- NOVEMBA -

Hey, hi, ho.....

...a cruisin' through November we go! 

November 1 was Daylight Savings Time, and I was actually really excited about getting an extra hour of sleep until I realized at the crack of dawn that my rooster-child would rise and chirp at 5:30am sharp instead of her normal 6:30am...

Oh Scarlett, it's a dang good thing you're SO CUTE!  We all love sleep around here, and it took us a few weeks to adjust to early bedtimes followed by even earlier mornings thanks to 'da DST.  But! In the mean time, we kept unnecessarily busy watching the TV marathon that was days weeks of Election Day news and updates [was it just me, or did it seem to trail on forever and ever and EVER this year?!]. 

^^ Mehhhhhh.  It's no secret that this year's campaigning game got ugly, and I've never been happier to have an election [and all the yard signs, commercials, and social media posts] behind us!  It's so sad how politics have divided us and so disgusting how hateful some people can be!  Leaving it at one final thought:  red or blue, I still love you! I hope you love me too.  Despite our differences, we are all Americans and I truly believe we are BETTER TOGETHER!  Now get ova' yourself and move on.

Next!  We celebrated Henry and Caroline's birthdays...

...and also our 8th anniversary!  Fr. Meconi joined us for dinner on our anniversary weekend and performed a house blessing while he was here!  I loved how he made it so personal and lighthearted yet still so beautiful and intimate.  He got the kids involved holding the pail of holy water and his book of blessings and ringing the bells as we all walked to each room together to sprinkle water and listen to scriptures.  I am grateful that he has been right by our sides for all of life's greatest moments [wedding, baptisms x 2, house blessings x 2, etc.!].  It was so nice having our good family friends here that evening, also!  Thank you guys for joining; we treasure your friendship on many levels! May the Holy Spirit flow through and continue to fill our home with peace and love!

In other good news [!], Harper made the principal's newsletter this month for living out the school year theme of "Putting on the Armor of God."  We are so proud of her and the ways she is blossoming in kindergarten this year!  Go, Harper!!!

Just as we were getting a little bit more confident in venturing out of the house for this and that and hanging out in a little bit larger groups of people we hadn't seen in a long time, the COVID cases spiked and recommendations tightened up again.  And so!  Laying low at home again it was.  We spent lots of time making projects on the Cricut [Harper is so proud of her new ability to count AND type to 100 and beyond!]...

...and painting all kinds of very colorful creations...

 ...and making a nativity scene from scratch!  Harper thought of this all on her own and just kept cutting and hot gluing things together, and I literally sat there with my jaw dropped just watching this all come together.  This girl's imagination and creativity and execution of the two together -- ESPECIALLY AT AGE 5 -- is absolutely amazing! :O

 

When we get a little stir crazy, we love to bust out of the house to visit our Grammys and Papas.  We took Sarge for a walk through my parents' subdivision one day, and Scarlett was not too thrilled that she got stuck carrying the bag of dog-doo all the way home! ;)

A week before Thanksgiving, Harper got sent home from school for complaining of a sore throat.  We saw the pediatrician and got the A-OK to return to school, but a few days later she developed a runny nose that worked in her favor to be out of school again -- and this time until after Thanksgiving break.  Crazy times, I tell ya!  Of course, Scarlett caught the sniffles too, but a few days of being lazy and watching movies all evening seemed to fix everyone up just fine!

Since Harper was home with her sniffly nose and "remote learning" for the short week of Thanksgiving, we enjoyed sleeping in both days and also having some of Grammy's homemade hot chocolate bombs after breakfast!  Even though she wasn't really "sick," she is a homebody through and through and has been growing jealous that Scarlett, Daddy, and [sometimes] Mommy are home all day every day.  The days off were a nice "reset" for all of us -- and also a little glimpse for Harper into my weekday routine of cleaning, laundry, naps, and repeat!

Next stop?! Thanksgiving!