Visit to Santa

Today, Kylie and I visited the North Pole! Super-dad here purchased my photo package online the day beforehand. Also, we arrived at the mall at 11:00, so there was no line!  We made it from the mall parking lot to having the photos in hand in under 15 minutes!!

WARNING:  THIS BLOG POST CONTAINS EXTREME CUTENESS. 

VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

*SMILE* Oh look, dad has my squeaky giraffe! *SMILE*

Say Rudolph!

WHO ARE YOU!!?!?

Goodbyes...

Last night we said goodbye to Johnathan and Krissy. See you next year for Autumn's birthday in DUBLIN!!

The old gang back together again.

We'll miss you!

Christmas Decorating

Since it is now AFTER Thanksgiving, it is officially OK to start decorating for Christmas and hearing holiday music. Here's the start of our winter wonderland...

 Snowflake coasters

 Glitter stockings!

 Tiny white tree from the grocery store in Mexico!

 Thanks Carri for the super-cute ornaments!

 Adorbs!

 We knew it was a good idea to pick a name that come pre-printed on stuff!

 Holiday table-scape!

 Decorative vases filled with potporri...check!

Cookies for Santa..check!

Snowflake placemats...check!

Frosty pine cones....check!

 Whew! I'm exhausted!

Thanksgiving

This year, we had a small Thanksgiving dinner (part II) with Virgile, Sterling, Katie and...surprise...my dad! We made the turkey, stuffing and gravy, and pumpkin pie martinis. V&S made wasabi mashed potatoes, a spiral ham and a pumpkin pie. And, Katie made the cranberry sauce, cornbread and Dutch apple pie. Everything was amazing! Kylie's first Thanksgiving was a smashing success. We even got to use Autumn's grandma's china for the first of many dinner parties to come!

It's Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for my Aunt Tiffany, who gave me the under the sea play mat.

It keeps me happy and quiet!

 The perfect Thanksgiving table!

 I think our table-scaping and signature cocktail would make Sandra Lee proud!

 Grandma Hanson's china!! Yay!

Look who got all dressed up for the occasion

 Grandpa Mark and Miss K

Thanks for the great visit!

 The star of the show! Delicious and moist!

Ugh! I ate too much! ;)

Of course, I didn't snap any photos during the actual dinner...
...maybe next year!

Pit Party!

Tonight we had Johnathan, Krissy, Virgile and Sterling over for a Pit Reunion Party. We tested out the pumpkin pie martinis to make sure they would be just right for Thanksgiving. Everyone brought over food, and we had a great time! J-Bone even won his first round EVER!

Gloating over his big win!

Westover Farmer's Market

This morning, we met up with John, Timilin and Merielle at the Westover Farmer's Market and then had Kylie's first playdate at Parkhurst Park.

 We'll be returning to this market again!

 Tiny donuts were enjoyed by all

 A giant pickle!

 Fall foliage

 Kylie pretty much slept the whole time, as usual!

Mmmmm...cherry danish

Thanks Timilin and John!

It was great catching up!

Last Day! Cleve to DC

LAST DAY IN THE CAR!

Just 350 miles separated us from our new / old home in DC. We got up early and drove straight through so we would have plenty of time to get unpacked. I even had time to get everything out of our storage unit!

 Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia welcome you!

  Q:  How much does the Saturn hold? 

 A:  A LOT!

Goodbye storage unit 2137. 

I hope to never return to your creepy, dark hallway!

Chicago to the Cleve!

Today we loaded everyone back into the car and drove to Cleveland. Since our last trip to the Cleve wasn't great, we opted to stay in a random suburb hotel off the highway in beautiful Streetsboro, OH.

 A healthy and delicious breakfast courtesy of Dunkin' Donuts

 Welcome to Indiana!

 Food Network's state sandwich forOhio?

A Columbian arepa of course!?!

Thanks Barroco Grill! YUM!

Oh hi, Ohio!

Chicagolandia!

We had another full day out of the car (for the baby's sake ... wink!), so we touristed around town even though it was FREEZING! The Windy City earned it's name today and we had to make an emergency stop at Old Navy to buy scarves since ours were carefully Space-bagged away in our stuffed car...more on how much the Saturn holds later.

Our three main stops on our walking tour were the Sears Tower, Field Museum and the Shedd Aquarium.

 Good morning Chicago! 

View of a sliver of Lake Michigan from the room!

 Crystals!

 Haha! I'll lick those rainbows!

 Que bonita!

A random Alexander Calder "Stay-bile" sculpture on our walk to the Sears / Willis Tower

 View of downtown from the top

 Say deep dish cheese pizza!

 More views from the Sky Deck

 Looking down from 1000'+ up

(NOTE: This was higher than any mountain pass we crossed since we left Montana!)

 

 Just hangin' out!

 Yeah, we didn't pay $24 for this souvenir photo...

...so, I just "borrowed" a preview from the website

 Ok, we paid for this one! Cheese!

 Art and architecture!

 Clear and freezing day!

 Another view from the room

 After lunch, we hopped on the L for more sights!

 First stop, Field Museum to see the Treasures of the Maharaja!

Autumn never got to see the "Aztec Calendar" in Mexico City
Luckily, they had a replica today!

 The cold weather really discouraged outdoor activities.

 Next stop, the Shedd Aquarium

 Pink Jellyfish!

Lazy jellyfish taking a nap on some seaweed!

Another counterfeit souvenir!

Goodnight Chi-town!