Thanksgiving Weekend

We had a lovely Thanksgiving with my parents, Heather and Jamie.  Auntie Heather and Jamie built a gingerbread train and a gingerbread house with the kids.  I cooked a small turkey (10 lbs), which cooked quicker than I expected and came out a little dry.  But a good gravy fixes anything.  :-)

There was no Black Friday shopping for us.  Bill took Mason to Loveland for his first ski lesson.  It was a great deal for full-day lesson, rentals and lunch. 

Audrey and I went to Pearl St in Boulder, which wasn't busy since those shops don't really have Black Friday sales.  We got to visit with Santa.

On Saturday, we caugh up our friends Jen and Winston Price and their sons (Ethan 7 and Cayden 5).  We love hanging out with the Prices, but live 45-minutes from them and we both have busy schedules.  We went bowling with the kids and talked the day away.

On Sunday, Bill took Mason to the pool to try out his new snorkel (great deal I found on craigslist just in time for our trip to Hawaii).  Audrey was a little sick, so I took her shopping (limited to 1 store to buy both kids new shoes).  Their gigantic feet (Mason in size 12 and Audrey in size 9) keep growing!
We got all our Christmas decorations done, except for the hanging lights on the house.  I am still not ready for how quickly Christmas is approaching.  We will be in Hawaii for 5 days in early December, which will make Christmas approach even quicker.  I am trying to get as much of the Christmas shopping done online as possible.

Casa Bonita

We celebrated Josie's 5th birthday at Casa Bonita on Saturday. Her birthday was Sunday and she was having a tea party just with her girlfriends. But she wanted to celebrate with Mason and Audrey as well. Casa Bonita is a famous Mexican restaurant in Denver known for the entertainment, divers (yes there is a pool and diving shows) and for it cheesiness, but not known for its food.

Bill and I had both heard of Casa Bonita, but never been there. It is perfect for a 5 year old's birthday. We had a great time watching the divers, playing the arcade, and exploring the gigantic restaurant.

T-Rex

We took the kids to see the T-Rex exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It was a great exhibit, with very life-like animatronic dinosaurs from the Cretaceous period. The kids were very afraid of approaching the T-Rex.

We did take pictures in front of the green screen with the T-Rex superimposed.

Big girl bed

Audrey still pretty content with her crib and hadn't tried or figured out how to get out on her own. However, we were ready for her to have a big girl setup. Now that she is potty trained, a twin bed allows her to get out without our help. We had already purchased a twin mattress for the cousin's trip in July, and don't plan to get her a bed frame for another few months. Chamois sheets and blanket from PBK complete the setup. She loves her new bed!

Old Pictures

My parents brought back from China some old family pictures.

Here is my Grandfather and Grandmother on my Father's side and his siblings. R to L on the back row: uncle Peter (Diana's Dad), my late Aunt (only girl), uncle David (LA) and my 2nd oldest uncle (HK); R to L front row: uncle William (NY), Grandmother with uncle Frank (LA) on lap, Grandfather and my Dad in front of him.

My Mom, My Great Grandfather (Ta Ta), and I. Dear Lord, what were they feeding me?

My Grandmother on my Mom's side in her 20s in Shanghai.

London

I had client meetings and an European user conference for one of my products in London last week. I know, what a bummer having to spend a week in London. :-) I was joined by two colleagues from the States and two from the UK. Great meetings, very sucessfull user group, went to great eateries, drank like a fish, and stayed at a great hotel centrally located at Picaddily Circus with all the ammenities. I can't complain. I only wish Bill could have gone with me or if I had more time to explore the city.

Halloween

The kids had a lot of fun trick-or-treating this year. They each got a basket full of candy that could last them weeks. We normally give them a couple of pieces during the first week, then confiscate the rest and they won't even remember.

We got about 120 trick-or-treaters this year, down from 135+ from last year. We went through 4 gigantic candy bags. Mason and Audrey enjoyed giving the candy out and seeing the different costumes. The worst costume goes to the lady in the 50s, not dressed up, but with her safeway bag in hand asking for candy! What is up with that?