Gobble Gobblin' Still and Lovin' It!

The amazing lights display....

Awe, the Rockwood Clan together again!

HaHa...us girls are taking over - no more football games on Saturday afternoons!


Uncle Bradley and Kaitlyn

Papas and Addison

So I can't believe Thanksgiving has come and gone. It seems like we have been looking forward to this marker for quite some time - crazy how quickly time flies when you are having fun, isn't it? We have had such a wonderful week - there is not one thing more we could ask for. Grammie & Papas came to visit along with Uncle Ryan, Uncle Brad and Aunt Emily - how fantastic is that! The girls have had everyone's undivided attention all week and trust me they have not wasted one ounce of it! We have gone for walks, played soccer, run on the golf course, hung up Christmas lights outside, watched Imagination Movers, gone downtown, shopped, done tons of arts and crafts...oh and did I mention eat - because we have!! :)

Here are just a few of the great memories we have created this past week - I will send more later, but just wanted to give you all a preview of how we do things up right here in the OKC!

O Christmas Tree

The girls admiring their handy work with the Christmas tree....they did a great job! Our Griswald Tree is FABULOUS!

Aunt Rox and Uncle Jack...finally it is cold enough to wear the adorable pj's you sent....WE LOVE THEM!!! Addy danced around all night!

Kaitlyn was helping her Daddy with the Christmas lights all afternoon....he would put them in piles of lights that worked and then she would rearrange them in a way that made sense to her...it was so much fun to watch as Brent loaded the whole tree with lights that he thought were the working ones, but little did he know those were just the ones that Kaitlyn thought had the prettiest bulbs...a lot of strands did not work when it came time to plug in the finished tree and he had to redo it after the kids went to bed!!! Oops....:)

So yes - our house is already decorated for the Holiday season. It is fun to have everything up earlier this year as now we can enjoy it for a little bit longer! I was so excited too as I always loved how we had garland and lights up the stairs in our house in Indiana when we were there that one year - so Brent helped me and we made that happen here - it is wonderful and warms my heart!

I have been enjoying a Christmas themed dance show this morning from the girls - thanks Aunt Val and Chelsea for the music you sent we have really put it to good use. I wish you all could see some of the moves that come about - it kind of reminds me of a combination of Brad's old fraternity dance (remember that one he broke out in Old Forge at the DJ party - jumping up and down in circles and waving his hands...come on you remember) and then all of us doing Footloose being crazy. I love it so much as it really makes me laugh so hard that I cry!

Life has been great here lately - we have been getting together with some new friends, which is always a blessing. Dr.'s appts are going really good - nothing new to report just the waiting game now. Everyone is flourishing....well we love you, miss you, and send kisses to you all! Congrats on the Colts win - it was a fun game to watch especially with Patriots fans in the house! :) (Sorry Jon & Summer)...

We have re-entered the 21st century, I guess...

So finally there were several men out here yesterday from DISH TV who were able to figure out a way to get TV into our house - it only took 3 hours, but they did it! We have re-entered the 21st century of constant technology to the happiness of most of our friends and family. But can I confess something? I am sad. There was something wonderful about those 10 months without TV: no worries about commercials, because let's face it they are either toys that the kids don't need or they are totally inappropriate even on the kids channels; no individuals tuning out during hours that could be spent having quality time doing other things; no pressure or desire created by main stream media to stay in touch with things that you really don't need to stay in touch with in the first place (24, American Idol, etc..); no begging sessions about whether TV can be watched right now because it simply was not an option; it had to be a deliberate action to watch a movie together and not just boredom or lack of conversation, and so many more thoughts that I won't bother you with right now. Sometimes, I think part of my being was meant to be living in the very early 1900s or leading a take back control movement where parents and families say "No" to everything that is being created to make our lives easier and more manageable. If we stopped listening to the demands of our society in the first place what would really be that unmanageable? - Oh well, just ranting, now it is simply a matter of self-control and remembering and instilling in the kids that the TV is not the end all be all.

So this is what an Indian Summer is like?

Okay, let me tell you first and foremost...I am loving Oklahoma's weather. It has been a beautiful 70 degrees here for the last week. We have played in leaves, gone for long walks, had numerous park play dates, sidewalk chalked, went on more bear and Dracula hunts with friends....it is just perfect for a girl from Wisconsin who is used to 40 degree weather already and snow flurries! Sorry for those of you experiencing that right now....wanna come visit?

The weekend was FABULOUS...we did next to nothing besides be around the house and do goofy things as a fam, which we LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! To give you an idea: Everyone now knows and can do the Hannah Montana Hoedown Dance from the movie (Yes, even Brent can do the dance and sing the words...Kaitlyn & Addy made sure of that!) The week has been progressing well - nothing new and interesting to report I don't think. Oh wait, Addy now carries around a purse with odds and ends in it which she tells anyone that asks is for when she needs to get FANCY. (Chels, it is the purse you sent her with her name on it.) Alright, I guess we do have a big Friday - in the morning we are having a Princess Party here: I think there will be 8 little girls all dressed up ready for tea & cookies! Kaitlyn is really excited as she has been the little mastermind behind the menu and activities. Then in the evening, Addy is having her best little guy friend and his brother over for dinner. It is fun though because most of the families we are connecting with have 2 girls or 2 little boys the exact same ages as ours so it makes for great play dates!

Well, that is about all she wrote...LUMUKU.....Shout out to our dear friend Drini - Brent told me he got your email - send me your new address so I can be sure to keep you updated and vice versa. Wish we could get together soon - did I mention the Indian Summer here in Oklahoma? (hint-hint)

Happy Halloween Y'all...

We Trick-or-Treated our hearts out this year - probably exceeding overall time from last year! It was great though, watching the girls run (YES THEY RAN THE WHOLE TIME) from house to house. Not to mention, it was a beautiful fall evening of about 70 degrees and a gorgeous full moon. Ah, can't beat memories like these!

Kaitlyn ended up being a Care-Bear; this was a costume from year's past as you can see by the pant legs, but she had her heart set on wearing it so who can argue with that. Addison wanted to be a princess and her final choice was Belle. They had their costumes on by 4pm when the festivities did not start until 7pm....they were so excited!

We started off the night in our little town as they had a celebration in the downtown area closing off streets. Truly, it was really fun being in a small town for Halloween - all the businesses there passed out candy and they had games and bouncy houses. Then we headed back to our neighborhood to hit a couple houses and ended up going around for about 2 hours. I took a couple of pictures later in the evening to show you guys how extremely cute the girls were after they would ring the doorbell - they would wait buckets in hand just in such anticipation for who would answer the door (as some people were dressed up in fun costumes) and then to see what treats they would get....Brent and I could not stop laughing at their enthusiasm.

All in all a fabulous Halloween! LUMUKU....