So many things to be thankful for

What a Thanksgiving week!

It all started with gorgeous weather. We spent most of Sunday in Granville enjoying a pre-Thanksgiving meal. It was sunny and nearly 70 degrees. We took advantage of the weather by going for a little walk and having a mini photo shoot. The dinner was amazing and Maxalynn was in such good spirits.

Mid-week brought a few tears. Maxalynn started pushing thru her 2 bottom teeth. They were just slivers, but painful none the less.

Gobble gobble! We hit the road on Thanksgiving day and headed up to Fremont. We made a quick stop at my dad's then had a feast at Dawn's. Maxalynn was quite a hit! The younger cousins (Mitch, Tate and Trent) made a huge fuss over her and kept taking turns holding her. Who would have thought pre-teen boys would be so excited to "play" with a baby! This day was extra special because she started saying DaDa. Sure, she may not actually associate the word with Alex, but it's a start. Although the weather was less than perfect for traveling, Maxalynn slept the whole way up and the whole way back.

To round out the week, we are heading to Lancaster on Saturday for a post-Thanksgiving celebration with Nichole and her family.

Thank you Lord for all the wonderful blessings you have given us. Each and every day is a gift.

Dedication

What an awesome day! It started with an amazing church service. Melanie Forsythe has an amazing gift when it comes to prayer and sharing the word of God. We were surrounded by family, friends and the Holy Spirit. We then had a delicious lunch at our house. Max's Nana (my mom) came down a few days early to help clean, cook and entertain Maxalynn. The entire experience was great. We are blessed to have so many people that love us.

Ba ba ba

Max started with the P sound. Everything out of her mouth was puh puh puh. Now she has added a new sound to her vocabulary - BA. We try to get her to say Dada or Mama but it hasn't worked yet. We will say it, she looks like she is concentrating really hard, she pushes her lips together and out comes Ba Ba Ba Ba. Close enough for now!

Date Night

Monday night was the first (of many) Daddy Daughter Date.

I had a MOPS meeting I wanted to attend so Alex was on his own.  He loaded Max into the car and the 2 of them headed to Granville.  I was "free" for almost 5 hours.  What the heck was I going to do??  Originally I planned on cleaning, laundry, etc.  You know, all that exciting stuff.  But then I decided to go shopping.  SHOPPING!  I spent an hour in Kohls.  Looking, trying things on, finding different stuff, trying those on.....all by myself.  Heavenly.  Then I headed off to MOPS.  By 9:00 I was back home and in my pjs.

Alex had a great time with Max.  She had squash for the first time and LOVED it.  The food couldn't be shoveled in fast enough.  He left a little later than planned, so Max was a little cranky for the return trip.  Alex got out of giving her a bath because she had one that afternoon.  (she NEEDED one, I will spare you the diaper details)

The first Daddy Daughter Date Night was a success and I see many more in the future!

Halloween

What a LONG weekend.

The festivities started Thursday evening. This was "beggars night" in Gahanna. We picked up a very cute bat costume and helped Max "fly" around the neighborhood. We didn't take her trick or treating per say, it was more like show and tell. We visited a handful of neighbors. At each stop we chatted, they oohed and ahhed over Max, and we just happened to get candy.

On Saturday, we "flew" over to Chip and Shana's house for a Halloween party. The bat costume didn't last too long because it was a bit warm. Chip's dad, Buzz, held Max while we ate. She had no problems, Buzz enjoyed it, but Charlie got a wee bit jealous. We had a good time, ate great food and talked with a variety of people.

Sunday we stayed home, but my family (mom, sister, niece, nephew) came down for a visit. We ate lunch, went for a walk, played games, made homemade pretzels and baked cookies. It was a short visit, but we made the most of every minute.

All in all it was a great weekend!