December Hodgepodge

It's been a busy month in a bunch of other ways too, here's the rest of what we've been up to.

Parker had a family night at his school.  There were 4 or 5 different rooms with activities around music, building, and more.  I didn't get many pictures because we were having so much fun.  They also provided a light meal from a local Nigerian caterer.  I really enyoyed the rice and chicken, and Jimmy ate the plantains.  The kids weren't interested in trying.

We got some free dinosaur chicken nuggets a cuple weeks back and Parker has been asking for them ever since.  He even grabbed the box out of the freezer at Hy-Vee.

December is always a month of potlucks!  The first was a gathering at our friend Jamarcus' home.  His mom was in town for a visit (and he was proposing to his girlfriend the next day.) Speaking of the next day, Esme got another haircut from Ms. Corrie.  We've been taking her in every 8 months or so, when it gets long enough to be a pain to brush after baths.

The next catered/potlucked meal was that night at Jamarcus and Pauli's surprise engagement party.  I was honored to be included.  The best part is that Pauli herself made a pan of banana bread for the party that she thought was going elsewhere.

Parker has his 11 year well child appointment this month.  This was a big one since he got 4 immunizations!

Esme attended a friend's beach theme birthday party. Nachos, games, cupcakes, doesn't get any better.

Winter break is already pretty long for our district, but it came early with 2 snow days this year.  We did out best to stay busy and occupied with the extra time at home.

We finally got out of the house a couple days later.  We didn't need anything at Menards, but it's a fun place for the kids to explore.

Possibly my proudest moment of the month was finally tackling this black and white puzzle.  I've had it nearly 3 years, started it a few times and gave up just as many times.  I was determined to finish no matter how long it took.  

I made Esme some card holders from pool noodles so she can play Seven without showing all of her cards.  As mentioned in the Christmas post, she's been loving the bowl and lid my dad made her.  It's currently storing Bluey characters.

We've gone sledding a couple more times over break.

Finally, to cap off the year, Jimmy and I saw Avatar: The Way of the Water.  You know a movie is good when it's 3 hours, but doesn't feel like 3 hours.  It was a great mix of action and story development.

We finished the evening with buffalo chicken dip and charcuterie.  We made it to the 11pm NYC ball drop and I made it to midnight.  Bring it on 2023!