Pizza Thanksgiving

We wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving with our good friends the Welkes.  We are so thankful they live so close to us.  We had pizza and ice cream for this Thanksgiving celebration.

We also decided to decorate gingerbread houses.  Lori bought a pre-made, pre-assembled gingerbread house (similar to the one we did last year).  I bought a little gingerbread village that was pre-made but NOT pre-assembled.   I quickly learned that I do not have the patience or creativity to assemble a gingerbread house.

Nevertheless the boys had a fun time decorating.

See how cute and neat their gingerbread house is.

Brody found Annika's hat from the Iowa State Fair. It even lights up.

Karl was willing to sacrifice his body for wrestling and bronco rides.  The kids had a blast.

We had a very relaxed and fun evening.  We are so grateful to call this family our friends. 

1st Day of Thanksgiving

This year we were "scheduled" to be with Brad's side of the family (we trade off every year).  Our plans changed at the last minute when a few family members were still recovering from being sick.  Thankfully we were still able to join my family for Thanksgiving.  (Brad and I never take for granted the fact that we BOTH live so close to family.  It is a true blessing).  

My cousin Adam hosted and did a fabulous job.   Although the only downside is that it is not a "kid friendly" house.   Despite that the boys did great!  (I was just worried about one of them tripping and falling into the sharp edges of the coffee table.)

The pictures don't show it but there were really other people there besides the kids. 

Eating

Sayler is walking now so she loves to chase the boys everywhere.

Thanksgiving Feast - Part 2

A LOT more videos from our Thanksgiving Feast.

Brody getting ready to eat his feast.

One of the things I love about Brody's preschool is how they invite and welcome siblings to events.  Although it is nice to go to these things without others to watch it is helpful when I need to bring the other boys.   They enjoyed the feast too. 

Thanksgiving Feast - Part 1

Brody's preschool had a Thanksgiving Feast.  Parents and siblings were invited.  Ollie, Colt and I joined his class and were able to watch the kids sing some adorable songs.  

Annika & Brody

WARNING: Lots of videos

Rupert

We had our 20 week ultrasound on Monday.  (I am actually 22 weeks).   This is one of the most amazing experiences even if it is my fourth baby.  It is always so hard to comprehend this idea of a little life growing inside of me right now. 

Once again we did not find out the gender of the baby.  I was very nervous that the technician would spill the beans since she was fascinated that we had three boys.  

A few months ago Brad and I were talking about potential names for this baby.  Most of the names were silly and one that came up was Rupert.  Somehow it stuck.  (but it won't stick when our baby arrives...if it's a boy).   So every night Colt insists on praying for Rupert and all the boys like to talk to Rupert. 

The Ultrasound Pictures

Profile

The face if you were looking straight down at the baby.  You can see the eye sockets and the nose.

Foot

The Cold Beach

Brody's boot was bothering him so Brad had him take it off.  He walked around like this for quite a while and hardly complained off a cold foot.  I certainly would have.

Ollie wanted in on the picture.

Believe it or not this is a self portrait of Brad and I sitting by the campfire. (It's probably why my left eye is squinting).

The sunset.  As usual the pictures don't do it justice.

Sunday morning seemed to be the coldest.  Our sandcastle was frosted with ice.

The cold didn't bother the boys.  They just played and explored.   They used the shovel to make treasure maps.

X marks the spot.  This is where the buried treasure is.  (according to Brody)

Ollie finally had enough.  He took his two buckets and started walking back to the cabin.  I was getting a little cold too.

For all the hesitation we had about going on this weekend trip, we are so thankful we did.  We had gorgeous weather and a wonderful time as a family. 

Campfires, Sandcastles & Digging

Brad was determined to get a fire going on the beach.  It was a task he enjoyed completing and it was nice to have the warm fire.   He was pretty proud of himself. 

One of Ollie's favorite things was watching us use the shovel to dig holes.  We aren't sure why it fascinated him but he loved it.

We even checked out the waves. 

Beach Fun

Without any prompting Brody wrote his name in the sand. 

I wrote Colt and Ollie's name. 

Brody drew a picture of me.  Don't I look great?

Ollie looked a little similar to the kid from a Christmas Story.  It took him awhile to adjust to his big puffy coat and his boots but he managed. 

We attempted to get a picture with me and the boys but it turned out blurry.

Brad had to do some work on Friday so he stayed in the cabin for a little while.  We were expecting a rainy day and it was sunny all day.  Brad was able to take a break in the afternoon to enjoy some time with the boys. 

Ollie would get a little fussy every now and then (probably because he was cold) but something would distract him enough to take his mind off it.  This time it was a little bug.  Here is a video of him following it.