The weekend after our Norfolk trip, we had a couple of fun activities. First, the kids and I participated in our second-annual Gingerbread-House-Building-Extravaganza, with one of our neighbors. We had a fantastic time. I think for every piece of candy that made it onto the house, 2 or 3 went into their mouths. It is fun to establish new traditions and I hope this one can continue. We also got to stay for homemade pizza. They are much more sophisticated then we are and used real mozzarella and homemade sauce and it was awesome! I know I say this frequently, but I really, REALLY love living in a neighborhood. I didn't realize how lonely I was (well, actually I did, which is in part why we moved) until we got here. It is so nice for the kids to have playmates and I am lucky that I like the parents as much as the kids like their new friends.
Next, Thomas and I got to attend the Darrow's annual Christmas party. They are great hosts, and we always have a good time with them. We got to build gingerbread houses, play games, participate in a white elephant gift exchange, and enjoy some delicious food. I would have to say that the only bad part of the evening was that our team did not win the games. Personally, I cry foul, but since we may or may not be gaining a reputation as poor sports, I won't say too much more about that. We also got some good gifts--decorative candles and some really cute light-up ornaments which made a nice addition to our Christmas village.
Following all that fun, our next holiday activity was a trip to Mount Vernon. We went during the Christmas season in 2011, when my sister's family was visiting and we loved it. The visitor's area is beautifully decorated and it just adds to an already awesome experience. We enjoyed touring the house and grounds (we spent a long time running around outside) and then went to the museum portion. The kids were really well-behaved, although Kara did have some cranky moments. It is nice that they are getting older and gaining more self-control, so that Thomas and I can better enjoy the more grown-up aspects of these outings. We bought a membership and hope to visit several times this year. We did not watch any of the films, except for a short one talking about the creation of the George Washington bust that is displayed and is the closest likeness in existence. The kids enjoyed the play area. The girls love the Mount Vernon doll-house replica and Jack spent a lot of time with the soldiers. The volunteers were super-nice, one of them talked with Jack for a long time about how the Generals would line up their soldiers, then she did a mock-battle with him.
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| The kids love these statues! The children (George Washington's step-grandchidren) are the same ages as our kids ( 6 and 4!) |
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| I wish I had gotten a picture of the battle and the dollhouse, but unfortunately, I didn't. |
The kids also had a Christmas program at school. They had been preparing for weeks. The Pre-K was combined with the Kindergarten, so all three of our children participated. Kara wanted her songs to be a surprise, but Anna and I spent many a night practicing for her class' performance of "Up on the Housetop." They loved getting dressed up in their holiday clothes and they looked adorable. Thomas had to leave his work party early to get there, and thanks to an accident on the way, walked in with literally a minute to spare. They all sang very well. However, my favorite part was when Kara's class sang Feliz Navidad (not the traditional one you hear on the radio, but a slow song that basically seemed to repeat Feliz Navidad and Merry Christmas). When they got to the Feliz Navidad part, all we could hear was Kara. It wasn't that she was shouting, it was more that the rest of the class wasn't really singing. It was super, super cute and it brings a smile to my face every time of think of it. She was just so earnest about it. She told me later that her music teacher had told them they had to sing loud or the people in the back wouldn't be able to hear. She took his words to heart.
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| Unfortunately, Anna was the furthest away and hard to get a good picture of. |
Unfortunately, the day after the Christmas program (Friday) Jack got sent home sick. The nurse called me around 2:15 and told me he had a fever of 103! I went to get him right away. After I picked him up, I saw the nurses note. His teacher had sent him to the office at 10:40 with a headache. She wrote, "chills, feels warm. He's been out of sorts all morning." The nurse took his temperature, which was a healthy 98.6. The part that made me laugh was her written response, "very, very chatty with me??" Obviously, she does not know Jack well if she thinks that just because he is chatty, he must be healthy (I am sure the lack of a temperature contributed to this). It constantly amazes me how talkative and friendly our kids are. Especially Jack. But, he really was sick. By the afternoon, his teacher walked him up to the office and told the nurse that he really needed to go home (and by this time, he had the aforementioned fever). He came home and laid down. On Saturday, we were hoping to go back to DC to spend the afternoon at the museums before taking the metro to the zoo for Zoo Lights. However, Jack was still sick. His fever fluctuated, but he obviously just did not feel well. His eyes were watery and surrounded by dark circles and all he wanted to do was lie down.
The girls and I did a snowman craft. And, they were able to play outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. But, there was no fun DC trip. That night, we watched The Santa Clause and I made candy cane popcorn (which poor Jack didn't even want to try).
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| Jack started off making one, but quickly decided he didn't feel up to it :( |
Fortunately, he seems much better today. I am crossing my fingers that no one else gets sick so that we can have a healthy, happy Christmas.
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