November 2016
November typically comes with
colder weather and is the start of the holiday season with Thanksgiving. Our month included most of that along with a
visit from my sister and a trip to West Virginia.
The month started with a visit from
my sister and her family and for the second time, they stayed at our house and
it was lots of fun. Allison grasps onto
Claire and Sarah follows Grace around, while Jake just looks for ways to play with
the girls. Grace slept in Sarah’s room
(which Sarah loved) and Jake & Claire stayed in Allison’s room. We had a family wedding in Anderson and it
was great. Beth, Matt, Mom, Pete, Laura,
Deb and I all went up and had a good time.
On Saturday, Pete and I raked a big pile of leaves and the kids had a lot
of fun jumping off the swings or sliding into the leaves! Beth and Mom stopped over a few times to play
with the kids and even though the Vandervaarts usually stay at Mom’s, it sure
was fun to have them for a weekend.
We went to WV this year for
Thanksgiving and it was lots of fun. The
road trips are getting easier each time, except after flying to Florida the
girls want to fly everywhere we go! The Shafers
were there when we arrived on Wednesday and Olivia and the girls seemed to get
along very well. On Thanksgiving, Kyle,
Randy and I did some yardwork that took more than one guy. We enjoyed a nice meal and had plenty of
leftovers for the remainder of the weekend.
On Friday, we went to the Clay Center and had fun at the play area they
have for kids. Kyle, Randy and I left
for about 30 minutes to go to a dive bar across the street for a few
beers! On Saturday, Randy and Anna
bought a new TV and Kyle set it up for the Ohio State and Michigan football
game. While we watched the game, the ladies
took the girls to nearby park to burn off some energy.
Sarah’s Thing of
the Month
Sarah
enjoyed hosting Debbie for Thanksgiving at her preschool for a lunch with other
parents and kids. Sarah even made a hat
for her and Debbie to wear during the meal.
Allison’s Thing of
the Month
I got to
volunteer again in Allison’s class as helped them build them build some chains
for Advent so they can count down the day to Christmas. It was great to help out in the classroom and
meet the kids and teacher again.
A few more items from this month:
- We stopped by to visit Uncle Frank on his birthday. Chelsea had raked several leaves into a pile so the girls could play in them!
- We got new glass block windows put in our basement and they look great.
- I enjoyed coaching the 4th grade girls at Christ the King. We ended the season 5-4 and even won a tournament game.
- We went to a Friends Thanksgiving dinner at Brandon & Diane’s house. The usual crew was there and we enjoyed a great meal. As usual, there was a couple’s ping-pong tournament and I’m happy to say that I didn’t shove Debbie out of the way this time.
- I had another trip to Minnesota to assist with the auditors. For those of you counting at home, that is 17 trips in the last 16 months.
- Along with all of this, we also took care of the yard and got it cleaned up for winter. It was awesome to have the help of Deb and the girls this year and it made the job more fun and easier.
- Deb and the girls headed to the Indianapolis Children's Museum for a morning of fun and play.
