Skip to main content

The Key to Having it All . . .

Thanksgiving is behind us and we are speeding toward Christmas.  Our Thanksgiving celebrations began nearly a week before the holiday at Andrew's preschool.  Andrew's class had their own Thanksgiving feast.  It was very cute.  I was able to volunteer in his class that day.  It's so fun to be in the classroom with the kids.  I don't get to do it very often, so I was grateful for the opportunity.

Andrew made this fancy hat . . .
 This is me making meatballs.  (FUN!)
 Andrew with his feast . . .

On Tuesday, Ricky and Makayla had a concert at school.  Makayla wasn't that excited about it, but Ricky was really into it!  He had been waiting for weeks to be the star of the show.  He loves singing and music, but mostly I think he loves to be in front of a crowd.  There is a video of him singing toward the end of the post.

The kids didn't have school on Wednesday.  Emily had a fever, so we didn't go anywhere (except for a Dr. appointment in the morning for Ricky).  We spent most of the day playing Wii and board games.  I did manage to get the kids out in the yard to help me clean up the garden.  I paid them in gummy bears.  They worked hard for their 15 gummy bears, but they also spent a lot of time goofing off and taking pictures while I continued to finish things up in the background.




 On Thanksgiving morning, we woke up to some cute notes that Makayla had made.  Each person got a little letter from Mr. Turkey.  Makayla was sweet to make each of us little notes to brighten our day.

 We continued the tradition of having a Turkey Bowl in our backyard and we got quite a few participants this year.  The weather was perfect:  sunny and nearly 60 degrees.  There is a video of Ricky receiving a pass and getting a first down toward the end of the post.
 Of course, a morning football game wasn't enough for our basketball players, so another family stayed behind after the turkey bowl to play a little basketball.
Our dishwasher broke last Sunday, so we have spent the week washing dishes by hand.  The kids have been very good at helping us keep up with the dishes.


 Luckily we ate our Thanksgiving dinner at a friend's house.  I definitely would not have liked washing all those dishes.  I made a turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and pies.  That was enough dishes for me!

On the day after Thanksgiving, we went looking for the perfect Christmas tree.

We posed in front of the the tree we found while we were waiting for the guys at the farm to come help us cut it down.  We were disappointed to find out that our perfect tree was pre-sold to the owners of the farm.  So, we found another "perfect tree" only to find out that one was also taken.  Our third choice ended up to be the one we took home.  Imagine our surprise, however, when a lady yelled, "That's our tree!" as the guys were loading our Christmas tree onto our car.  It turns out there was a little mix up and we almost took another family's tree home.  Fortunately, we got it figured out and finally came home with a Christmas tree.

That extra little guy in the picture was along with us for the day.  His family had taken a trip to Des Moines to see a play.  Reyes was spending time with his family, so we were still a group of 8.
Here are the videos I referred to.  The first is Ricky catching a pass and going for a good run with the football.

The next video is Emily scoring on her friend, Hirsche.  I don't think he was playing very hard this time, but we went to play ball at the church with them yesterday and Emily got quite a few scores on him.
This video is of Ricky hamming it up at the Thanksgiving concert.

I have felt very blessed this Thanksgiving.  Years ago, a friend shared this quote, and I have tried to apply its principle.  She asked, "Do you want to know the key to having it all?  It's possible for everyone.  The key to having it all is believing that you already do."  So true---I definitely do!


Comments

Chelsey said…
It makes me miss the basketball to see pictures of you guys playing. No more, it's breaking my heart that I have no players here. Of course, I do have Kenzie...maybe she'll be a player yet. Next year you'll have to plan a trip here for Thanksgiving:)
November 27, 2011 at 5:24 PM
Anjee said…
Wish you were here. Are you sure you don't want to move to Arizona. Sure do miss you guys and the kids. I think of you way more often than I email or call. Cute pics. It looks like Emily looks so tall how much has she grown since this summer? That is awesome about swimming too. Makayla I loved the Mr. Turkey notes. Very creative. Ricky you are quite the entertainer and I always love hearing you sing and dance. Andrew and Sean are cuter all the time and growing up to fast. Love ya.
November 28, 2011 at 12:15 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

That Sinking Feeling - Real Talk From Your Mother

Also found at Letters from the Nest:   https://open.substack.com/pub/lettersfromthenest/p/that-sinking-feeling?r=48qui&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web Dear Nestlings, I hope you don’t mind a little stream-of-consciousness letter today. I don’t know if I have anything specific to share, so let’s see what floats to the surface. It’s a bright fall Friday morning. These last few weeks in central Pennsylvania have been lovely, sunny, and warm. I know winter is coming, so I try to be outside as much as possible to take advantage of the sun before it hibernates. I just completed the forty-minute round trip to drive one of you to the high school. You know who you are, but maybe in a few years, when you read this, you won’t know because every one of you has missed the bus sometimes and has endured lectures about planning better and showing your respect for my work by not requiring forty minutes of my life for your convenience. Anyway, everybody is at school and work except...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gavin in a Million Words or Less

 Way back when Emily was in 6th grade, her teacher, Ms. Grey, asked parents to write about thier children in a million words or less. I posted what I wrote about Emily on our blog. I wish I were more organized and tech-savvy to find the link to that post and put it here, but I'm not. It's a nice idea that maybe I'll do later. Anyway, you get to read what I wrote to Gavin's fifth grade teacher who made the same requests of parents: Gavin is the youngest of seven children. His three oldest siblings have flown the nest, so he talks to them on the phone and looks forward to holiday visits. This summer, his oldest sister had a baby, so he’s an Uncle! He has three older brothers, who sometimes make life tricky for him, but are also sources of wisdom, rides to the store to get candy, and annoying TikTok phrases. He sometimes wants to be more grown up than he actually is. This little guy is academically oriented. He loves to read BIG books. He rarely reads a standalone nove...
Post a Comment
Read more

Back To School Meanies

 Letter From the Nest August 15, 2025 https://open.substack.com/pub/lettersfromthenest/p/back-to-school?r=48qui&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web One August, more than twenty years ago, at an evening book club discussion, my “older” friends (now I look back and know those women were the age I am now), were discussing the woes and triumphs of back-to-school season. One woman was anticipating her youngest child’s senior year of high school. She said, “For more than two decades, our lives have revolved around the school district’s academic calendar. I don’t know how I will plan my life without knowing about school breaks or holidays.” I remember her bittersweet tone as she anticipated freedom from school schedule constraints but also mourned how those constraints guided her choices. What would she do? Other women joined the discussion, wondering if their kids would have good teachers, if they’d be able to balance volunteering in the classroom, how to streamline school supply pu...
Post a Comment
Read more