Our last trip to Minnesota for Thanksgiving was longer than our last two trips home. We were able to spend a week at home enjoying the frigid weather and the beautiful snowfall. It was Haakon's first time seeing and touching snow. He was pretty confused as to what to do with the white stuff. Both kids were stuffed into their brand new snowsuits and boots. Audriana hated all the winter gear. It was lots of bribing to get her to put it on the first time around. We spent all of 10 minutes in all the winter gear so that we could snap a few pictures. There were no smiles for the camera. Apparently, the kids are fair weather models :)
Because it had been years since we've been able to make it home for Thanksgiving and at the festivities, we decided to milk it for all its worth. We had an afternoon Thanksgiving with the Tes at 1:30. We found out that Audriana and Haakon, like their mother, dislike turkey and mash potatoes, but LOVE stuffing! They could not get enough of it (and neither could I). Both kids were passed around from one great-uncle and great-aunt to another. They loved all the attention and didn't seem to care that these were all new faces to them. I think all of my aunts and uncles were just tickled that the kids were so friendly.
Afterwards, we rounded up the kids, bundled them in blankets and went to the Anderson's Thanksgiving at our family friends, Jean and Jim's house. Grandma Anderson thought ahead and brought two high chairs for the kids and had it all set up. Jean and Jim were so gracious to open their home to two messy-eating kids and didn't bat an eye when food was thrown on the floor. My kids are fruit fiends. So when they saw that there were fresh strawberries in the spinach salad, nothing else would satisfy them since they had already loaded up on stuffing at my family's house. Unfortunately for everyone else at dinner that night, there might have been a shortage of strawberry to compliment their spinach in the salad. Despite that, it was so lovely to see everyone on the Anderson side, including cousins we have not seen for a while and a few significant others that we had only heard about! Lots of fun!
This year, none of the grandparents will be able to make it down for either one of the kids' birthdays. To kick start the festivities, my parents threw a little party for the kids. Audriana and Haakon LOVED it all! The night before the party, we practiced with Audriana on how to blow out birthday candles so that she would know what to do the next day. When the time came at the party, the smile on her face grew bigger and bigger as she realized that the ENTIRE room was singing happy birthday to her (and her brother, too) and that she got to blow out the candles on her cupcake. Audriana did fantastic job of blowing out her birthday candles as well as her brother's. Both kids demolished Grandma Anderson's birthday cupcakes for them. Haakon inhaled his first cupcake and was looking around for a second. Unfortunately for the birthday boy, he only got one. When it came to opening presents, Audriana hammed it up for everyone! She ooohed and ahhhed and "wow" at all the right moments when she saw all the gifts she and her brother had received...she really worked her audience. I think this little girl really enjoys being in the spotlight....
All in all, it was a wonderful trip back home to Minnesota that made us cherish the time we spend with family, friends and of course, snow! Thank you to every single one of you who made time out of your busy schedules to come shower the children with gifts, eat, celebrate and be merry with us this Thanksgiving break.
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