a long november

You know you haven't blogged in a long time when your husband begins to make comments and asks you to blog.  It isn't due to lack of information to blog about (this month has actually been an awesome month), it's just we have been so busy, I just haven't had the time to sit down and type.

So here is our month:

It all started on the eve of November with Halloween.  Love Bug was our beautiful Snow White and The Mayor was Buzz Lightyear...again.  We called him Buzz 2.0.  We continued with our Halloween tradition of meeting at Mamie and PopPop's and then went to Meega and J's house this year to trick-or-treat.  Love Bug and Bennett either walked together or rode together in the wagon.  The Mayor literally ran from house to house.  He even tagged along with a dad and his preteen daughter because they were faster than we were.  At one point, he was 4 houses ahead of us so I had to run ahead and walk with him.  The kid was on a mission and his mission was candy and his little sister and cousin were holding him back.  All of his running tired him out, so he actually went back with Meega and J to their house to "rest" while Meega fed Walker and D and I took Love Bug and Bennett through the rest of the houses.

We stayed out until 8:00 and then had to get home to finish packing because the next morning we had to get up and hit the road for Panama City Beach.  We were on the interstate by 6:30 AM and in Panama City Beach by 11:30 AM.  D's Ironman was finally here.  It was surreal...a race that had been on our calendar for exactly a year was now upon us.  MeMe, Big Daddy, Aunt Nat, Uncle Tom, Trey and Luke also made the trip.  They had never seen D race and they picked an awesome one to come and see.  This race deserves its own blog post so I will do one in the next couple of days, but D did it...he finished in a great time and to say we are proud of him is a HUGE understatement.

the cheering squad with D and his friend Hal

after the first 1.2 miles of the swim...going back in for the next 1.2 miles

D saw his sister before the run and gave her a hug

the did it! Ironman!

A couple of days after we returned from Ironman, D and I celebrated 13 years of marriage.  13 years!  In some ways I feel like I have known him my entire life and in other ways I feel like we just got married.  But 13 years and 2 beautiful children later we are still trucking along.  I wouldn't want to spend this life with anyone else by my side but D.  It hasn't always been pretty but our life is perfect for us.

During this time, D also took a new job.  He no longer works at home everyday (sad) but it is a great opportunity for him (yay).  He drives downtown everyday again (sad) but works flex time so is home around 5:00 (yay).

We had a surprise birthday for Mamie.  She turned 60 in November so Aunt Amy and Sydney drove in from Nashville to join in on the surprise dinner.  It was so fun having 4 out of the 5 kids there (Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Woody and Elizabeth didn't come in for the event...sweet Elizabeth is still to little to be traveling - but we did Skype them in).  PopPop told Mamie they had to come to our house to pick something up before they went to dinner, and when they walked in, we were hiding and yelled "surprise"!  The kids had a blast being together and we all had a great time celebrating our Mamie.

hiding and waiting for Mamie to show up

Mamie and all her grandkids (just missing Elizabeth)

the birthday girl

sweet cousins...Love Bug and Sydney

The Mayor and Love Bug are both doing very well at school.  We are really proud of The Mayor and the strides he has been making.  We had him reevaluated by the county and they came to watch him in the classroom.  They gave his teachers some strategies and we are really seeing some major improvements.  The Mayor is even proud of himself and that alone is worth it.

We went to our local outdoor mall for the annual Christmas tree lighting.  It was kind of weird going to a tree lighting before Thanksgiving but that's how we roll!  The kids had a blast getting hot cocoa, seeing Santa, singing Jingle Bells and seeing the tree being lit up!

enjoying some hot cocoa

daddy and his girl

showing off her jingle bell

Preschool has kept us busy and before we knew it, it was Thanksgiving break.  This was our year to be in Atlanta so we cleaned the house and brought all the Christmas decorations up.  They were up and on the week of Thanksgiving.  I know, we should have waited until the day after Thanksgiving, but who are we kidding?  Christmas is our favorite and the kids LOVE seeing the lights.  So the decorations went up early.  Even our elf Buddy came early...the kids find him every morning and we remind them he is here to watch over them and report back to Santa.  Oh how I love this time of year!

Thanksgiving morning we went to Mamie and PopPop's house.  The weather was amazing...temperatures in the 60s.  The Mayor was wearing shorts for crying out loud.  Uncle Sloan, Meega, J, Bennett and Walker were there.  Uncle Sloan played with the kids which the kids loved and so did the parents.  It gave us a much needed break.  We were actually able to sit back and relax a bit.  We spent all afternoon hanging out and playing and then ate dinner around 5:30.  Dinner, as usual, was amazing and we all ate more than we should.  But isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about?  Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.  I love the idea of no one going to work, no one going to school, spending all day in the house with your most favorite people talking, laughing, watching football, drinking beer, eating food all of which leads up to the happiest time of year...Christmas!  Shortly after we got home and the kids into bed, me and my friend Tiffany hit the stores.  We were out at 8:00 that night and shopped the Black Friday deals until 3:00 in the morning.  I was asleep around 3:30 and back up at 6:30.  It is crazy and I feel like crap but it is worth it.  The amount of money I save is ridiculous and it is fun to be in the chaos.  My dad kept telling me to online shop but I can't do it.  I love the chaos, the crowds, the Christmas displays.  I will always prefer to shop in a store.  Yep, I am crazy.  I am ok with that.

Love Bug after her Thanksgiving lunch at school

The Mayor after his Thanksgiving lunch at school

Bennett on Thanksgiving day

We rounded out Thanksgiving weekend with some football watching and playing with friends.  We had our good friends The Paynes over to watch Georgia annihilate Georgia Tech and then to watch other big games that were on.  The Mayor and Love Bug had the best time playing with Avery and Addy.  They played hard from 11:30 until 7:00...and both passed out the second their heads hit their little pillows.  The Mayor even slept in until after 8 this morning...that kid played hard.

We finished the last week of November by finishing up the Christmas decorations in the house and getting back into our routine.  We also got some great news...The Mayor is doing so well in OT that this time next year he may be done with private OT!  And he may be able to take the summer off and pick it up before kindergarten and then taper it off.  It is exciting and scary.  Exciting because we could not be prouder of our boy.  To think it has been less than a year since he was diagnosed with sensory processing disorder and to see him struggle at preschool and finding the perfect OT for him...and to see him now mastering and exceeding all of the goals being set for him in OT...it is just beyond amazing to see.  It is scary to think this crutch and support system could be gone next year...but I know we won't be done with OT unless he is ready.  So we really have nothing to fear.  God is good!