Jumping Aboard the Holiday Train of Chaos!

Hello Holiday season, getting into full swing now! AHHHHHH! Is Thanksgiving really only 4 days away? Seriously? Well, fortunately for Chase, we've been working on doing "real" meals a lot, and he had his first sampling of (pre/mini-) Thanksgiving dinner today at my mom's. I swear, anything on the silver fork/spoon is golden ;)

Also, as the weather has swung back and forth between 80's and then 60's, we've enjoyed being outdoors more- walks, playing in the yard, trying to get out on the weekends- it's awesome! Finally wrapping up the grass project, and hoping the rest of our house projects fall into place as well. People around us are starting to put up Christmas lights, and I'm not quite sure I'm ready for that yet... maybe next weekend :)

High on our agenda is also the family portrait we've yet to tackle. It will be sent in Christmas cards in the next couple weeks- I swear! One way or another we'll get it...

For the new parents out there- if you have yet to discover it- the grocery shopping carts that are built like race cars, rocket ships, etc., are AWESOME! It dawned on me the other day that Chase was getting pretty big, and I wondered how that would work... seriously, I walked up and down the aisles JUST to entertain him, and even then, he did not want to get out. It was a blast!

Then, there are issues of being goat-like... it's a premonition to battles over wrapping paper and ornaments on the tree.... this kid loves paper, books, etc- to chew on! UGH. I let him play with this postcard for a minute while I opened other mail, turn back, and he has a huge chunk bit out of it. UGH! CHILD!

Lastly- my thoughts over the upcoming holidays and somebody's first birthday make me cringe over toys... oh boy... the toys! I have to say, seeing how much they all cost brand-new versus the things he loves- gently used from garage sales, hand-me-downs, or household items (i.e., the dog's ball, kitchen spoons, etc)... well... I worry. It's the age-old issue of the kid loving the box more than the toy- so PLEASE!!!! don't go crazy on toys... sigh... a waste of breath, but worth a try ;) In the meantime, Elmo never fails to entertain!