We Gave In

Arabella has been asking for a pet, specifically a dog, for as long as I can remember. She wanted one in Montreal and we told her that we couldn't have one in our house there because our yard wasn't fenced in. When we moved here, she told us we could get a dog now since we had a fenced in yard. I would love to have a dog, but Jay doesn't want the extra responsibility. I know that most of it would fall on me and that Arabella would love to have one and I think Max would too, but for now we will wait. We compromised with her, well Jay made the compromise with her, that she could get a fish, IF she took care of it. That means cleaning the tank and everything. I will not be cleaning a fish tank! She agreed and started doing research last month. We figured the standard goldfish would do, but they found out that it is cruel and unusual punishment to keep goldfish in a bowl...they need space, cold water and more...otherwise it is not a good environment for them...who knew. We had a goldfish for years growing up in a regular bowl on the kitchen counter...he seemed happy...or so we thought. So after lots and lots of research and making the deal that she had to be "good" for the whole month of November, we would get her a fish. I thought I would never hear the end of it. It seemed as the day got closer, it is all she talked about. She knew what kind of fish she wanted and we even had a print out from PetSmart of all the supplies she would need. She even watched videos on YouTube with Jay on how to clean the tank. She and Jay settled on a Betta fish, she wanted girl Bettas but when we got there they were all out, so she agreed to a boy Betta. She liked him because he had lots of pretty colors and she has named him "Diner" - no clue where that came from! I thought this would be a $20 investment, but after our shopping trip today and dropping $50 on the fish and accessories, did you know that Betta fish need a heater to keep their water warm? They also need silk plants and not the plastic ones otherwise they might snag their fins/tails, and we wouldn't want that to happen. Anyway, let me introduce you to Diner -

Diner seems happy and I just hope she keeps up her end of the bargain and this fish lives the 2 - 4 years it is supposed to...

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a very low key and uneventful Thanksgiving. It was just the four of us and for a change we were at home instead of traveling. I missed being around more family, but it was nice to not have to travel and feel rushed through the holiday. Arabella's break from school started on Wednesday which was nice. She has become my little kitchen helper and we made the pumpkin pie together while Max was napping. She loves to mix the ingredients and help in what ever way she can.

She even helped on Thanksgiving with seasoning the turkey, mashing the potatoes and making the stuffing. It was so nice to have a little helping hand in the kitchen. We had a full blown meal...with way more food than we needed...turkey, stuffing, sausage stuffing (my grandfather's recipe), mashed potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes and homemade cranberry sauce. It was all so yummy and we all enjoyed it. Max went to town on the turkey - he couldn't get enough of it! It seems he enjoyed his first Thanksgiving!

From the looks of these two photos, you would think they hadn't eaten in days!

We all have so much to be thankful for. Each day I learn about gratitude and what happiness is all about from Arabella and Max. They are the world's best teachers. I think we had the perfect Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving from our house to yours.

Thanksgiving Festivities at School

Last week, Arabella had a few Thanksgiving festivities at school. On Monday morning, the entire kindergarten class put on a Thanksgiving skit. It was no more than 15 minutes long, but it was the cutest thing ever. Arabella was so excited to be a "Pilgrim woman" and say "Mercy me" during the skit. The children were broken up into groups of Pilgrim men, Pilgrim women, Indian men, Indian women, Turkey's, and corn. Each group had different lines that they said throughout the skit which was narrated by a teacher. They then sang a few songs at the end. It was a fun way to start off Thanksgiving week.

On Monday evening, we attended the Thanksgiving Spectacular. This was a group of kindergarten and first graders who had been practicing every Monday after school with the music teacher since September. Arabella loved being a part of this show - I even had the opportunity to help supervise the rehearsals. They sang 4 Thanksgiving themed songs and it was so nice. The songs were about gratitude and being thankful. I think it had a really nice meaning and again, it makes you realize that this week is about more than just turkey and football. Arabella had a speaking part in the show and she got to say what she was thankful for - her friends and family. She is so sweet. Max was a trooper throughout the show even though it was right at his bedtime. I think it helped that there was plenty to see and he really liked the music. You did a great job Arabella, I am so proud of you, you sang your little heart out and it made me so happy to be able to see you up on the stage. Keep up the great work!!

I also volunteered to make a pie for a "Pie's for Teachers" event that the PTO holds each Thanksgiving. They ask volunteers to make pies so that every teacher, support staff member and other school personnel and even the bus drivers get to pick out a pie. It is just a small way to say thank you for all their hard work. I think it is such a heartfelt and nice gesture to do. I decided to make a truly Southern pie...chocolate pecan...didn't come out too bad for my first time making this type of pie!

Jack's Back!!!

Arabella was very worried that Jack, our elf, wouldn't know that we had moved from Montreal. She had asked me about it a few times, and I assured her that he would be able to find his way to our new house. She thought he would go to our old house and when we weren't there, he would just go back to the North Pole. So you could imagine her surprise when she found him last Sunday morning. She was so excited - this picture doesn't do it justice...

And Jack is already making new friends around the house. We found him one morning with Max the Mountie, Pinocchio and a Tom Turkey!

