November began with a special trip to the zoo! Ryan had a blast meeting all sorts of creatures! We started with the penguins and watched as they had their breakfast.
We saw lions, giraffes, monkeys, birds, tigers, and more! One of our favorites was this rhino - he was playing with a "ball" by pushing it around with his horns! Ryan thought that was pretty fun.
Ryan and daddy
Eleanor tried cereal for her first time this November - she loves eating just like her big brother! Their favorite is eating together!
Yum!
Ryan and Ellie are very lucky and have a wonderful nanny who takes care of them during the day. She takes them out and when they spend afternoons at home, they are busy with all sorts of fun projects. Here is their Thanksgiving art - complete with hand print "turkeys"!
It was Eleanor's first Thanksgiving and we enjoyed multiple celebrations as usual! We spent a day at both sides of the family and created our own delicious spread at home too! We are big on cooking in this house - and really enjoyed our quiet day at home cooking up a fantastic meal and spending the day together!
Thanksgiving buddies
As usual, we enjoyed a few extra adventures ...
Ryan's first "boo-boo" ... he tripped and his sippy cup cut his chin. There is still a mark, so if it sticks we might have to come up with a better story!
Ryan has a very creative and silly side ...
Ryan helped mommy "decorate" Christmas cupcakes ...
Ellie loves Ryan's toys ... thankfully he is great at sharing ... most of the time!
We did more fun projects with our nanny!
Finger painting fun!
Christmas art! The first foot is Ryan's and the second is Ellie's. A very special piece of art!
After such busy and fun days, the kids really enjoy bath time together! Ryan is working on teaching Ellie how to splash. Not sure he will like the outcome of this!
We had a wonderful time at this year's LPA Holiday Party! It's always a big event with lots of familiar faces and new ones too! We enjoy great food and company - Ryan is starting to enjoy the other kids and as always, was quite the social guy!
Ryan and daddy
Eleanor and mommy
When Santa arrived on the fire truck, all the children chased after Santa ... except for Ryan ... all he cared about was the truck! Lucky for him, the firemen were very kind and let him explore their truck!
Christmas isn't complete without a visit to Santa! Both kids had no problem sitting in Santa's lap and we think they were able to tell him what they wanted for Christmas!
All ready to go!
We also did a visit to the amazing lights display in our area! We opted to ride the park's train through the display - it was an hour long line, but worth the wait! Ryan couldn't decide which he was more excited about - the lights or the ride on the train!
Before we knew it, Christmas had arrived!
We woke on Christmas morning to find that Santa came!
Eleanor helped mom and dad get their coffee going - she's our early bird!
Ryan was a little slower to wake ...
Good morning!
It didn't take Ryan long to warm up to the idea of Christmas morning!
Ellie loves her jumper!
Ryan is very excited about his Cars movie ... it's one of his new favorite activities!
He also enjoys his First Words flash cards! ... sometimes he even looks at the pictures ...
Ryan's "big boy" bedding! (Cars theme of course!)
We ended 2013 with a lot of great fun and wonderful family time. The new year gives us a chance to reflect on a year well done! It's been a fantastic year and we can't wait to see what 2014 brings.
... on to the next adventure!
