Friday Favorites

I just got back from the mall. And I'm in a great, holiday-induced mood.

Why?

Because it's Friday. That's the key.

If you can get to the mall on a weekday, during the morning hours, it's SO much better than going on a weekend or an evening.

I wasn't playing Frogger with other shoppers and strollers trying to get across hallways. I didn't have to watch Parker like a hawk in the play area hoping not to loose track of him amongst 40 other snotty, sneezing, coughing little kids. And I felt like yelling, "Well Jimney Christmas! Look at that, would ya?" when I saw that Santa was just sitting up in his perfectly crafted mall-sized Christmas Village all by his lonesome. No kids. No lines. Not one single person. I was quite tempted to just pay the money and let Parker sit in his lap and talk to him till the cows came home, but I didn't. Instead, we just waved from outside the snowy Village fence and said, "We'll see you next week Santa when we come back with big brother!"

Parker was totally happy with that. In fact, judging by how shy he was acting, I'm wondering if we're going to have a total screaming meltdown some crying when I actually do try to get him to sit on Santa's lap. Stay tuned...

Back to my mall experience. It's quite fun to go to the mall right now. All the Christmas decorations are hung. Holiday tunes are blasting over the speakers, every single store is having some kind of incredible "Pre-Black Friday Sale" and with my Peppermint Mocha latte in hand, I was very pleased to knock out several people on my Christmas list in one fell swoop. It was a good day.

In preparation for a fun weekend, I thought I'd share some of my favorite photos from the week. Hope you enjoy!

Parker's Thanksgiving Celebration at his preschool. That's his cute teacher, Miss Tina.

Okay, so they're all blurry, but come on...how cute is this? If Payton lays in the playroom, Mocha immediately jumps out of her cage and snuggles up to him. Who knew bunnies could be so sweet and cuddly?

Payton was chosen to do the flag presentation at Cub Scouts this week. He took the position very seriously and did a great job.

Double tickles! Brian's got skills.

I love this photo. That's Brian standing behind Payton & Parker as they jump waves together. It was such a sweet moment, and the setting was so breathtaking. Nothing like watching your boys play in the ocean as the sun sets.

The kids are out of school next week, so I doubt I will have time to post anything to the blog. But, who knows, they may surprise me! If I don't get back here next week, I hope everyone has a safe and fun holiday surrounded by friends and/or loved ones. Happy Thanksgiving y'all!