Thanksgiving Weekend

 There were just the three of us for Thanksgiving dinner this year but we still cooked up quite the feast. Turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, homemade dinner rolls, and pumpkin pie.

 Sam tried out some of the food and enjoyed trying to get it in his mouth. Then it was time to find a Christmas tree.

 We went to a farm and got to take a hay ride on the tractor. There were lots of trees to choose from.

 Sam says "Mom, I am not impressed - we need bigger!"

 We finally found the perfect tree. It was about 11 feet tall but when the spindly top and few bottom branches were trimmed it would be perfect for our living room.

 Tyler sawed it off then tidied up the base.

 Then it was time to drag it to the road and wait for our tractor ride back.

Then we drove it home and put it up to acclimate a day or two before decorating.

 We also got to see the Budweiser clydesdales on our trip to the country. They were huge!

 And lastly, we had to make a quick visit to see Santa.

Fireplace Surround Mantel

 I have been working on a fireplace surround as a secret for Kristen over the past couple of months. The bricks were put in place last week and final coats of paint were put on yesterday. Kristen and I moved it down to the house this morning from the shop. It will be nice to get the space back in the shop to work some more of the house projects. Here it is after just moving it in and setting in place in the living room.

 

Sam thinks it is a fun new thing in the house.

 

Right now there is no actual "fireplace", but it is sized for a gas fireplace to be installed at some later time. The firebox is just painted flat black for the time being.

Kristen took the opportunity to start getting out some of the Christmas decorations.

November So Far...

November has been a month filled with fun things to do with Sam. Here is a little recap of our adventures so far.

  

Sam turned six months old already! So we decided to see how much he had grown. Here he is in his outfit he wore home from the hospital six months later.

We went to a wedding and Sam got to see all of his April/May baby buddies.

 Then it was time for his first Thanksgiving at daycare. We went and ate lunch with him and he tried cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, and green beans.

 We made our first trip to the children's museum where Sam loved the trains and watching the other kids play.

 

 Sam had fun playing with his dad and "Dusty" the Roomba.