Thanksgiving Recap...

We've been busy here, as usual, but things have been good.  We packed up the whole family (including Spring and Minnie) and headed to Greenbrier, AR for a long weekend of Thanksgiving family togetherness.  It is always so fun to see Leah and James' aunts, uncles, grandmother, cousins, and other family friends.  They are a wonderful group of people.  We had so much fun just spending time with everyone.  I come from a rather small family in relation to James.  His mother has seven brothers and sisters!  I just really enjoy being around all of the family (and listening to stories and looking at old pictures).

The day after Thanksgiving we headed to Heber Springs to hike Sugarloaf mountain.  I had hiked it before, but did not go all the way to the top where it requires quite a bit of rock climbing to get all the way up.  This time I went all the way and it was exhilarating.  Here are a few pics from the trek...

Sugarloaf!

Leo and Isaiah stopping for a rest...

Leo waited at the bottom of the rocks with Grandma Leah...

Isaiah and some other random dude (who, I think, thought I was taking his picture)...

Hubs...

Leo, Van, Leah, and Isaiah...

Of course James had to launch a couple discs from the top!

And we made it back down!

Next, we headed over to see the Trumpeter swans.  They migrate to the same lake in Heber Springs every year.  (And they are apparently the largest native North American bird).  They were fun to watch and listen to.  They really do sound like trumpets! 

It is so pretty there!

The next day we headed to Little Rock to do a little ice skating!  It was a blast.  I was unsure what Leo would think of it, and at first he couldn't even walk in his skates, but he wanted to be out there with us the whole time.  By the end of our session he was walking around (off the ice) on his skates just fine!  We are planning to go ice skating at Swonder's while we're in Indiana for Christmas!

He loved being out on the ice.  He seemed to take the whole thing very seriously.  It was cute.

There are only two more weeks of work before Christmas break.  Our decorations are almost finished.  Our house is looking and feeling joyous.  Happy Holidays!