Claudia is starting the grasp the concept of being thankful. It was a great time to sit down, thank God for everything we've been given, appreciate each other and give thanks to all those around us who love us and do so much for us.
I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for their health. I am thankful to be adding another little person to our family. I am thankful that, although we are away from our family and friends in the US, we have made friends here and that it really feels like home. Bop looks pretty mischevious in this picture. I'm thankful that I didn't know what she was up to at that moment.
I took this photo right before we went to Houston. It was definitely fall... leaves on the tree, changing colors and football in full swing. Mandi, Claudia loves her LSU dress... it took a while for the wee one to fit into it, but it was worth the wait! She calls it her "LSU gown."
The leaves were all changing colors and it was beautiful to watch. This is the window outside my kitchen. When we got home, all the leaves had fallen off. Its just a boring old wall now.
Now that turkey day is over, it's time to start getting ready for Christmas. The first line of business was to get a tree and some lights. They don't chop down trees here. No, they sell them, roots and all, so that you can plant the tree in your yard after Christmas or resell them back to the nursery. I opted to get a fake tree (its about 5 feet tall and was one of the biggest I could find), but wasn't spared any of this eco-friendly-Christmas nonsense. Here is what I found when I opened the box of Christmas lights (minus one Lego man).
What's that you ask? It's a solar panel. You stake it out in your yard during the day and then connect it to a battery pack in the evening. Apparently a lot of people (not me) chose to power their tree lights with the energy of the sun. A lot of people (not me) think this is just a great idea. It took two trips to the hardware store before I finally found a somewhat normal strand of lights that uses good old fashioned electricity.
After we got all that light nonsense out of the way, Claudia had a real hoot decorating. And look how big my tree looks... when my toddler stands next to it!!
After we arrived home to Budapest, we slowed down to think about all the things we are thankful for. So we made a thankful turkey. Here's Claudia doing her "presentation of turkey". She reenacts the "presentation of Simba" (Lion King) scene with just about every inanimate object in the house. 
When I asked Claudia what she is thankful for, I got an interesting response. In this order, it went: (1) Oatmeal - her teddy; (2) Carsten - her best pal; (3) Mommy & Daddy - maybe we'll crack top two next year; (4) food; (5) seeds - we've been reading the lost Suess book, the Bippolo Seed; (6) elephants - not sure where this came from; and (7) toys & goodies. 
Thankful turkey's feet were made by tracing Claudia's hand. She loves having her hand traced. She also signed her name. See that line? 
Claudia is starting the grasp the concept of being thankful. It was a great time to sit down, thank God for everything we've been given, appreciate each other and give thanks to all those around us who love us and do so much for us. 
I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for their health. I am thankful to be adding another little person to our family. I am thankful that, although we are away from our family and friends in the US, we have made friends here and that it really feels like home. Bop looks pretty mischevious in this picture. I'm thankful that I didn't know what she was up to at that moment. 
I took this photo right before we went to Houston. It was definitely fall... leaves on the tree, changing colors and football in full swing. Mandi, Claudia loves her LSU dress... it took a while for the wee one to fit into it, but it was worth the wait! She calls it her "LSU gown." 
The leaves were all changing colors and it was beautiful to watch. This is the window outside my kitchen. When we got home, all the leaves had fallen off. Its just a boring old wall now. 
Now that turkey day is over, it's time to start getting ready for Christmas. The first line of business was to get a tree and some lights. They don't chop down trees here. No, they sell them, roots and all, so that you can plant the tree in your yard after Christmas or resell them back to the nursery. I opted to get a fake tree (its about 5 feet tall and was one of the biggest I could find), but wasn't spared any of this eco-friendly-Christmas nonsense. Here is what I found when I opened the box of Christmas lights (minus one Lego man).
What's that you ask? It's a solar panel. You stake it out in your yard during the day and then connect it to a battery pack in the evening. Apparently a lot of people (not me) chose to power their tree lights with the energy of the sun. A lot of people (not me) think this is just a great idea. It took two trips to the hardware store before I finally found a somewhat normal strand of lights that uses good old fashioned electricity. 
After we got all that light nonsense out of the way, Claudia had a real hoot decorating. And look how big my tree looks... when my toddler stands next to it!!
Hahaha, love the commentary regarding the Christmas tree! It is a cute tree :)Love Claudia's Thankful Turkey also :)!
ReplyDeleteHoly cow! I would not choose the solar panel either :) Love that thankful list from miss C!!!
ReplyDelete