12/9 - 12/20/13

Lily bits

- Lily is so observant of her older brother.  Today she surprised me in the way she mimicked him.  She has seen him pine over new Lego sets advertised in the instruction manuals of those he already has, talking about how much he wants them.  Today she pointed at a little picture of a book advertised on the cover of a book she was looking at and said, "I want that set.  I want to build it.  It would be so cool!"  So funny how she used his exact language!

- Lily's favorite toys right now are her "pets" - her kitty and puppy.  She carries them around all day and sleeps with them.

- Lily frequently bursts into song and dance.  I love how she freely expresses her joy.  Her favorites are "Heart Makes" (A dream is a wish your heart makes), ""Sweet Nightingale", and "Jesus Loves Me."

Nathaniel nuggets

-Nathaniel's reading is really coming along well.  He's read through most of the second Bob book set, and today he read through most of a scholastic Lego reader.

- Nathaniel's "jokes":  "hot dogs and peanut butter".  "A cat crossed the street at the same time a rocket was going by."

- He caught this lizard in the living room the other day for me.  He was so proud that he was fast enough to get it!

- Nathaniel and Lily play pretty well together most of the time.  Some of there favorite activities to share are pushing around the shopping carts (or chasing one another with them!), building forts with pillows and blankets around the sofa and ottoman or upstairs, and playing outside in the sandbox.

All aboard!!

Hot, hot, hot, hot chocolate - we got it!  We got it this weekend on the Polar Express.  This was our third trip to make with the Hong family (second trip for Lily), and we had a great time!  It was quite chilly with temps in the upper 20's - low 40's, but perhaps bundling up made the trip to the North Pole feel a bit more authentic.  I didn't get as many questions from Nathaniel as I had expected regarding whether we were going to the "real" North Pole, how we got there so fast, and that sort of thing.  Lily picked up on the excitement of her brother and friends, though she didn't really know what to expect.  When she saw they were serving hot chocolate and cookies, she was delighted.  The lights at the North Pole, the music, and getting her very own sleigh bell were highlights for her.  Due to the possibility of some sleeting, we decided at the last minute to stay the night in Palestine, which allowed us to have a fun morning swimming at the indoor hotel pool, and make a leisurely drive back this afternoon.  We stopped at a park near Sam Houston State University to snap some pics in the beautiful fall colors and chase the ducks with sticks (Nathaniel).  Here are some photos of the highlights:

The kids are ready to hop on board!

Caleb had the coziest seat :)

Tickets, please!!

Hot chocolate was a favorite!

Nathaniel waiting for Santa to board as
we left the North Pole.

Nathaniel told Santa he wants a Lego dolphin set for Christmas.  Hope Santa comes through because Mom and Dad don't know where to find that one!

Santa handed out sleigh bells to everyone.

Lily was not sure what to think about being invited
to parade through the train car caroling.

She loved the sleigh bell, though!

It was a great ride!

And here are a few from our stop in the park.  Gorgeous fall colors!