with the DeNeal’s where she got to meet the extended family.

* Her first Christmas parade. She was not so sure about the cold, but was thrilled when she saw the alligator mascot that we had seen at an Illini event! She had loved him there - still talking about how he gave her a hug and how he has such big teeth : )
 

* Putting up the Christmas tree and decorating it!
 

* Playing with her own Little People nativity set 

 

* Meeting Great Grandma Ina for the first time

Everything has gone very well! We are excited to get things “back to normal,” though, for the remainder of the week : )

First Thanksgiving

Annaliese celebrated her first Thanksgiving today!

We began the day by watching a silly video about the pilgrims, which she seemed to like, and then we made ourselves a pilgrim hat and Indian headdresses : )

We kept it on her long enough to take the picture and then she was done with that and on to the next hat : )

 





Can you read her shirt? It says: "Things I'm Thankful For...Pie, Mom, Dad, Home, Love." Isn't that perfect : )

We then headed to Grandpa Dan & Grandma Gloria’s house for lunch. We ate ham today - we will have turkey on Saturday with the extended family - and she seemed to enjoy this. The rest of the afternoon was spent playing : )

I am positive we end this day with her having no better understanding of what Thanksgiving is, but it was a good day, nonetheless : )

Sunday School

We tried Sunday school for the first time and she walked in like she owned the place : ) I think she may have even been a little disappointed we came back, as we interrupted her play time with new friends & new toys : )

We really are thankful for her “go with the flow” attitude about trying new things. One step closer to gearing up for school in the spring!!

Fun with Cousins

Josh & Caleb came over today while Mike & Rachel went to the Illini football game. Annaliese had fun playing with them – enjoying the nice weather outdoors, building a fort, and playing with legos.

Thanks, again, boys for being so good with her : )

Fun Day

Annaliese and I went to Provena this morning to visit my friends & coworkers. They were all so excited to see her and it was nice to see so many of them again : )

Then, this afternoon we went to Tuscola so Annaliese could join Caleb for a gymnastics class. The instructor was kind enough to let her join him to see how she would like it, with the idea that she would join the next session if it went well.

The instructor did a really nice job with her. He was patient and willing to give her a little extra attention, which was much appreciated : )

She participated in about half of the class and just stood back and watched the other half. She was definitely engaged in what the other kids were doing and was very curious.  

We will definitely begin working on some of the skills she did, or watched, tonight; as well as the terminology, and plan to start her in the next session. I think it will be good for her and she will enjoy it. Thanks, Rachel & Caleb, for letting us know about it : )

Laundry Day

Annaliese helped me with the laundry today. She is determined to do as much of it as she can, so it takes about four times longer to load/unload the washer and dryer than it used to, but she is so pleased with herself when it is all done : )