November

For my 29th birthday, Eric sent me to a spa for four hours, where I relaxed and read a book. (Eric was flat-out exhausted when I came back: "I can't believe that you do this!" he said, which was probably the most gratifying thing he could have said, the darling.) My dear friend brought over this gourmet cake, which was straightaway enjoyed by all:

I remember as a kid hearing someone saying that all the angels in heaven are 30 years old because that is the prime of life. Someone also told me recently that at age 30, your desire to be responsible increases dramatically. So here's to a year of pre-prime, pre-responsible life--cheers! Around my birthday I asked Jacob to take a picture of me, as a record. I like the picture that he took. I don't look any prettier or any plainer than I do in real life:

Also, keep this picture in mind because I don't think that I'm wearing make-up in any of the other pictures in this post, which is funny because I love the stuff and always make Mary Kay consultants excited with how much I want to buy. I have trouble keeping it on throughout the day, however, and especially when we're doing fun projects, which are the things that I like to blog about. Anyway, enough about my face, for heaven's sakes! I told Eric that I would stop blogging in five minutes--yikes! Here's what we were doing in November:

The lucky kids got snow, followed by a day that was warm enough to play outside in it. My favorite creation was the "snow carousel" that they made around the flag pole!

Adam has gone from curious to crazy! He paints/colors his face every day, creates his own art/cooking/building projects around the house, and insists on wearing clothing inappropriate to the season and occasion (pajamas everywhere, backwards shirts, athletic shorts in 30-degree weather). He uses a deep, scary voice to tell us about the orange monster that's hiding downstairs and shouts "yeehaw" on the swings. Oh, and he takes off his diaper when it needs to be changed. I am learning to be very fast.

Preschool is a blast. I taught a week on nursery rhymes--we painted fluffy blackbirds coming out of a pie and dipped our own candles and nimbly jumped over them. Later we had a First Thanksgiving lesson and created a nine-foot cornstalk in our living room.

Then we ground corn with hammers and rocks and made cornbread! I get such a high after finishing a preschool lesson--I love these eager little learners.

I went with the boys on a bona-fide hayride through a park festooned with Christmas lights. The kids watched the tractor the entire time, of course. Fun night.

Nana and Grandpa came for a week-long visit and helped us with all sorts of home projects. I was also able to get out and help in the boys' classrooms and run errands with ease--alright! Here's Grandpa at the Children's Museum:

 Nana knows a cute baby when she sees one:

Enjoy an example of Adam's fashion sense: backwards hoody with red athletic shorts and snowman leg warmers. He was also wearing light-up Lightning McQueen shoes. Michael is characteristically pleasant and appropriate.

Thanksgiving dinner was low stress--a lot of people were there to help (Eric's sister and her husband came too, plus Eric's buddy from his residency). I made all the normal Thanksgiving things, plus my great-grandmother's fruit salad and cranberry gelatin salad, absolute musts! Here's Max's first run at the annual fare:

Ahh...the relieving moment when everything is actually on the table and we're all sitting down:

Post-Thanksgiving celebrations included The Sound of Music, board games, a hike up Picnic Point, a visit to a state park, and Christmas decorations!

But what would a Brinton blogpost be without a little bonfire? Zachary, Jacob, and I built this dual-chimney bonfire base from scrap wood that we salvaged from a dumpster in our neighborhood. The kids called it "Oil Derrick."

After burning some cardboard to get things started, we accidentally lit the bag of charcoal on fire on the ground and had a lively time putting it out. See the bag of charcoal in the foreground? Don't put a bag of charcoal that close to a large fire!

 Some tin-foil dinners,

 cuddles,

 and anticipation later,

 we set our creation alight.

 These are perfect moments sitting by the fire with the little babes.

We noticed when we drove up to the fire pit that no one had been there since we had three weeks before! How could our precious pit go unused for so long? We will have to go back and keep it company soon! I'll write about that (and more!) next time. Until then, take care.