Frying Pan Farm Park

We were lucky that Steve didn't have to work this weekend and we were able to plan a family outing. We were also extremely lucky that the weather was so nice this late in November! There are so many fun places to explore around our area, and today we decided to go to Frying Pan Farm Park. Some of Charlotte's little friends had been here before and we'd heard good things about it.

These pigs were so funny. We were standing at their outside pen looking at the mama pig when one little one walked out of the "piggy door," then another one quickly ran out, then 2 more, 4 more, 6 or 7 more after that. I guess once one went out they all thought it was a good idea! They just kept coming! We thought they might have been waiting to get fed, but when we went inside the barn and saw them again, they had plenty of food!


One of the 2 new calves born in mid October. Their names were Snickers and Reese's...so cute!

Charlotte hanging on the fence watching the horses.

Running down the road to see the rest of the animals.








After seeing all the animals, we spotted a cool playground. Charlotte wasn't too interested but it filled a few more minutes of our morning. Then, we headed down the road to Reston Town Center to stroll around and grab lunch. Charlotte enjoyed watching the ice skaters and looking at the Christmas tree. We wanted to make it home before she fell asleep, so we headed home soon after lunch. We had to do some loud music playing and foot shaking to keep her awake but it worked! Overall it was a fun day!

Black Friday

For us, the day after Thanksgiving was not for shopping, it was for visiting with friends who were in from out of town! Our friends Alison, Chris and their son Ethan were visiting Chris' family for the holiday and were able to come out to our house to play and grab lunch.

At first Charlotte and Ethan stayed on their respective sides of the room just staring at each other and clutching the leg of a nearby parent. After a while they became more comfortable and began playing...separately together. :) Ethan is a big fan of trucks, but being that our house is all about the pink and the girly right now, there wasn't a whole lot that was catching his eye. I was able to pull together a few vehicles and a puzzle with construction equipment - jackpot! I was so impressed by his ability to name all of the machines. So cute hearing a toddler say "bulldozer" and "backhoe"!


Congregating around the few wheeled objects we could find


So cute in their Gymboree sweater and cordorouy pant ensembles


Trying for a posed shot on the couch...didn't go over too well! Love Charlotte's look though.


After playtime we headed to everyone's favorite kid friendly restaurant - Red Robin! The kids were awesome during lunch and everyone enjoyed the meal. After lunch Chris, Alison and Ethan headed back to his parent's house. They had an early start the next day for their drive back to Missouri. It was great to see them and we're hoping to be able to visit them soon.

Thanksgiving 2009

Several weeks ago we thought it would be a nice idea to offer to host Thanksgiving at our house this year. Then I decided it would be a good idea to sign up for the VA Run Turkey Trot 5K the morning of Thanksgiving. Did I mention I had done ZERO training for this 5K? Anyways, I did some preparations for the Thanksgiving meal a few days ahead and recruited some family members to make things as well, so I wouldn't be too overwhelmed. Turns out, as always, we had WAY too much food! Obviously I survived the 5K, thanks in major part to my running (walking/shuffling) partner, Kathleen!

We had a relatively small group at Thanksgiving - me, Steve, Charlotte, my parents, my Aunt Jacki, Steve's Mom, Chris, Sarah, Madeline and Gabriel. We planned to eat around 4 after all the kiddos were up from naps and in good moods. Luckily Charlotte took about a 3 hour nap that day and was in good spirits when she woke up. Although she was a bit shocked because there was no one here when she went to sleep and then a whole bunch of people (including her little cousins who were playing with all of her toys) when she woke up!

Everyone enjoyed a yummy meal and my very first attempt at turkey was a success! Although I don't think i'll be attempting that too many more times - the preparation was totally grossing me out!



After dinner Madeline wanted to color, and soon both Charlotte and Gabriel wanted to join in the fun.


Steve copying Charlotte's famous smile!

A great one of Mom and Madeline

Charlotte and her latest obsession - the color yellow!

All dressed up...

and somewhere fun to go!

Charlotte's friend Landon turned 1 this month and she (and I) were invited to his birthday party. I decided to dress her up in a super cute dress I picked up down in North Carolina during the summer. We were operating on no nap, but she was a really good girl at the party and she had fun meeting lots of new friends.

18 Months and Weekend with Daddy

Charlotte turned 18 months on Friday November 13th! I was on a weekend girl's trip to NYC during this time, and Charlotte had a special weekend with Daddy. I have no 18 months stats for Charlotte since she has not been to her appointment yet - I guess the doctor's office is a little busy because the first available appointment is a few weeks into December! Will post the stats as soon as I can get them!

Here are some pictures from Charlotte's weekend with her Daddy.

Halloween

I was excited for this year's Halloween holiday because Charlotte would be able to walk to a few houses and trick or treat. Mother Nature had other ideas and gave us a yucky misty rain so that we were only able to make it to about 3 houses, but that was probably just about enough for Charlotte anyway!

A few days before Halloween we had Mommy group and decided to try and get a picture of all the kids in their costumes. Here is one of the better shots of Charlotte posing with her friends in their costumes. This was a very difficult task getting them all to look in the same general direction!


And this is the best pose we could get of Charlotte on Halloween night!

Charlotte's loot

She couldn't have any of her candy, but she did have a cupcake as a treat!


Yum! Sucking your thumb when it is covered with cupcake icing is pretty nice.