i've been eating pumpkin pie for three days

We've had a bit of a whirl-wind week. Full of family and food and funny moments. Like the Pirate hearing his 1-year-old cousin crying at 6:00 this morning and telling us, "I need to go find that cat." Then coming back a few minutes later with the news that he couldn't find it. Then his 5-year-old cousin telling us mid-morning that Pirate had told her he had a cat, but it died.

Little things like that.

They add up to some seriously good times.

On Wednesday night Hubs came home with this artificial tree that I've been admiring for a month now. Pirate was so excited! So Thanksgiving morning, in the midst of my baking and Hubs turkey-smoking, we set up the tree. Then Pirate kept asking, "Are you making Christmas dinner?" "Can I open my train present now?" I should have talked up Thanksgiving a bit more I think.

We are so blessed to have such great family, and a BIL and SIL living close enough to us that we can do holidays together. The Pirate loves having his cousins over to play and to share his bedroom at night. It's like one long party.

I also got some pretty fantastic deals this weekend because Black Friday shopping is so. much. fun. And luckily, my SIL thinks so too. 

There's this train at Michael's that Pirate has had his eye on for a month now. He loves it with his whole little heart and has asked to make trips to "the red store" just so he can see "that train." He even got Hubs to agree to come to the craft store just to look at it. The price tag on the thing was $79.99, but I snagged it for $30 on Thursday night. Plus, I ended up with the very last one and for that I am truly thankful because Pirate is going to be so excited about it.

Hubs high-fived me when I told him. 

My goal every year is to have my main shopping done early enough that I can just enjoy the whole month of December without pressures to get things done. I've failed in that goal this year. I still have about 20 cards to make, which I'll keep working on. It might mean that some people might not get their cards until more like Valentines day, but hey! We just do what we can over here, you know?