My Girls: Twice The Fun: holiday fun!

We've had a fun month of November. We had a pretty quiet and relaxing Thanksgiving which was actually really nice. We had a "mini" meal on Thanksgiving Day. We had ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, and the girls favorite: cranberries. Violet had six helpings of cranberries while Olivia had two helpings. We thought Violet's belly was going to explode, but she made it through!!

On Friday, November 25th, we went to the doctor for the girls' annual well check. They both had hearing and vision tests, which they both passed. They also had their blood pressure taken for the first time. They weren't scared when the machine gave their arm a "big hug." They are about 50th-75th percentile in weight and height. Violet weighed 37.4 pounds and was 40.5" tall. Olivia weighed 35.6 pounds and was 40.5" tall. They are both healthy little girls!!

We also picked out our Christmas tree. We got a real tree again this year but we got a different type of tree than in the past. We put on some Christmas music as we decorated it. Olivia and Violet weren't very interested in hanging the ornaments on the tree because they thought they would get scratched, but they loved putting the wire hanger on the ornament and handing them to me for hanging. They also love wrapping Christmas gifts this year. They ask for paper and then they go into their toy room and find something to wrap for themselves. After they wrap it, they open it and then act surprised about what it is!

On Sunday, November 27th, Jamie's family came to our house and we had a traditional Thanksgiving meal: turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, balsamic glazed carrots, corn, stuffing, rolls, salad and of course cranberries again. Jamie's Dad had surgery the next day so they stayed overnight at our house. Jamie's Dad has a condition where his windpipe collapses, causing him to cough until his airway opens up again. He had surgery to repair his windpipe so it would no longer collapse. The procedure went well but it is going to take him a few months to fully recover.

On Tuesday, November 29th, the girls turned four. In the morning we went to visit Grandpa in the hospital, and then we went to Nickelodeon Universe in the Mall of America. They went on quite a few rides but it took a lot of convincing to get them to try the little roller coaster. They tried it, but they both cried the whole time. After we got off, Olivia said she liked the straight part but didn't like the curvy parts. Their favorite ride was Azul the train, who drove them around in a circle. We ate lunch in the food court. We told the girls that they could have whatever they wanted for their birthday lunch. We walked around and looked at the food options; they both decided on macaroni & cheese, plain chips and milk. What a lunch! :) Grandma Suchy was with us, and we met up with Terri, Aaron, William & Noelle for ice cream at the mall. We came home and opened presents before we went to swimming lessons. Their favorite gift was their sleds - Olivia got a red one and Violet got a pink one, which is what they asked for. After swimming lessons, we had a piece of birthday cake before bed. The girls had a great birthday and are already asking when it will be their next one!

This past Saturday, December 3rd, we went downtown for the Holidazzle parade, which is a fairytale themed parade of floats and people covered in lights. Olivia and Violet LOVED it! After a float would pass, Violet would peer down the street for lights and yell, "I see another one coming!" Then she would jump up and down and clap. Olivia waved at everybody that passed us; however, she wasn't too fond of the wicked witch riding bike beside the Wizard of Oz float. Santa was in the last float that passed by, and the girls were sad when it was over. We watched the parade with Jamie's cousin Kraig and his daughter Athena. We all had fun, and it was such a beautiful night with a light snowfall.