November

 Gordon had a friend from nursery over, and I can't remember what they were doing, but it was cute seeing them so intent on whatever was in front of them. 

 Jilly asked for a chocolate ducky cake, and this is what I came up with. That frosting was like liquid fudge. 

 For her birthday dinner, she asked for orange chicken and broccoli. This is one of probably eight meals our entire family will gobble up. 

 Happy sixth birthday Jilly!

Uncle Dan gave Jilly a box of little "girly" Legos, which both girls have enjoyed playing with. 

 Ben found a great deal on a girl's bike on Craigslist, so he jumped on it. All three kids are on bigger bikes now. Jilly learned how to ride without training wheels just before her birthday, and on this particular Sunday she was practicing while we grilled up some food for lunch. Gordon thought he'd just chill on the basketball pad while the girls rode circles around him. 

 Jilly invited a friend from Primary over, and they had lots of fun. Evelyn's holding the toddler I babysit. 

Thanksgiving was at Uncle Dan's house this year, and he has a giant couch the kids sprawl on and watch movies while we finish fixing dinner. 

We  had a proper Thanksgiving dinner this year, with an actual turkey (last year it was fried chicken). 

Evelyn looking like she's going to take Gordon out with a baseball. Thankfully she can't throw that far. 

 Evelyn brought croup home right before Thanksgiving, so she spent Thanksgiving break sick with that. I opted to keep the kids away from everyone else, so we spent some time at mostly deserted parks. 

 Gordon picked up the croup the next week, and I spent a significant portion of two days helping him breathe, in the doctor's office, or eventually the E.R. The best part was when the doctor at the office told me I was making a big deal out of the fact that Gordon was wheezing like he had asthma, and then told me to do everything I had already been doing (and had not found it to work), and told me to stop doing other things I had been doing (that had helped him breathe). It was my most frustrating and confusing experience with a doctor to date, and I will not be going back. I felt vindicated after driving to the E.R. at 4 am after having Gordon wake up coughing, gasping, and wheezing every 20 minutes for a 6 hour span the second sleepless night. It was croup they said, but I think some asthma edged in there too. 

 The construction crew finished up all their digging and cleaned up pretty well, except for the big pile of concrete mix my kids found. It made an excellent digging pile, and an attempt was made at actual cement, but we were probably missing a key ingredient besides water, because it crumbled apart. 

Another set-up, this time dinner-themed. Pizza made of wood. Yum!