November, the month that lasted forever

This year November felt like the longest month of the year.  I think that's because it was cold, dreary, and I was in the middle of grad school hell.  I didn't have much time for anything but work work work, and it sucked sucked sucked.  I was counting down to December 9th, when our term would end, and doing all I could to keep my head above water in the process.  Well, I survived it, have blocked it out, and am only reminded of how yucky the month was by looking back at the pictures and realizing we didn't do much of anything in November.

Trey's kindergarten school picture

I still can't figure out why he didn't take his coat off.

I even dressed him in a collared shirt! 

A normal day or evening around the Clark house.

Me with my textbook and Trey with the iPad

This is what they call quality parenting, right? 

I have a love affair with sushi, and Roth's in McMinnville actually does a pretty good job.  When I go in there to get lunch, the sushi chef gives me a little cup for my wasabi and soy sauce without me even asking.  I love being a regular.

Trey decided he wanted to have a birthday party for  Doggy.  Ana was coming over, so we went all out.  Trey made a homemade pinata, filled it with Halloween candy, and wrapped some of his toys for Doggy to open at his party.  Ana brought some of her stuffed kitties over, and the kids had a great time at the "party."

Hitting the "pinata" (aka cardboard box with pictures on it) 

that was strung up on a rope and whacked by one of Randy's fishing rod holders.   

The loot! 

Birthday cupcakes with Doggy, the kitties, Trey and Ana 

Randy is doing his best to turn Trey into a Bronco fan.  He's made more progress this year than in the past, so there is still hope.

Trey read a book for me for the first time, and I caught it on video.  I'll spare you the "show off Mommy" video, but this is a screen shot of him and how happy he was at the end.  I am so proud of him and his reading.  It amazes me on a daily basis.

Like I said, we didn't do a lot of "fun" stuff in November, but I did try to capture quality time with my boy whenever I could.  Most of this was during storytime at bedtime.  We've been reading some great books, and while there are times I wish bedtime could go a little faster, I am trying to cherish these moments with Trey while they are here.

One night I went to Woodburn to meet some of my friends for happy hour, and Randy and Trey said they had a surprise for me when I got home.  When I arrived, it was DANCE PARTY 2015!!!  Randy had ordered some strobe lights (is that what they'd be called?) and they were having a huge dance fest.  They were playing some of Trey's favorite music and we all got our boogie on.  It was awesome!

Here are some more pictures of me trying to blend spending time with my son with doing coursework.  It's not ideal, but you do what you gotta do.

We got to join Zander for his bowling birthday party at Big Al's.  I can't believe he's 11!  I remember when he was born.  It is fun to see Trey interact with the "big kids" and not be a "baby" anymore.  As for the bowling, let's say we need to work a little on the arm strength so that the ball gets all the way down the lane.  Thank god for bumpers!

On Thanksgiving weekend (more on the holiday later), I was desperately trying to get some projects done before we went out for the night.  I will say that it can be hard to get papers done when you have a monkey on your shoulders grooming your hair.

On Saturday night of Thanksgiving weekend (after I turned in my paper thanks to my husband's mad Excel graphing skills), we went to see Storm Large with Mindy and Bill.  It was Storm's holiday show, and it was awesome!  It was Mindy and Bill's first time seeing her perform, and she did not disappoint.  It was also an incredible way to bring in the holiday season.

Trey has been really interested in typing lately.  He loves typing his list of sight words and then reading them back.  He has recently discovered the speech to text feature (both on my phone and the computer) and has composed long monologues that essentially make no sense.  He wants to be an author, so I definitely encourage his story telling and creating.

Bronco watching, Lego building, fire making...my boys are the best!