Holiday fun!

There were so many fun events leading up to Christmas. Here are a few ways we celebrated the holidays this month!

Camas Tree Lighting
We went to the town tree lighting. It's always a big event. They even have fireworks and fake snow!

Waiting for the tree lighting

So excited!

The town Christmas tree

Catching "snow!"

Santa Claus & Lunch
We went to an craft bazaar at a Camas middle school to meet Santa Claus. This great event is where we've gotten pictures taken with Santa for the past 3 years. After meeting Santa, we went out to lunch at Black Bear Cafe.

Santa

Meeting Santa & Mrs. Claus

Eating lunch

MOMS Club Holiday Party
Lisa & I went to a fun holiday party with the MOMS Club. There was a candy cane walk, "fishing" for treats, a reindeer ornament craft, and lots of treats!

My little reindeer

Candy Cane Walk

The holiday party crew

Lisa's Preschool Holiday Performance
Lisa's preschool put on the cutest Christmas performance. They sang songs and recited a poem. It was seriously adorable. At the end, Mrs. Nuce gave each kid a reindeer candy cane.

The classroom giving tree & candy cane reindeer

Gingerbread House Decorating
Stanley's class decorated gingerbread houses at school, and his teacher let Lisa join in on the fun. They also made beaded ornaments and watched a movie in the classroom!

Decorating gingerbread houses in Stan's classroom

Lisa & the beginning of her house

Stan's finished gingerbread house

Reading to Cooper

Cooper the dog was back at the library for kids to read to him. Stanley brought some books and took a turn reading stories to the sweet dog. Lisa picked a book and showed Cooper the pictures.

So Much Snow (and Ice)!

We had 3 snow storms recently, which is a lot for us!

Snow storm #1
This snow storm started and ended while Stanley was at school. By the time Stanley got home, the snow was already melted!

Lisa enjoying the beautiful snow!

Our street

Enjoying hot chocolate after our snowy walk

Snow storm #2
Everyone knew this storm was coming, so even though it started snowing in the afternoon, everything was cancelled for the day. It was cold and windy. Not fun snow weather, but the kids played outside for a little while. After the snow, it turned to freezing rain. Everything was covered in ice! We couldn't even go outside because the sidewalks were too slippery. After a day of ice, it all started to melt, and it was so beautiful! The sound of the ice falling and dripping. The sun sparkling on the the trees. It was magical!

Enjoying the snow before the ice

Icy hummingbird

The thaw begins

Ice-covered rose bush

Decorations

Stanley & icicles

BIG chunk of ice!

Snow storm #3
This storm hit right at rush hour, and shut the city down! People were stuck in their cars for hours and hours on the freeways. Some kids were even stuck at school because the buses could drive through all the traffic. Luckily, Matt left work early, and Stanley's school had early dismissal that day. We all were safe and cozy at home. This storm cancelled the last two days of school before winter break. Stanley was so sad to miss pajama day with hot chocolate and candy canes!

Bird footprints

I made the kids take so many pictures in the snow, they were over it. 

They thought it was funny to make it hard for me to take a picture by turning back and front. 

So, what did I do? I took a video instead.

Thanksgiving & Black Friday

We had a nice Thanksgiving dinner together. We cooked a delicious meal that we enjoyed as a family.

Ready to eat the Thanksgiving feast!

Stan's favorite: Cranberry Sauce

The next day, Stanley, Lisa, & I went to Steigerwald National Wildlife Refuge for a hike. It was the hike that completed my 52 Hike Challenge for the year!

Picture by Stanley

All I want for Christmas...

Stan lost his two front teeth! They were both wiggly for the longest time.

The story of losing the first tooth: I went to school to volunteer in Stanley's classroom, and when I looked at him, I noticed his tooth was missing. So I said, "Wow! Stan you lost your tooth! How exciting!" And he and his teacher both said, "No. It was just bleeding, but it hasn't fallen out yet." Sure enough, his tooth had fallen out, but no one noticed...not even Stanley! So, Stanley wrote the tooth fairy a note explaining that he lost it...and for real, lost it. She understood, because she left Stanley $1.

The story of the second tooth: The next day, I took the kids to Burgerville for ice cream and shakes. While Stanley was drinking his pumpkin milkshake, the straw bumped his front tooth, and it came out! This time, we held on to the tooth, and he put it under his pillow. The tooth paper made another trip to our house, and left another $1.

(And he got a haircut!)

Ft. Vancouver & Pearson Air Museum

Stanley, Lisa, and I visited Ft. Vancouver National Historic Site on Veterans' Day, since it was a no-fee day. We had so much fun visiting the fort and the Pearson Air Museum. It's such a beautiful location to immerse yourself in history. The kids also completed the Jr. Ranger program and got official badges!

Pearson Air Museum

So many interesting planes!

Walking over to the fort

Always a cannon picture

Watching the blacksmith

Stanley's favorite part!
(Lisa and I were too scared to go to the top,
so Stan went by himself.)

Being sworn in as an official Jr. Ranger

My little Jr. Rangers!

School Harvest Dance

Stanley's school had a Harvest Dance in November. There was bingo, a photo booth, food, and a dj. Everyone had a fun time!

Playing bingo

Stanley & his friends at the photo booth

Lisa dancing the Whip/Nae Nae