Christmas Tree Hunting

Last night Mom and Dad invited us out to dinner and then to help them pick out their Christmas tree. John and Kelsey, and Kari and Ben were also able to come. Alec didn't enjoy being out in the cold to look at trees, but he sure enjoyed mashed potatoes and looking at trees indoors with his grandpa. Guess he's a Vegas baby so far...

Happy Thanksgiving

We decided to spend Thanksgiving in California with my Grandma Hunter & Aunt Jerri. So, we drove out Wednesday night after Paul got off work (4.30) and arrived around 9.45 pm. We were happy that Alec slept most of the journey, as he hates car rides and screamed most of the time he was awake. Paul and I listened to 'Nicholas Nickelby' on CD, which made the drive go more quickly. When we arrived, Alec was happy to play with Grandma's new kitten, Ralphie. He's used to Maggie and Milo who let him grab their fur and tug, so he tried the same trick on Ralphie... luckily Ralphie was de-clawed. Ralphie retaliated by licking Alec's head.

Thanksgiving morning we watched part of the parade, looked through the Black Friday ads and snitched pieces of turkey from the kitchen while Grandma cooked. After the parade we watched part of the dog show, getting excited when they had a keeshond! Looked just like our Milo, just better behaved. Then, we got to sit down and eat. Paul was excited for his first Thanksgiving in America and Alec's first ever. We put stuffing and turkey in Alec's little 'food net' so he couldn't choke on bits and he loved it!! Kept him busy the whole time we ate.

Friday morning we decided to try out the mall and look for some clothes for Paul while the Black Friday sales were on. It was really crowded, so we lasted only about an hour. Alec loved the Disney store, he kept staring up at all the moving figures with his mouth open. Afterwards we went home so he could nap and just relaxed the rest of the day. The side of Great-Grandma's kitchen sink was the perfect-sized bath tub for Alec and he laughed while getting 'pony rides' on her leg.

Saturday morning we left around 10am and were happy to see little traffic on the freeways. It was a very relaxing and nice Thanksgiving, which was just what we'd wanted!

Happy Birthday, Paul!

We had a fun time celebrating Paul's birthday this past weekend. On Saturday my parents took Alec, so Paul and I could spend the day together. We both wanted something Mediterranean (after hearing a recipe on NPR), so we looked up Greek restaurants on the GPS and had it lead us to the nearest one. I love technology. Afterwards, we went shopping so he could pick out his present, then rented a film he wanted to see.

On Sunday we went to my parents' home for his birthday dinner and cake. Paul loves chocolate, so my mom made him a chocolate cake with powdered sugar on top. I took a video of everyone singing to him (while he made silly faces) and when he blew out the candles, the powdered sugar blew on everyone.

Then on Monday, his actual birthday, I made him a cherry pie (he requested no more chocolate) and we celebrated with Alec-just having Family Home Evening.

Happy 'Beaver-Toothed' Halloween!

Alec enjoyed his first Halloween as a beaver, and all the attention his cute costume brought him. He loves being in his car, so we all took turns pushing him around the house. His first tooth pushed through as well, so it was a busy night! We tried getting pictures of it, but he wasn't having it! (It was his bottom, left incisor).



We held a pumpkin carving party for the family and it was a lot of fun. Kelsey and I spent the day bonding over baking 'tombstone' cupcakes, 'mummy' hot dogs, etc. My parents came, Christopher (my brother) and his wife, Joleen, Kari (my sister) and her boyfriend Ben, Kelsey and John and my cousin Colin and his fiancee, Sarah. Between the large amounts of trick-or-treaters, we all carved pumpkins, decorated sweets and passed Alec around for cuddles.

Sarah, Colin, Kelsey, John and Kari all busy decorating the haunted house and some sugar cookies.