Thanksgiving foods

Matthew turned 5 months old Nov.20. So I had to snap the obligatory stuffed animal picture. He is starting to grab toys and play with rattles now. He's so adorable! The girls now (especially Sarah) shove toys in his hands for him to play with. Play with this...play...PLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Poor Matthew.

Thanksgiving is coming up on Thursday and since it has been awhile since I've posted a top ten list, I've decided to write my top ten favorite Thanksgiving foods that we have at my parents house.

1. Sweet potato casserole - courtesy of Amanda - yum!

2. Rigatoni and meatballs - yes this is Thanksgiving food!!

3. Wedding soup - again, a staple at our house for Thanksgiving

4. hoho cake - duh

5. Stuffing - the only time of year I eat it

6. Turkey - surprisingly the side dishes beat the main event for me!

7. Rolls - my mom buys yummy rolls and I slather them with butter

8. Cranberry sauce - I am one of those people who does like the cranberry sauce in a can that you dump out and it is still in that shape

9. Mushrooms - my Mom has been sauteeing mushrooms for Thanksgiving. I just love them!

10. Salad - why is this on the list beating pumpkin pie? I like the salad and the dressing my parents have!

So that's my list. What is on your list?

I got -10 points today on Quiddler. I was left with QKDGZNR. There are NO words that can be made with that!

Yummy Oatmeal!

Matthew squeaks. We have come to this realization. Here is a video of him squeaking. In fact, he squeaks most of the time rather than crying. Erik thinks I might have spliced some pig DNA into him (he is rather chunky) but I assured him that no, Matthew's DNA came from us (whether or not that is a good thing....)

We fed Matthew his first taste of solid food.

Here is a picture of Matthew trying his first bite of oatmeal.















And that's what he thought of it:

















Tears. Screaming. Not quite so successful but we'll keep trying.

In other news:

1. Erik and I have decided to start P90X. This is a workout program in which you workout every day. Ummm....okay. We have 3 kids and I'm teaching 5 classes. We are trying but it isn't happening every day. Plus I like to shake it at my hip hop class.
2. Erik and I are really enjoying the Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.
3. Jenna has been writing sentences like crazy. Just a few months of school has been amazing for her. She wrote "the prisess wor a long slevdress". She sounded it out herself and was able to determine the letters based on the sounds. I couldn't believe she did that. It was incredible! School has been great for her.
4. Jenis Ice Cream now has a location down the road from us. This will cancel out our P90x workouts.
5. I also have to post this video of Sarah and Matthew "talking". At least they get along!
6. 75 points on Quiddler today. I didn't realize SER was a word!
   

Abstract Art

The girls and I were playing games the other day and Jenna made a flower in the rain out of dominoes. I thought it was very creative so I took a picture of it. Then I said to Jenna, "great abstract art Jenna!" Her response, "it's not abstract Mommy because it is a picture of something." Right. Apparently the 5 year old knows more about art than me.

Next we started to play a game that I and I alone like. No one else seems to like this game so I tried to teach it to my girls. It's called Set. It's lots of fun if it doesn't give you a headache. The girls had more fun sorting the cards than playing set. Maybe someday I'll actually get to play....

We gave Matthew oatmeal to eat on Monday. He screamed. Sometime I'll snap a picture when he actually enjoys eating solid food. For the most part - he's the smiliest baby ever (unless you are giving him oatmeal).

If I wasn't teaching 5 classes and had free time, I would be reading A LOT. Towers of Midnight by Brandon Sanderson/Robert Jordan just came out. I also have the Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, the Blood Knight by Greg Keyes, Conquerors Legacy by Timothy Zahn, and Percy Jackson the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan that I'm reading now. I'm excited about all of the books since they are all good.

89 points on Quiddler today and I made the word "nothing"!