New Years Eve

Jakob and Mommy were the only ones home this year. Daddy celebrated the new year many hours earlier in another country. Jakob and I made our traditional "big" cookie with lots of decorations. Jakob had his first experience with silly string (he loved it) and we had horns to blow before he went to bed. He was asleep by 7:15 PM and will bring in the new year with sweet dreams. Mommy will too!

Wishing everyone a prosperous new year. Enjoy 2008.

Chirstmas Day

Jakob was up at 7 AM to see if Santa had come. He did and left a little bit of a mess on his plate. After opening all his gifts he asked if there were anymore. We informed him we thought there was plenty and he said, "I was just checking." He loved everything and played with a few things before our company arrived.

George's family came down from New Jersey to celebrate the day with us. We had a lot more gifts to open and Jakob played with his cousins until dinner. We had Jakob's best friend, Matthew, and his family over for dinner. After dinner we had a small get together for dessert and drinks. A very long day with lots of friends and family. A wonderful Chirstmas.

Christmas Eve

Decked out in our Sunday best we made our way to Christmas Eve Service at the Presbyterian church. They had a wonderful children's service at 5:30 PM which lasted only 45 minutes. There were lots of duties the children had during the service, from holding up pictures to passing the flame for the candlelight rendition of Silent Night (they provided penlights). Jakob did great. Once we got home we opened one gift and set out cookies and oatmeal for Santa and his reindeer.

Parade of the Magi

Today Jakob had his preschool Christmas Party. They all dressed up as Kings (Magi) and presented baby Jesus with gifts (food for our local food bank). Then, they sang some wonderful songs for the parents and guests. They were all so perfect. After the show we went back to their classrooms for cookies and punch.

Jakob's Winter Break will last until Jan. 4th. We hope to fit in some fun day trips during the break. Jakob really wants some snow so he can make a snowman.

Pictures with Santa

Today we went to Fairfax for a picture with Santa. There is a beautiful outdoor mall with an awesome toy store there. The toy store had a visit from Santa this morning from 11 to 12. Jakob was a little apprehensive about sitting on this strange guys lap but did a great job. When asked by Santa what he wanted for Christmas, Jakob was speechless. We think he was probably saying to himself, "Get me away from this strange bearded guy." Santa understood and let him go.

We also saw the new Smart Cars, the ones that are so tiny you can park two in a normal side street parking spot. Jakob thought they were great, but said we couldn't get one because he wouldn't fit. Smart kid.

First Snow

Wednesday was our first snow of the year. Only an inch in our area, but enough to close schools the NEXT day. Those of you in Wichita would be shocked at how fast they close the schools and businesses here. If snow falls overnight (even flurries) there will NOT be school the next day and the DC area is on a delay for getting to work. If there is substantial snow fall, say over 3 inches, they will run a reduced manpower in the DC area and only those people with really, really important jobs go in. CRAZY.

So, because the snow fell in the early afternoon, Jakob had preschool. However, all after school activities were cancelled along with the next day school closure. There was literally an inch of snow on the ground.

Jakob wanted to make snowballs, more like ice balls by Wednesday morning. The last picture is of him trying a cartwheel. Lots of fun.

Thanksgiving Day

We spent our Thanksgiving Day with George's family in New Jersey. Jakob's cousins, Shayne and Olivia, were on hand and kept Jakob busy. The kids went to the park to ride bikes and scooter around before the big meal.

George's mom, Betty, cooked dinner with all the traditional dishes. A wonderful turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, string beans, broccoli, gravy and bread. The kids set up a restaurant in the basement and dessert was served with lots of flare. For dessert it was Betty's famous apple pie and Alyssa's brownies with plenty of whipped cream.

To end the evening we made a fire and chatted about our wonderful lives and how lucky we are.

A Visit to New York

For the Thanksgiving holiday we made a trip to New Jersey to spend time with George's family. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving we took a trip into New York City to see the famous tree. We took the ferry boat from New Jersey to New York and rode the bus to Rockefeller Center. The tree was enormous and they had scaffolding around it so they could work on the lights. We watched the ice skaters, had lunch at TGIFridays, toured the Disney Store and FAO Schwartz. Jakob played the "BIG" piano at FAO and loved all the gigantic stuffed animals. The trip on the ferry boat was probably his favorite part, but he loved our whole adventure into the city.

Day of Giving

Jakob's preschool had a Thanksgiving program on Monday. Each class made a special treat and they all came together for a Thanksgiving feast. Chicken nuggets, jello jigglers and cheese where on the menu. After the snack it was into the Chapel for a few songs for the parents. Jakob was a Pilgrim last year and this year he was an Indian. Our favorite song:

Mr. Turkey, Mr. Turkey

You are getting nice and fat.

We are waiting for Thanksgiving

Now what do you think of that?

Mr. Turkey, Mr. Turkey

Did you ever wonder why,

People eat you for Thanksgiving

And not chicken pot pie?

Forest Park

There is a beautiful park close to our home. We've taken a few hikes through the forest, played a game of soccer and toured the visitor center. This time we wanted to see the trees in their Autumn glory and shoot some rockets.

We have two rocket shooters that you stomp on to make the rockets shoot into the air. Jakob and George have an on going competition to see who can get it to fly the highest. George blew the top of one once and has since softened his stomp. Jakob is getting really close to stomping as hard as George.

After the rockets we took a short hike through the forest just before sunset. Absolutely gorgeous. After the hike we drove the scenic route through the park and saw some deer. Jakob was scared and excited all at the same time. He couldn't believe he was seeing a deer and at the same time he was pretty sure we were going to hit them or they were going to hit us. We assured him we were going very slow and they were just watching us. He accepted this and promptly went to sleep.

The Leaves are Falling

And we are Raking!!! While we lived in Illinois our home was in a new subdivision and there were very few trees and even fewer mature trees. We would always complain about not having enough shade and never seeing many birds.

No longer!!! Virginia is beautiful in the Fall. The colors are so brilliant and varied. Last week we had a few days of rain and wind. This weekend our entire neighborhood was out raking up the result of this weather. Lots and lots of leaves. Everywhere. We raked enough to fill 12 bags. That was only our front yard. We will not be raking our backyard.

Jakob loved helping and had the most fun jumping into a huge pile of leaves. He also loved the hot chocolate after the hard work.

Halloween

Jakob dressed up as a spider again this year. He didn't want to wear the spider hat so we painted his hair black with a red spot. He loved it. We started trick or treating at 7. Jakob and George hit the neighborhood while I stayed behind. We didn't have very many visitors.


Jakob's favorite part of the night was handing out the treats to other kids. He was so excited everytime someone came to the door.

Little Hands Fall Festival

Jakob's preschool had a Fall Festival on Halloween. There were lots of games, pictures, food and fun. This year was a surprise for the kids because there was a bounce castle. It was the favorite activity. After the festival the kids put their costumes on and had a parade around the church grounds.