happy thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! so much to be thankful for this year. really. we had some stresses and some sad events happen this year, but we also had some wonderful things happen too. we feel blessed and so very thankful.

my parents came for a few days for thanksgiving. i think it was the first time they've ever been here in michigan for thanksgiving. so it was great to spend some time with them. our last meeting together was actually at my grandma's funeral so it was nice to spend happier moments with them here.

my dad always has a way of sneaking in a mini-sermon for us when he sees us. it can be long sometimes and i probably got annoyed with it when i was younger. but now, i really love it. he's so devoted and faithful and humble. and i just appreciate him and my mom and any kind of spiritual (and regular) advice they can give. love you guys!

we did nothing but eat for a couple days straight! hehe, we all need to go on a serious diet! :) anyway, here are some pics from our weekend.


the girls playing Legos while i was cooking. lego tower taller than addison! :)



it was a simple meal. turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, roasted sweet potatoes, sausage/mushroom stuffing and a cabbage salad.






oh and i experimented and made butter pecan bread pudding and pumpkin mochi cake (not shown) for desserts! both turned out pretty well!

new town and fall fun

well, a lot has happened since my last post! it's been crazy busy, but things are finally slowing down and getting settled.

well, the big thing was that we moved. we are still in michigan, but in a different town. we moved to Wolverine country! we are in the home of University of Michigan... Ann Arbor. jimmy has always wanted to live here. so, we decided we would try and move before addison started kindergarten. well, we listed our home in the beginning of the summer, but it didn't sell until after the school year had started. so unfortunately, we had to pull her out of one school and start another. but addison was so great with the transition. and speaking of schools and addison, we were going to put her in the public school system here, but we looked into a nearby private school. we decided to check it out. we did a tour, filled out some paperwork/questionnaires (i felt like i was writing a college entrance essay! pressure to write the right things! hehehe) and she had to pass a test with a psychologist in order to be accepted. she took an intelligence test and it turns out that she is a gifted child! we were pleasantly surprised. i mean, we always thought she was bright, but we didn't know that she was gifted. needless to say, jimmy and i are proud parents. so she started her new school with sheer excitement and enthusiasm... just as she does most everything!

our move went well. the transition was actually harder on me than anyone else, i think. i was used to our other house and our old neighborhood and area. i wasn't familiar with ann arbor and what it's like here. i don't really know anyone here either. change is hard for me as i get older. but it's been a few weeks now and i've located markets that i like and target and other various places. and our home is coming together... we've gotten some new furniture, painted some rooms, and just making it our own.

so another new chapter.... :)

here are some photos that i've taken since my last post...


addison and jimmy about to go to the "daddy/daughter dance" at her old school. it was western theme as you can see. :)



cider mill time!





















halloween!


sleeping beauty and butterfly fairy


addison's halloween parade at school. that is her teacher in the orange pants.






trick or treating. it was ellie's first time. she LOVED it and got the process down quickly. she knocked on the door, said "trick or treat!", reached for a handful of candy (we quickly told her, "only one!"), said thank you, and then she would say, "next house!" haha!