Giving Thanks

Since the days when Orlando worked at 701, it's been a tradition for us to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner there, so that O could join in at least a little of the fun. Now that he no longer works on Thanksgiving, we all get to enjoy the dinner together. Anastasia has really started to enjoy going out to dinner at "fancy restaurants", so we prepped her for the exciting dinner that we were going to have.

Upon arriving, she read "the book" and decided that she wanted fish for dinner. After ordering her Shirley Temple and Candis' coke, we were ready to settle in for a nice long meal.



Not surprisingly, Anastasia wasn't as patient as the adults, so while we were finishing entrees, she was entertaining herself with the iPhone.



Lots of food, a lovely wine, and some yummy desserts later, we decided that we should pay a visit to Uncle Mark, who had to work.



It's been a few weeks since we last saw Mark, so Anastasia was very excited. After a drink, we posed for a few pictures.



Thanks for the rabbit ears, Myney.



When we got home, it was time for Annie to head to bed. She was very, very sad when we told her that it was time for pajamas. So, Mommy and Daddy settled for putting pajama bottoms under her dress. Lots to be thankful for this year.

Visiting Auntie Nicole and Central Park

This weekend Anastasia and I took a trip up to New York for a short visit with Auntie Nicole and her new baby, Scarlett.



After the long drive up, Nicole was an excellent hostess, starting our visit with a cup of milk and a PB&J for Anastasia. Stasia then spread out on the floor to color while Nicole and I caught up in the kitchen.



We visited for a while, then Anastasia decided she really wanted to play outside, so we started a game of hide and seek in Nicole and Jonathan's back courtyard. Before long, it was getting dark but Stasia didn't care at all. She wanted to keep playing.



We weren't able to stay with Nicole, which worked out well for us because we were able to take advantage of a free room at a wonderfully elegant hotel off Central Park. After a bath, it was time to head to bed.



Though I've visited New York plenty, I've never been to Central Park, and I was amazed by how beautiful and big it is. Anastasia was really excited by all the dogs making their way through the park.



Our walk around the park led us to a playground that looked perfect for Anastasia, with a wooden bridge and tower.





She was having a blast on this, then we found the slide. This playground had a massive stone spiral slide that was amazing. Anastasia had a ball slipping, sliding and rolling down this slide for more than an hour.



The ultimate destination on Sunday was a wedding shower for a friend. No pictures of the party, but Annie had a good time, and slept for a good deal of the ride home. Another excellent road trip for the little one.

Tailgating at Home

The Maryland Terrapins have had a less than stellar season, but we still love going to the games and tailgating before them. However, when the weather for a recent home game was expected to be under 50 degrees with heavy rain, we, and our friends who tailgate with us, decided to forego the party in tents. Orlando and I offered to host everyone at our house (including several that don't normally come to the games) for a full day of football and fun, complete with all the food that we would have had at the tailgate. What we ended up with was a great party.



The kids found lots to keep them busy with Anastasia's toys, markers and crayons, and movies upstairs. There was a lot of collaborative play, and a bit of jumping on the bed, but no fighting and no one got hurt.



For part of the party, there were two games being monitored, so we set up a small Penn State viewing section in the kitchen. They were closer to the food, anyway, so no one seemed to mind the size of the TV.



A very long day (first guests arrived at 11:30 and we went to bed about 11:00), but it was a lot of fun.

Sick Again

Once again, Annie is feeling under the weather. She turned from a happy go lucky girl last night to a feverish mess in about 20 minutes. We suspect another urinary tract infection, so this morning Orlando took her to the Dr. who gave her yet another round of antibiotics (white medicine to Anastasia).

With a dose of Tylenol doing it's work, she's a pretty happy girl. But, when it starts to wear off, she looks more miserable.



I took her temp after this picture, and got 101.9, so it was clearly time for another dose of what Annie calls her "pink medicine". She's been a bit opposed to medicine in general this time, so I managed to convince her that we would only play her new Memory game after she drank it all. That perked her up.



Sadly, this trick did not work for either the antibiotics or the dose of Tylenol she had to have before going to bed. Tomorrow, we may try a pill ground up in apple sauce instead.

A Kiss Will Make It Better

On Sunday, Anastasia was helping me to build a new dresser when I accidentally bonked my head. Her response was to drop everything and come give me a long hug. Then she asked where it hurt, kissed the top of my head, and said, "I love you, Mommy. You feel better now?"

I did.

Minnie Mouse the Social Butterfly

This was the busiest Halloween yet for Anastasia. There was a fall festival at school all week, including a haunted house and costume party, pumpkin patch in the cafeteria and a goody bag filled with yummy treats.

Then, on Friday, after a day at home with Daddy (school was closed for teacher inservice), Myney, Annie and I went to Hilloween at Eastern Market with friends Abby, Ann, and Nathalie. Hilloween is a festival type block party put on by the merchants of Eastern Market. Usually it takes place on Halloween, but the change in date this year meant that it was very crowded. Still, Anastasia had a lot of fun.



There was a hay ride, a small carousel, free balloons and a moon bounce for the kids. Anastasia was very excited to ride the carousel and the hay ride, so that's what we waited in line for.



Halloween arrived on Saturday with a costume party at the playground sponsored by our neighborhood association. There were lots of cute kids there, and it was our chance to play with all our friends in the neighborhood. I forgot my camera, so I'm beholden for to neighbors for pics, but you'll see them when I get them.

After a nap and a quick wash of the costume, Trick or Treating began. Little girl's stamina is only good for a couple blocks, so it we took just a short walk around the neighborhood to fill her bucket.



A pretty good haul for a little girl.