Happy Thanksgiving

This year, we had a pseudo-Thanksgiving followed by the real deal. Since my mom is always stuck working on Black Friday, a trip to see us for Thanksgiving day becomes fairly inconvenient. So we decided to meet my family in the NC mountains a few weeks before Thanksgiving for a mock holiday. We did eat poultry and stuffing (but cheated and had chicken).

Feeding the very forward geese at Lake Tomahawk






Posing with the Biermensch in Black Mountain


Morning coloring session (I really love to color - it's very soothing)


Heidi, my parents' dog, immediately plops down in your lap if you sit on the floor. Not to be outdone, Charlie decided to get in on the action with Aunt Nicole.



Evan's folks and Grandpa Horejs came up for Thanksgiving, and we had a lovely visit. This year, we decided to butterfly and stuff a turkey breast, just to mix things up a bit. The result was very tasty and esthetically appealing, to boot.

Reading in bed, Thanksgiving morning


Playing in the leaves with Grandpa


E carving the turkey log


Getting ready for bed - check out that crazy hair!


Charlie the builder, courtesy of Marbles




Cracking up with Great Grandpa


Miracle family

Breakfast of Champions

Last week, the boys left the house before I did, and I noticed broccoli on Charlie's plate. I figured this was leftover from diner the night before and subsequently forgot about it, until Evan told me that Charlie had requested it for breakfast. This morning, he asked for a bowl of rice. When Evan brought it to him, he said, "Daddy, I need some soy sauce!" So much for Cheerios . . .

Not a Marxist

Charlie still uses a paci for nap and bedtime. We are gently encouraging weaning, mostly through a book called, "Bye-Bye Pacifier." At the end of the book, the mother and her reformed paci addict send his contraband to the "babies who need them." So the other day I asked Charlie,

A: Would you like to send your pacifiers to the babies who need them?
C: No! Those babies need to get they own pacies!

It's Snowing!

Yipppeeee! I'm hoping this is an omen for more wintry goodness. I don't know that I'm cut out to live in Buffalo or anything, but a little more snow than the South usually gets would be lovely.

Charlie 2.5

Yup, Charlie is 2 1/2 today. Unbelievable. To quote my mother, "Where did the time go?" He had a check-up today, and is as healthy as a horse, and almost as big: 37 lbs, 38.5".

I meant to post this earlier, and Joy thankfully reminded me to do so. When Charlie was 6 months old, we had his silhouette done by a scissor artist at the State Fair, and we had it done again a few weeks ago. I thought it would be nice to post both today, as a little Charlie retrospective.

6 months


30 months


After the 2nd one, I couldn't stop laughing, because it looks like we have the most precious little girl, with those long eyelashes and curls!

GObama!

As I'm sure you're all well aware by now, we were rooting for Obama Tuesday night. My final act as a campaign volunteer was the delivery of these cupcakes to HQ on election day.





They were a labor of hope, to be sure. It took me three 'Alias' episodes to frost and decorate these suckers. I kept a few at home for our election night party, where cautious optimism ruled. We got one Obama t-shirt photo with Catherine before Charlie went to bed.



But after Ohio went to Obama, cautious optimism gave way to elation. Lauren, my canvassing co-conspirator, gifted me a "North CarObama" shirt, which we modeled despite NC being too close to call (although the AP confirmed yesterday that NC, in fact, has turned blue).



But nothing was sweeter than Charlie waking up Wednesday morning and asking to wear his Obama shirt again. (Although I asked him yesterday who the new president is, and he said, "I don't know. Daddy! President Daddy!") I just can't help thinking about how fantastic it is that the first president he remembers will be Obama, and hopefully the idea that anything is possible in America will be all the more real for him.

Oh, really?

Charlie has been working the craziest words into his vocabulary lately. He's a big fan of "investigate" - as in: "Mommy, we should investigate these trains over here." The other day he said, "What the heck?," which I'm sure I am to blame for (although better than the many alternatives). But yesterday took the cake. He was checking out the zipper on one of the living room pillows, and said, "Daddy, I'm not entirely sure what this is."

The Joker

Charlie has started telling "jokes" lately. Here's a sample:

C: I'm going to float up in the sky with my balloon.
E: Oh yeah?
C: No, only birdies can do that! [Maniacal laughter.]

Or:

C: I will eat this berry? [In reference to a Nandina berry.]
A & C: Noooooo!
C: Because I'm not a squirrel or birdie! [Maniacal laughter.]

Trick-or-Treat

We had a fantastic Halloween! We started the day with our standing Friday play date with Isabel & Heather. We somehow thought the kids might want to help us carve pumpkins, and couldn't have been more wrong. They had much more fun throwing leaves around.





We decided that this year, the C-man was ready to take on trick-or-treating. His buddy Gabriel came to join us for a neighborhood tour de candy.

All dressed up in his lederhosen


With Batman (alter ego Gabriel)


On the candy trail with the daddies


Pretzel, beer and German sidekick


Our neighbor Kate with Gabriel and Charlie


Back home, sampling the loot: "These are tasty!"

Goin' to the Fair

I love the NC State Fair - there's just something about the mix of sawdust, fried pickles, goats and rides of questionable safety. This year we went with Matt, Paula, and our friend Catherine, who was down from Mozambique via NY to volunteer for the Obama campaign.



Our first stop: The UNC TV (PBS) tent to visit Curious George


Holding baby chicks & ducks




The great pumpkin - 632 lbs


Our first year trying the rides - we started out low-key with the carousel


Waiting in line for the spinning dragons


Upping the ante on the Caterpillar Coaster