Celebrating Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving, we decided to do things a little different. It all began when we decided to go to the Thanksgiving Day Parade. The easiest, laziest way to do that is to stay downtown!Thanks to Papa's endless traveling, he had a gazillion points with Hilton. He booked 2 rooms for 2 nights at the Hilton Americas next to Discovery Green. Perfect location!

We checked in early on Wednesday and spent the remaining daylight hours having "ventures" (adventures) in and around the hotel. We checked out all the globes, ice rink and play area. Samantha walked past this railing and said it was just like Angelina Ballerina's ballet bar. We couldn't get her to stop dancing!
I think she's ready for lessons.

We found the pool, gym and spent lots of time at the Executive Lounge eating everything in sight!

We walked across the street to the Toyota Center to watch the Rockets vs Mavericks.

The next morning was the parade. We woke up, grabbed our breakfast and wandered out the door for our curbside seats.Sam loved everything! Well, except for things that made loud noises (firetrucks and motorcycles). Marching bands, dancers and cheerleaders were the most fun.This was our favorite float...with real snow!After the parade we went swimming and took pre-dinner naps. We ate at the Hilton Cafe for our Thanksgiving meal. We played a heated game of Battle of the Sexes and went to go see New Moon. It was a great break from the typical Thanksgiving at home...but we were sure missing leftover turkey!

A Joy School Thanksgiving

Today at Joy School we learned all about Thanksgiving. We invited two special visitors to join us (McKenna and Jaxson - Avery's cousins). We met the Pilgrims and Indians and made cornbread for our feast. We decorated turkeys with apples, marshmallows & fruit snacks and sang the "gobble- gobble, gobble-gobble, gobble" song.

We are thankful for our friends and joy school!

Tree Lighting at La Centerra

Can you believe this was scheduled BEFORE Thanksgiving! It seems Christmas keeps starting sooner and sooner each year. We met up with Avery and Lauren for cookie decorating, crafts and music.Samantha was very excited to see Santa. She wasn't scared at all to sit on his lap! She asked for a red bicycle helmet.

Kristin's Baby Shower

Machalagh Comes to Houston

My Dad's cousin Machalagh is now traveling to Houston for work. We had the whole gang over for a tried and true Texan meal - BBQ!

Daddy's Day Off

Blake took the day off on Friday. We told Sammie we were going to go to 3 special places as a family. All day long she kept track of what number activity we were on.

1. Pets R Us
Samantha loves puppies. Understatement of the world. Maybe someday she'll get one. Just not yet. In the meantime, I have decided to help her decide what her favorite kind of dog is...yorkies!2. Lupe Tortillas
Nothing better than cheese 3 ways for lunch.
Cheese stick, queso and a quesadilla.3. Build-a-Bear Workshop
Aunt Melissa gave Sam a gift card for Christmas...last year. What a fun store to play in. Sam took forever picking out her kitty. We choose a kitty meow and the Happy Birthday song as sounds. We each gave kisses to the new kitty's heart and then stuffed her with love. Sam gave the kitty a really good bath. Then she picked out a ballerina outfit and shoes and wand. Just before we put her in the box, Sam decided to take off all the clothes and give her another bath...the kitty has never had clothes on since.

Joy School

It is my turn to teach these kiddos at Joy School. We are learning about service and sharing.

On Monday we offered service to our neighbor, Mary Jo who just had a baby. The girls went over and picked up all the diapers in her house. Mary Jo had them hidden all over the family room. It was really cute. Today we made flower pots for our mommies.