Thanksgiving

We are so thankful for our families and especially for this girl! She was excited to host Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Katie, and Uncle Matt for Thanksgiving at her house this year! And no, her feet have not grown to gigantic proportions. She LOVES to try on everyone's shoes these days!
Jenna has so many new words these days. It's hard to keep up with exactly when she starts saying them. See if you can guess what some of these mean. (Some of these are not the obvious word that you might think!) Answers to come in a future blog.

1. hap/hap bu
2. elmo
3. mook
4. doo doos
5. boos
6. wacko
7. back
8. go tooch
9. looleese
10. up dats
11. kick or cook
12. no, no, onk

Cousin Fun

Kevin's sister and her boys came on Wednesday. We spent lots of time playing and did a few organized activities, too. Thursday, we went to a program for kids at the zoo. They got to touch a hissing cockroach and a millipede (Jenna wanted nothing to do with these). They heard a story and made a colored picture about the story. Then they got to see a really neat animal called a keekajew (I have no idea how to spell this). It has a tail like a monkey. It was much too cold and windy to actually tour the zoo. We had to make a trip to Walmart for warmer little boy clothes!

Friday, we went to the park. Saturday we went to the game. I'm so glad that I was thought to take a picture as soon as we got to the game. Little G actually went to sleep soon after we got there and slept until we left after half-time. ACU won 93-68 and since everyone else has said it, I will too. That's a football score, not a basketball score! And it's a record number of points for a NCAA Division II playoff game! Geremy made it to the game just in time for half-time. We enjoyed the evening with him and the whole gang. Then they had to leave Sunday morning.

Hide her under a bushel - No!

Jenna LOVES to sing "This Little Light of Mine," and does a great job with the actions! Usually, she does more of the song than this, but what we have here is pretty great. Notice the full body involvement when she blows her light out and the great excitement that comes with "No!"


In Jenna's music class, we do a dance to a particular song and there are different steps for each feature instrument. For example, during the violin feature, we walk forward and back; during the tuba feature, we do squats to the beat. I'm usually holding her while we dance, so I never realized how much she was taking in. Yesterday, Jenna heard the song and started walking backwards during the violin and doing her "squats" to the tuba part. Last night she was a little tired, but still managed to do a few squats for the camera.


Yesterday during lunch, I was telling Jenna that we were going to see Dada's band after lunch. She said, "Dada, mic" (music), and then hummed the first 6 notes of the halftime music in rhythm. I was so shocked and wished that somehow that had been recorded because I wasn't sure anyone would believe me! Then, last night we were looking at a book and she opened a flap to find a trumpet. When she saw it, she hummed the halftime music again. So, I tried to get her to do it again for a recording. In the video, she says something like trumpet, then "mic," then a few of the notes, but not all 6.


Why is it that kids never do things the same when you try to stage it for a recording? I think they are still cute clips, though. Hope you enjoyed! We are so amazed and blessed by this girl!

Lone Star Conference Champions!

I finally remembered to get a family game shot. Poor timing maybe as Jenna had just got up from her nap.

Band looked great!

The cutest Wildcat fan! She can say, "Da, Dats!" (Go Cats!)

What am I missing?

Jenna helped conduct the band!

They were a little hasty in clearing the score board. ACU defeated Midwestern State 47-17 to become the Lone Star Conference Champions! (If you enlarge the picture you can see the trophy celebration.) Playoffs to come, starting Nov. 22nd. We are excited!

Sliding

I just realized that Kevin took this video while we were at the park when his parents were here. Pretty cute! We had a good time with Papa and Mima.

Halloween

Halloween eve, we went back to the pumpkin patch, this time with Papa and Mima. We brought the video camera, but they didn't have as many pumpkins and there weren't any of the little pumpkins that she was so enthralled with before. I guess maybe some of the newness wore off; she didn't act nearly as excited. We got a pumpkin to carve and Kevin did a great job!!
Wednesday, Halloween eve eve, was costume day at Jenna's music class. I'm so glad I got some pictures then, because these are probably the best ones of her standing in her costume. In the one where she's sitting, she's playing a drum. She was such a CUTE duck! We'd ask her what a duck says, and she'd say "Waa, Waack!"

She did lots of funny things yesterday. When we were playing in the living room, all of a sudden she started walking backwards - so now, she can walk backwards. We were listening to one of her music CDs and I went to skip the very operatic version of "Rock a Bye, Baby" (that I don't like), and she said, "No" (very sweetly). I said, "Oh, you want to hear that one?" She nodded, then she started singing it with the CD and I could actually understand some of her words!

The funniest thing she did was when I was sitting at the dining room table finishing my lunch and she was toddling around. All of a sudden she came over, pulled my waist band out, looked in, and said, "poop" (just like when I check her for a dirty diaper). I guess imitation is the best form of flattery?!

Homecoming

This year's Homecoming was my 10 year reunion. Hard to believe it has already been that long. It was a whirlwind - starting Friday evening with a carnival and mingle time at a friend's house. Saturday morning, events started at 7 am for me. Then came the parade, chapel, choir concert, lunch, game, and finally reunion dinner! I didn't get home until 11pm.
The women's club that was a big part of my college days folded in May. It's tradition for each club to host a breakfast at homecoming. I really wanted to have a breakfast for our 10 year reunion, so my friend Katie (second from the left) helped me brainstorm. I was able to get alumni emails and send out an evite. It turned out to be a great time. The six ladies in the picture above are from my pledge class and are some of my favorite people.

What's Homecoming without a parade and March Grandioso?!

The band did a great job!

A class reunion dinner rounded out the weekend. Pictured above are my best girls (minus one who couldn't make the trip). Overall, it was a good time. Mostly visiting with people that I had kept up with anyway, but it was also fun to see people that I hadn't heard from in a long time. Pictured below is my Freshman and Sophomore year roomate. How fitting that she is the first person that I ran into on Friday evening.