I absolutely LOVE this time of year! It is just a nice feeling. I love the smell of the Christmas tree inside our house. I love baking, service, Christmas music, etc. The list could go on and on. I look forward to the Christmas season each year. Anyways...It is just really wonderful. I just wanted to share. I love you all and hope everyone has a wonderful season.
Okay... So I have never been good at Geography. EVER! So, you are probably thinking... "And you're a school teacher?" Well I teach second grade and we don't get that deep into it, although I have learned a lot since I have been teaching. Mary Denmon sent this e-mail to me that tests your knowledge of where the states are at. I did pretty terrible to begin with. I have kinda become a bit obsessed with this game and I am pretty darn good at it now. I know where all 50 states are at, give or take a few miles. YAY! Here is the link if you want to test your skills.
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/states_experiment_drag-drop_Intermed_State15s_500.html
We woke up at about 8:00, got ready, ate, and then headed down to see the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. By the time we got there it was about 9:30 and there was NO WAY we were going to get to see any of it. There were so many people, so many that we couldn't even shove our way through. We did see a few of the HUGE balloons but then we left. I am glad we did. We found out about the subway, and we took it to Battery Park, where we hopped on a ferry to see the Statue of Liberty. That was amazing. After spending some time there, we took the Ferry yet again to Ellis Island and saw where the immigrants had come to be free. That was a perfect way to spend Thanksgiving. What a neat place. They have turned one of the buildings into a museum, but the feeling there is incredible. After that we took the subway to Ground Zero. There is such a reverence felt there. New York is a loud place but when you get to Ground Zero, where they have a plaque that honors the men and women who died in that event, there is a silence that sends shivers down your spine. We had REAL New York pizza for Thanksgiving dinner and we had a hot dog from a vendor for lunch. We really enjoyed ourselves.
We drove from DC at made it to New York at about 1:30, but then we had to find our hotel. That was a mess. I will NEVER drive in New York again! People would just walk out in front of you whether they had the right of way or not and taxis were honking constantly. Oh my gosh, I am not cut out for a big city like that. We did make it to our hotel successfully (meaning... we didn't kill anybody.) We found a place to park our car because there was no way that we were gonna drive. We walked everywhere. We were just a few blocks from Times Square so we walked there and saw all the amazing views (signs, lights, etc.) It was really neat. There were lots of people trying to sell you tours and things. We did stop for one guy. He sold us tickets to "The Broadway Comedy Club". That was a blast. The show didn't start until 10:30pm, and it lasted until 1 in the morning. It was fun though. There were comedians from Comedy Central there. It was FUNNY! We walked to the Empire State Building and what a view! It was so incredible. We also tried a New York pretzel (Not at all what it is cracked up to be!) But at least we can say we tried one! It was a fun day and we were so tired when we got back. We planned to wake up fairly early to catch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Well, we woke up just a tad too late.
We headed to Washington DC after Ryan got done with school. We got there, checked into our Bed and Breakfast, and then went sightseeing. We took the bus to the "Mall" (that is what they call the strip with all the Monuments on it) I'll tell you what.... Looking at a map you wouldn't think that it would take you that long to get to each monument. Yeah Right! It is quite the hike. We saw the Washington Monument first, holy cow that thing is HUGE! Then we walked to the World War II Memorial. Then we hiked some more to the Lincoln Memorial. WOW! It was amazing. It is so big and it is just so amazing how much history there is in one area. From the Lincoln Memorial, we walked to the U.S. Capitol. From a distance we were able to see the White house. We just couldn't see everything that we wanted to. At 7:00 we met our friend Collin at Union Station, and then took the Metro to meet up Rosemay and Josiah. It was fun to catch up and see how they were doing and to see their baby. He is such a sweetie. What a neat experience!
This is going to be the longest time that I have ever been without my kids. We left them with their Grandma and Grandpa Taylor. I hope that I do okay. I am sure the kids will do fine, it is me that I am worried about. I left Saturday morning and it was an all day event. I brought a book for me to read and I had it finished long before I ever reached Atlanta. Needless to say, I will be buying some more books for me to read. I haven't had the chance to actually sit and read for along time. It was very enjoyable. I got in Saturday night to Norfolk where Ryan picked me up and then we went to Red Lobster for dinner. YUMMY!!! I love their coconut shrimp. I would have to say that it is my favorite. Then we came home and just hung out for a little while. We ate ice-cream and watched a movie. How relaxing.
Some of you have asked when Ryan is coming home for good. Well... The end is drawing near. He comes home on December 20th, just in time for Christmas! What a wonderful Christmas present. The kids will have their daddy back and I will have my husband. YEAH!!!! I am anxiously awaiting his return. 5 months is a long time, and I don't want to be a single mom anymore! It is hard work. Ryan was able to come home this weekend to visit and it was just so nice. I am always reminded of how much I love that guy! He is just so amazing and he loves his family. We are so lucky to have him. The kids especially loved to see him. They had a lot of fun!
I am supposed to tell you 6 things about myself. Hmmmm....
1. I am with Allie on a few of the things. I hate to have a dirty house. I feel like I am constantly cleaning. I put one thing away, and the kids get out 10 more things. It feels impossible at times, but my house is pretty clean.
2. I enjoy quiet. I used to think that I loved being where the action is. I do love being where there are things going on, but it is so nice when there is nothing going on, when the kids are in bed, and I have just a little quiet time.
3. I find any and all reasons to celebrate. I like to get together with friends and family. It can be anything!!! Birthdays, holidays, BBQ (just because it is a nice day), Bonfire in the neighbor's back yard...who cares. Any reason to DO something, I am up for it.
4. I hate lotion on my hands. I love the smell of lotion and I love that it makes my skin soft, but I hate the feel of it on my hands. I do like it when Ryan puts lotion on my feet.
5. I hate it when people leave cupboard doors open. It is a pet peeve. Close them when you have gotten what you need!
6. I am Obsessive Compulsive. I have to have all my clothes hung up, they are all color coordinated, and they all have to face a certain direction. Yeah... I know, I am weird!
We got our family pictures taken today. Why is it that your kids will be so happy, right up until the moment that you are supposed to pose for your pics. Why can't they just be happy? Well that is what happened today. Elly was so happy right until we stepped in front of the camera, then it was pure misery. Oh well... here is what we got. Please let me know which ones you like best.
I got the kids ready for church today and they looked so dang cute! Yes Jordan's hair is a bit long but Ryan is going to cut it when he comes to visit this weekend. I have some sweet kids.
I just happen to think that Jordan is a genius. Here he is, 3 years old, and he loves doing puzzles. He would choose a puzzle over most activities. I am having a hard time keeping up with him. We started with the wooden puzzles that you find the matching shape, animal, etc. and put the piece in. Then he graduated to doing puzzles with a board that has the shapes outlined on the board. He was doing those ones way to easily. So I started giving him jigsaw puzzles, we started with a 24 piece puzzle and the pieces were really big. He did that one over and over. Next I gave him puzzles that were 25 pieces but the pieces were smaller. I got him 5 different puzzles and he did them all. Yesterday I thought that I would try a little bit harder puzzle. So I got him a 63 piece puzzle and guess what? He did that one too! It took him a little bit longer, but he did it. Next I am going to have to get him 100 piece puzzles.