Busy Bee

I have started to call Max, my busy bee. He loves to explore and in true boy fashion he is all over the place and into everything. I don't know how many times a day he gets into my tupperware cabinet and rearranges it! Last week, he loved checking out a Christmas pillow that has little bells on it - he would move them around to get them to make sounds. (I think he is going to be like his sister and love music.)

And one day last week, he helped me to reorganize his bedroom closet. While I was busy putting things away, he was climbing in and out of things and ended up standing/sitting inside the potty seat to supervise!

Zig Zag Zoo On Steriods

Last weekend, Arabella attended the birthday party of her classmate, Matthew. It was held at a indoor sports and activity center called Sports Connection. She was very, very , very excited to attend the party and had a blast. There are some huge differences in the birthday parties we have attended here versus the ones in Montreal. This party was at 10 in the MORNING...by 10:30 the kids were sugared up on cake and pink lemonade...at 10:30 in the MORNING!!! There was nothing else to eat...no veggies, no chips, no sandwiches, not even pizza...NOTHING BUT CAKE!! I mean I get it is a birthday party, but really?!?!

Once they were sugared up, they were let loose in a room filled with nothing but bounce houses...I am surprised no one vomited!  Nonetheless, the kids had a blast going from one bounce house to the next and before they knew it, it was time to go home.

And by now, you are probably wondering where the Zig Zag Zoo on Steroids title came from...well, Sports Connection is like our beloved Zig Zag Zoo but 10 times bigger...they had an aracade, climbing wall, bowling alley and even laser tag. It was a little over the top, but that seems to be the way of the South, over the top...something that I am still learning about!

School Spirit - Jersey Day

Every so often, instead of wearing school spirit wear on Fridays, they have a fun theme. A few weeks ago and it was jersey day. What did Arabella want to wear, but my Patriots shirt...it was more of a dress on her, but we made it work and she was proud to wear it, even if they lost to the Panthers the previous Monday!

School Lunch

One thing that I really like about Arabella's new school, is that I/we can go and have lunch with her any time we would like. We just have to sign in at the main office, then we meet her at the lunch room. She was so excited the day that Max and I came to have lunch with her. This was also only the 2nd time all year that she had bought lunch at school instead of me packing it...and I have to say, I was mildly surprised at the quality...it was much better than I expected. I will still be packing her lunch for the most part though. We all enjoyed lunch together and I will be making sure we join her for lunch more often.

November Randomness

I can't believe that tomorrow is the last day of November. This month just flew by and since I am not feeling creative at the moment to come up with a good title - we did random things to keep busy this month...

Jay installed a chandelier that was my grandmothers in the sitting area of our bedroom - I wasn't sure how it would look, but it really pulls the area together nicely and it is nice to have something in our house that has special memories for me. I don't know how many family meals were eaten under this light, but it knows a lot of family dirt! We are lucky to have this in our new house.

Arabella has poured over the Toys R Us catalog and made a list for both her and Max for Santa.

We enjoyed some nice and warmer than we are used to weather for November. We took in the fall leaves and played in the backyard. We also had some ice on the birdbath!

Arabella worked on perfecting her cartwheel and is doing great! She does them all over the house!

We built a pillow and blanket fort in the living room. Arabella and Max loved it and spent a good while in there just laughing and giggling!

Jay traveled to Georgia for work one week and brought back fresh pecans and cotton on the limb to show Arabella.

And finally, Max got back to his Quebecois roots and devoured his first croissant!

Monday Night Football

It has been at least 14 years since I ventured to a professional football game, but now that we are back in a city that has a team, it was time for me to get my football on! I am lucky that my friend Jennifer loves football as much as I do, and I am even luckier that we were hooked up with tickets! And the best part, was this last Monday, my Patriots were in Charlotte to play the Panthers! She is a Panthers fan and with me being a Patriots fan, we had a fun little rivalry going on! We had great seats and had so much fun! The best part was I was able to see my favorite guy, Tom Brady on the field. We did a bit of tailgating before the game and it was great weather. While the Patriots didn't win, the game was great and a lot of fun to be in the action. It was a sell out and the prices that the scalpers were trying to get for tickets was insane. But I guess that is what happens at a game like this one. I didn't get home until almost 2 am, but it was worth it. I can't wait to go to another game with Jennifer!

Halftime show!

Jennifer's son, Chris, is one lucky high school kid, he gets to help warm up the players on the field! That's him in the grey sweats!

Aw Shucks

Arabella class went on a field trip to a local farm, Aw Shucks. She was very excited to go on this field trip with her class but was a bit disappointed that I wouldn't be joining her. She is used to me attending as many field trips as possible during her time in preschool and I loved doing that with her. Id id have the option to attend this time, but it was an all day field trip and I wasn't keen on bringing Max. He is all boy and wants to get into everything, a little busy bee he is, and I wasn't sure this was the right environment to being him along. When I picked her up at school, she was just talking away about everything they did - a corn maze, a big slide, picnic, petting animals - you name it, they did it! She loved it and she even was able to pick out an ear of Indian Corn to bring home, that she was super excited to tell me about. I was lucky enough to get a few pictures texted to me though out the day from my friend, Sabrina, a mom of one of Arabella's classmates that attended. From the looks of the pictures, it seems they really did have a blast.