I'm BIG!

Merit is completely obsessed wit being "BIG". He tells us all the time that he is a big kid now. He has been asking us lately how big is an inch and how many inches tall am I. It is really cute! We went to the doctor right before leaving for Houston and he wanted to check his height while we were there. While we were in Houston, some of Alicia's friends stopped by with their kids. When he saw the kids he didn't say hi or what's your name, he instead said, "I'm big!" It was hilarious!!!

 

The Polar Express Train

We set up the Polar Express train last night and Merit was overjoyed by this! He has been asking for days now if we can set up the train. So, we spent part of our evening putting the track together and hooking up the wires. Merit was literally dancing he was so excited!

 

Helping with the Outdoor Lights

Merit was really excited about helping us hang the lights outside this year. He was a great helper too! He wanted to hand JP that hammer and nails every time he needed them. He also enjoyed driving his dump truck through the leaves and digging in the various Christmas boxes. It was a perfect afternoon to hang lights as it was warm and sunny!

 

Merit's First Christmas Gift!

Merit couldn't wait to open his first Christmas gift! Poppy sent his gift in the mail. He picked out the cutest book for Merit. He knows that Merit is pretty obsessed with reading books and he found a book about a Boston Terrier who goes to visit his family on the farm. Merit absolutely loves the book. Thank you Poppy!

 

Playing with the Boys!

We had so much fun playing with these two cuties on Thanksgiving day. Merit did a great job sharing his cars with Luke. I was so proud of him! It was quite different then play time while we were vacationing in Destin this summer. He didn't get frustrated or annoyed, instead he gave him some of his cars to play with and then watched him play. Merit really liked playing with Sharon's Star Wars light saber stick as well as story time with Sharon. It was a great Thanksgiving day!

 

Thanksgiving Meal...Delicious!

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Alicia, Marc, Luke, Sharon, Dave, Papa and Mimi. It was a day filled with laughter, delicious food and good conversation. Everyone enjoyed watching the boys play with cars and all sorts of toys. Sharon made three pies and the turkey too. Mom and I made the cornbread dressing, green bean bundles, and a spinach casserole. Alicia made a  yummy frozen cranberry salad. We were officially stuffed after lunch!

 

Thankgiving Day Fun!

Sharon had some neat activities planned for us. She had Merit be her helper, which he thoroughly enjoyed. We played a silly game where we had to draw a turkey on top of our head without looking. It was hilarious! Papa's was the best! Then we made Thanksgiving bracelets using various color beads. I read the Thanksgiving story and we talked about being thankful.  I brought a Thanksgiving tree with me to Sharon's house. We wrote what we were thankful for on the leaves and then hung them on the tree. We certainly made some great memories this year.

 

 

Thanksgiving Morning

We started our Thanksgiving day with yummy cinnamon rolls and the Macy's annual Thanksgiving day parade. Merit really liked seeing the neat balloons and he especially enjoyed the singing and dancing. Mom and I finished up the cooking and then we headed to Sharon's around noon.

 

Fun with David and Daniel!

We always enjoy spending time with Beth and her sweet boys. Merit thinks Daniel is pretty cool because he's a big boy. The boys had a great time playing on the playground, eating a snack together, and playing cars in Merit's room. What a bunch of cuties!

 

Cute Turkey Cookies!

I saw this idea for a turkey cookie on Pinterest but the person used chocolate Oreo cookies and whoppers or Reese's peanut butter cups. I decided it would be even cuter to use the vanilla Oreos. I had caramels at the house leftover from Halloween and decided the caramels would make a good head for the turkeys. I think they turned out really great! Merit had so much fun helping me make these treats. We packaged them up and gave one to each of his friends at Ms. Brenda's house. We attached a "thankful" verse and a little note to each cookie package. Merit insisted on carrying the cookies into Brenda's by himself. He was so proud as he handed Brenda the cookies. He said, "my friends are going to love these Mommy!" I don't think my baking efforts have ever been so rewarding!