November - Just a bunch of nuts

We are having WAAAAAAYY too much fun doing our Christmas shopping this year.  If we are not having fun we are not doing it right. 

As unfun and stressful as October was, November made up for it and then some.  November 1st Jeremy was awarded the "Outstanding Student" award for his grade.  He also made the Sweet 16 for having one of the 16 highest math scores in the entire 8th grade.  November 2nd the parents were invited to the poetry cafe in Ms. Baker's 8th grade literature class.  She had the room decorated with lights and table cloths.  Each student read two of the poems from their project.  We snapped our fingers instead of clapping.  It was tons of fun.  Jeremy also won his class spelling bee that day. 

November 3rd we went to see Wreck-It Ralph as a family.  We all really enjoyed it.  Going to movies as a family is one of our favorite things to do.  We especially love it when the movies of our choice are playing at The Gem Theater in Kannapolis.  The Gem is an old theater that has been turned into a movie theater so it has a balcony and fun murals on the walls.  You can't beat the price of $4.00 a ticket either. 

November 4th Jeremy was set apart as the secretary in the deacons quorum. 

November 6th we all stayed up late to watch the election results trickle in.  President Obama was re-elected in a very close race.  Governor Romney ran a good race but fell short in the end.  The popular vote ended up being 49% for Romney and 50% for Obama.   I love it that the kids are so involved in and interested in the way the United States functions.  They need to know how it all works.  They are the future. 

November 9th-11th Steve was a leader at the Outdoor Leadership Training for the scouts.  He is having a blast working with other scoutmasters in the district and especially loves teaching at these events. 

November 9th, Nicholas attended his first school dance.  I was nervous because Nicholas normally doesn't like loud and crowded places.  When I picked him up he was full of stories of how fun it was and all the things he did with his friends.  We went straight from the dance to the Boy Scout auction at church.  I don't know how much money we earned in the end, but it was a fun night. 

November 11th was the primary program.  Nicholas and Naomi did a great job.  Jeremy loved sitting in the congregation and watching.  That evening, after Steve got back from camping, we celebrated Naomi's birthday since the week was full of other activities every night.  We ate her favorite dinner, stroganoff, and had rainbow Jell-o for dessert.  I can't believe my baby is 7!!!

Monday was a day off of school for Naomi, so Steve and I took her to the computer store to purchase her Nexus tablet.  She had saved up her half of the money right in time for her birthday.  They didn't have one in stock, but another store in Tennessee had one and would send it overnight to their location.  Naomi was okay with that.   Later that afternoon we went to the mall to give Naomi another one of her presents.   I had been teasing her for weeks that one of her presents was going to make her jump right out of her pants.  When we started approaching the Mall Jump she figured out the clues I had been giving her all along.  She begs to try it everytime we pass it and today she got to do it.  She was really excited and it was worth every second of the high-flying fun. 

Nicholas found a watch he really liked at the mall and wanted to know if Santa could get it for him.  Luckily the store had a lay-away program for Santa.  We put Nicholas's name on the watch and he was satisfied that Santa would come through.  That night as I was putting him to bed he started crying because he was worried that his other watch would feel bad because it wouldn't be his favorite watch anymore.  He is such a sweet kid. 

November 13th, Naomi's actual birthday, was a busy day.  I took icecream sandwiches to her class over lunch as her birthday treat.  I was also tutoring math and reading in her class that day, driving carpool for Nick, fixing dinner, picking up Naomi's Nexus, and helping in scouts. 

November 17th Jeremy earned the money for his tablet.  We took the kids to the computer store again.  The employees there are starting to call us by name - kind of like "Norm" on the show Cheers.  I don't know if that is a good thing.  Anyway, Jeremy picked out his tablet.  Since the time Nicholas purchased his in September, the tablet market has exploded.  He was a little upset that Jeremy could get a better tablet for the same price Nick had paid in September.  Steve and I had already thought this might happen and had a plan in place.  I offered to "buy" his old tablet from him so he could get this newer one with a front/back camera, 16 GB of memory and a mini-SD card.  It was definitely a win-win sitution.  It was good lesson in how fast technology advances and what happens the prices of items when they become "outdated" so quickly. 

November 19th I cooked two turkies to take into Nicholas's class for the annual Thanksgiving Feast they have for the 5th graders.  I loved getting to meet some of his friends and their parents.   This is a good group of kids. 

November 21st Nicholas and Naomi went to the dentist and got great reviews.  Nicholas was very relieved that no more teeth had to come out.  The doctor just said he needed to brush his teeth better and suggested getting a Sonicare for the kids.  YIKES!!

That night I had a Girl's Night Out with Tabitha and Tracy.  We went to see the new Twilight movie.  It was surprisingly good.  I don't know if it was the movie or the fact that we were without children that made the night so much fun.  It could have been both. 

Thanksgiving Day was great!!! The kids helped fix the meal and clean up afterwards.  Steve went to the midnight sales.  He is a Black Friday junky!!  I am not complaining because he found Sonicare toothbrushes for 60% off at Kohl's.  Combine that with an additional 15% off since I have a Kohls card and a $10.00 coupon I got in the mail earlier in the week and the result was 3 toothbrushes with refill heads for everyone for the price of one.  The kids now have Sonicare.  Next dental visit should be the best one ever for everyone. 

November 23rd everyone straightened up the house in anticipation for Nicholas's new friend to come and play.  Nicholas is taking Mrs. Hammond's advice seriously and is making new friends.  When he came home one day asking if Tyler could come over, I got on the phone immediately and called Tyler's mother, whom I have met on several occassions at school parties.  Her excitement matched mine since Tyler is apparently very much like Nick, a little hesitant to make new friends.  They had a blast playing all day long and were exhausted by the time we took Tyler home. 

November 28th Nick got his progress report.  He was over-the-moon excited to show me and Steve that his Social Studies and Language Arts grades had both come up from a C to a B.  I love it that he has a teacher he admires and who motivates him to try harder and be better. 

I told you that November was a great month!!!  Here's to a fantastic December!!