Thanksgiving Day!

 Our thanksgiving went well.  As usual, it was hosted over at my brother and sister in laws home.  It was a bit different this year though b/c my mom wasn't there due to her heart condition, and my dad who just turned 73 last week wasn't there b/c he wasn't feeling all that great, but we made sure they had their Thanksgiving meals even though they weren't there.  I'm thankful this year to have both of my parents still around after a tough year of health trials, and I'm thankful for my niece livening up things in the family with her lovely persona.  :-)

ABOVE:  I used early Thanksgiving morning to finish off my first crochet project and my very first original crochet CCoatsOfManyColours! design that I started over at Ms. Greaser's place a few weeks back, so thanks to Ms. Greaser for her fab crochet teaching skills.  My first project is the above cowl that I made for my niece who is shown holding her new handmade gift below.  The weather has turned bitterly cold, so I just finished it just in time for her.  Hopefully she will like it and it will keep her nice and warm.

 BELOW:  After I finished my niece's cowl I set off on an adventure to paint what I have nicknamed "The Fun Room" in my house.  I got it all painted except that one wall needs a second coat of paint on it, so I will do that this weekend.  It's purple with an accent wall of brown.  I really like it.  Now I have to decorate the room with some hopefully sweet plans that I have come up with  It looks good on my sketch "blue print", but hopefully will look as sweet for real.  I can't wait to finish it this weekend!  I'll post pics of the finished decorated room hopefully sometime Sunday if it all works out.  By the time I had the room all painted it was time to clean up and throw my little green bean casserole in the oven for Thanksgiving, and when that was done, it was time to head over to the bro and sis in laws for dinner.

 Photos from our Thanksgiving meal.

 Putting words into Sophia's mouth:  At the ripe old age that I am, I've finally learned what it's like to be a star.  You just have to deal with it and let the paparazzi take photos of you without fighting it.  Even when you are trying to take a sip from your sippy cup you are caught on camera, but it's okay.  I love my Aunt and I know she loves me, so I just let her snap away.  :-)

A Few Lovely Memories from a Fun Sleepover

This past Saturday evening a few of the single ladies welcomed the company of a few of our little sisters of the 'pre-teen" age group for a sleepover.  The idea for this sleepover has been in the works for awhile, but last spring my mom had the heart attack, so it was put on hold to care for her, and my house was knocked out as a venue to host it due to that.  Some of the girls have been waiting patiently for an opportunity as such, so it was wonderful and a relief in keeping a promise to some of the girls to finally have it.  It finally happened thanks to Sarah Evans for hosting it at the place in which she resides.  It seemed to be lovely timing to have it the weekend before Thanksgiving.  Here are a few little candid pictures for the parents, young ladies, and any friends who want to see our adventures.

BELOW:  A few fun VIDEOS

Taking a walk with the girls Sunday morning by Spurlin Lake.  It was such a fresh and beautiful Autumn day outside.

BELOW:  Dance off fun Saturday night

BELOW:  Sunday Morning Brunch

PHOTO FUN

When the girls first arrived they "got settled in" and then we were off to see a play "Wonderland" that one of the local high schools in town was performing.  Thanks to Sarah for finding out about this production and for having the idea to go.  We thought it would be fun for the girls to have some kosher fun by "going out on the town" so to speak rather than just stay at the house the entire time.  Deepika Azariah and Jessie Beezley shared in this fun with the young ladies.  Below is a pic shot right before we all headed out.

 At the production before it started.

 BELOW:  It looks like I shot the pic before Vanessa was ready, but it's the only shot that I was able to take with her in it,, so I'd feel bad to leave it out.  :-)  Hopefully she won't mind.

 We stayed at the play until intermission.  It was about 8:15pm and we decided to leave and head back to the house so that the girls could have some good old fashion kosher sleepover fun before it got too late.  The play was nice, and considering that it was a local high school production, it was pretty good, but we could tell the girls were ready to go have some fun at the house.

  Sarah made homemade hot cocoa and I topped it off with cool whip and caramel sauce that I had brought.  "Deliciousness" in a mug.  :-)

 It's probably a good thing that this pic of Tori and I came out blurry.  Tori is lovely, but it hides my imperfections.  :-)

 Sunday morning brunch.  Sarah allowed the girls to make themselves tea which made me happy since I'm a tea fan.  The girls seemed to like it.

 We asked for volunteers to help with the food.  We had prepped most of the food on our own ahead of time, but that Sunday morning it was nice to let the girls help with the finishing touches.  The girls are so helpful.  Skye browned the tortillas for the breakfast tacos that we had.  She did all 10 of then and did a great job.  Tori and Leah put the tacos together in a assembly line fashion.  :-)  I had already cooked and warmed everything for the tacos, but they needed to be put together.  The black beans in the tortilla first, then scrambled eggs on top of the beans, cheddar cheese on top of the eggs, potatoes in next, turkey bacon next, and salsa if you so desired it.  Those breakfast tacos came out yummy.  Easy fun food.

 ABOVE:  The assembled breakfast tacos.  The girls seemed to really like these, so that made me happy.  Success in feeding and pleasing pre teens..  :-)

BELOW:  Sarah's french toast casserole.  Her casserole was yummy!  It was also a big hit among our pre teen sisters.  Seconds were in order.

 Brunch is not complete without fresh fruit and berries.

 After brunch we took a short walk "along the shoreline" of Spurlin Lake.  This was the last activity that we had time to do before the girls parents came to pick them up.  Below are just some fun group shots that we took in making fun memories.

 A classic pose and then a goofy pose with Mrs. Evans.

A classic pose and then a goofy pose with Ms Coats