Thirty Days of November

November 1: Lazy day at home recovering from Halloween and our visit to Urgent Care.

November 2: Blissful day with nothing on the calendar!

November 3: Enjoyed a Starbuck's date with my best buddy.

November 4: It was a beautiful day to walk the trails and my sweet friends from church took me out to lunch for my birthday! I came home with so much energy that I cleaned the gutters and painted the front door.

November 5: Scooter Ride with Henry to the park.

November 6: Evie got the stomach bug right after school during our Family Movie Night. 

November 7: Celebrated 6 years of living in our house!

November 8: Church and then a trip to McKay's Used Books - Heaven on Earth! Hundreds of thousands of books under one rough -  we bought 50 books for $20!

November 9: Helped paint Native American shirts with Evie's class. So much fun! We stopped by the library on the way home. 

November 10: Henry and I took lunch to Evie's teacher for National Educator's Week and then met Maura for lunch with our little kiddos. Henry and I stopped by Carl's office to say hello on the way home.

November 11: Veteran's Day! I loved having a day with both kids in the middle of the week. We went to Above All with a bunch of girls from the first grade. It's a new trampoline park and was so cool. Then, we came home to enjoy the beautiful day before heading to the Charlie Brown movie. Anderson and Gray went with us to the movie and it was cute. 

November 12: Evie had a dentist appointment. On the way there, she told me that the dentist was one of her favorite places because you can pick your toothpaste flavor, watch tv, get a prize and play with the toys! After the dentist, we stopped at the park to soak up the beautiful day because cold days are headed our way.

November 13: I went to a Nashville Mom's event at Costco. It was so fun to shop without hoards of people since Costco opened early for us. I even won a years membership plus a fruit cake. YAY for a free membership. I volunteered at Evie's school. Fridays are extra special because I eat lunch with Evie and help out with spelling. Carl and I had a date night! WOO HOO! We have some new sitters are getting out more. Henry is a HUGE fan of pretty babysitters. Carl and I were able to enjoy dinner out and got a great start on our Christmas shopping.

November 14: We woke up to a cold downstairs and found out we needed a new HVAC system. BOO! Just part of home ownership though. We took kids to Leah's birthday party at Goofball's and had a blast. Then, Evie had another party at Let it Shine for Clara. Carl and I took Henry to Home Depot and Target. He loves his solo time with Mama and Daddy. 

November 15: We hosted a brunch for our small group at church. Everyone brings something so it is super easy. A new family just joined our group and they live near us which is exciting. 

November 16: After school, I took the kids to Chick Fil A for Spirit Night to support our elementary school. Evie is so grown-up now and it is fun to see her interacting with her buddies. I had a birthday celebration dinner with some friends - our fifth year together celebrating our October and November birthdays. Tupelo Honey was our destination and those biscuits are delicious. It's always fun to hang out with friends!

November 17: Henry and I went to the zoo. We are spending lots of time outside before it gets cold. 

November 18: It was a monsoon in Nashville but the day ended with a gorgeous sunset. I had a lunch with the moms from Evie's class right in my neighborhood. That is always a treat and we have committed to doing this monthly as a way to get to know each other better. 

November 19: Native American Day at Evie's school. I helped the kids make totem poles.  Henry went to his friend Matthew's house for a playdate. Matthew lives in our neighborhood and goes to preschool with Henry. It's so nice for him to have a little buddy that lives so close to our house. After Native American day, I picked up Henry and we headed to church for our monthly ministry - Spring Street. The men of the church prepared lunch this time so the ladies organized bingo, dessert and a musical ensemble - this is Nashville and nothing is complete without some live music.

November 20: Henry had his Thanksgiving Feast at preschool. 

November 21: We left for our Thanksgiving trip! It was a gorgeous day for a hike at Cade's Cove. Then, we checked into our hotel before walking around Downtown Gatlinburg. We love the Doughnut Friar -  yummy and it was fun to look around a bit.  I am not a huge fan of Gatlinburg's busy-side but it is a beautiful place off the beaten path. Our kids love staying in hotels and this one did not disappoint. There were waterslides, caves and even a zero entry for Henry. My favorite part was the heat lamp over the chairs - just for the Mama's. 

November 22: We woke up to frosty temperatures and snow on the mountains. Breakfast was delicious even though Henry was convinced someone stole his bacon. Then, we headed toward my parents house before my brother left! It was great to see Ben - we took the kids to the park. My Aunt Libby came over for dinner and then it was time for bed. Everyone was exhausted from a busy few days.

November 23: We went to the Schiele Museum. Henry was not a fan at all. He got about 15 minutes out of his ticket before becoming inconsolable about the "old animals." Taxidermy is not his thing! He did enjoy the space exhibit. 

November 24: Carl took Evie on a hike to Crowder's Mountain. Henry and I fed the ducks in my parents neighborhood. 

November 25: We left my parents house and headed to Greenville to meet my friends, Susan and Lindsay at the Children's Museum. It was such a treat to see them and have our kids to play. I loved the museum and luckily all the kids did too. We were there nearly four hours so definitely got our moneys worth out of that visit. The Popcorn Pantry was next on our list and it did not disappoint. I love Downtown Greenville. Such cute shops and restaurants. After a few stops, we were on the way to see Carl's parents and our sweet nieces, Mary and Lucy. 

November 26: Turkey Day! We helped Carl's parents a bit to prepare our feast. Thanksgiving is a labor-intensive meal but everything was so yummy. Sheila and Tony did a terrific job hosting everyone. It was a delicious meal with three pies for dessert. YUMMY! We all have so much to be thankful for every day. Henry was mad in this picture because he wanted to sit next to Mary at lunch. Guess who he got to sit next to at lunch?

November 27: We all headed to Cashiers on Friday to shop, eat lunch and hike. Cashiers is another quaint town that is fun to visit. That night, we headed to see Santa at Tony and Sheila's neighborhood.  It was a fun night with hay rides, cookie decorating, gingerbread houses and then we went to dinner. 

November 28: Both kids slept late and then we prepared to hit the road back to TN. It was a long drive but our kids are the best travelers. Of course, it is pretty nice to have snacks and movies to pass the time. We made one stop and got home around 4. 

November 29: We went to church and made Advent Wreaths out of greenery. Evie did a beautiful job - she is our crafty girl. It was a rainy afternoon but Evie and I ventured out to a friends new shop for a little Christmas shopping. 

November 30: Cyber Monday Success! I was able to get most of my shopping finished but that is pretty much all I got done. Carl helped Evie and Henry decorate their trees in their bedroom. Henry wrote his letter to Santa.