Tradition

This Thanksgiving was spent in New Smyrna Beach with Aunt Diane and Uncle Rick, and we seemed to keep coming back to a certain theme.

Tradition.  

The stuff that carves memories into stone. And the experiences that children remember most about their childhood due to the beautiful and simple familiarity of it all.

So, we realized, after spending several Thanksgiving holidays in New Smyrna that we've built some traditions of our own.

We always drive up on Wednesday...making at least three pit stops and turning a normally three-hour drive into much, much more.

We always go to Stavros Pizza for dinner that night, where I totally binge on the best Greek salad on earth.  And Madi makes at least two mandatory trips to the potty (cause a girl's always gotta check out the restroom at a restaurant).

 

We always stay up a little late catching up, playing, and prepping for the next day.  Madi helps Aunt Diane make appetizers, a centerpiece, and place cards for the table.

Madi always helps Uncle Rick make the pumpkin pies the next morning (which were exceptional this year:)  Aunt Diane claims it was Madi's touch, because she patiently stirs the pie filling until it's just perfect.








Madi always sets the table with Aunt Diane, making sure that everything is in it's proper place. Yeah...she's a little bit of a control freak perfectionist, like her Mom. 

We always play in their gigantic driveway and take a family walk through their neighborhood to collect 'nature'. And we come home with some sticks, some stones, and some cool pine cones.

Aunt Diane and Uncle Rick proceed to whip up a delicious turkey and about ten side dishes, all while making it look as if they're just hanging out and chillin'.

We always eat too much, but the food is always so good.

We always go to bed with full bellies, and get up in the morning to head back home.

And we find ourselves feeling...well...most thankful for all of it.

Tradition.

Hope you managed to form some of your own this Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our dear friends, Jeff and Julia, decided to drive their three kids up North for Thanksgiving. But they also decided to take a truck along with them--packed with necessities for the victims of Tropical Storm Sandy.

These kind-hearted people, who devote so much of their personal time to running The Miracle League of Delray Beach (a baseball team for special needs children), took this on just two weeks before the holiday. Julia was on a mission to get the job done, and they did!

Our Girl Scout Troop 20008 was proud to be able to contribute items for their collection, and we delivered them last weekend as a group.

Happy Thanksgiving, Kadel family!  We will be thinking of you and know that your holiday will be richly blessed!!

Twirling Debut

Last night was a BIG night for Madi. She had her twirling debut at a college football game with the entire South Florida Dynamics twirling team.

You heard me. A college football game.  FAU vs. FIU.

Of course, the game didn't matter a hoot to me (even if we were rooting for the owls). All I cared about was the half-time show. Because my daughter was performing.

WOW.  Pinch me!!!

Madi was SO a-w-e-s-o-m-e. She claims that she was "a little bit" nervous, but I swear the kid thrives under pressure!  It was reported that she was shown on the Jumbotron (the giant TV screen)!

I'll stop typing now to give you a pre-performance glimpse of our little beauty. Can you tell that we are just a wee-bit proud of our girl??

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A trip to the dentist

So, it wasn't exactly the most relaxing teeth cleaning I've had, but perhaps it was
the most amusing with my two little supervisors in the room!

God bless my dental hygienist who had to work under such scrutiny!

My late Halloween post...

...because I'm a bit behind these days!

Before Halloween, we made our annual trip to the pumpkin patch with our friends, Carmelina and Sophia. The weather wasn't perfect, due to the tropical storm, but the rain stopped long enough for the kids to run around a bit and choose their little pumpkins to bring home.

 

Madi decided to dress as a "baton twirler" this year.  Not much of a stretch for her...since she is a baton twirler.  Oh well, her choice of costume sure made our job easy, and it didn't cost a thing:)

A friend had given Charlie a cute construction worker dress-up set for his birthday, which we wisely saved for the occasion.  He loved it.

The eye goggles looked so funny on him, and his little face was so contorted. But he didn't want to take them off. Suffice it to say, I was laughing so hard I nearly wet my pants taking these pictures (sorry...but it's true). Look at that face--priceless!