November was a very exciting month!
On November 7th Tony and Taylor took me out for my birthday. We had a dinner at Johnny Carinos and they wait staff there was amazing! It was 8pm when we finally sat down for dinner and Taylor was beginning to get slap happy. She was a bundle of energy, and was having a great time. Because our birthdays are one week apart, Taylor tried to explain to everyone that it was my birthday and hers was the following week. But in two-year-old language, it becomes a little jumbled. At the end of our meal the waitress brought out an ice cream mouse for Taylor and I to share for our birthdays! Taylor thought it was so cute!
On November 14th Taylor turned three! Our little girl has officially become a "Big Girl" and she will tell you so! On her birthday, November 14th, we had a birthday party in which many of her friends came. Many were from school and many were from her home life. It was a great success, and the weather was one of the best days we could have asked for! It was the middle of November, sunny and 60 degrees! The kids were all able to play outside, and the party itself was a lot of fun! The theme of the party was Dora the Explorer, so the cake, balloons, and decor all matched. Taylor received a lot of fun things for her birthday, among them was a bed, stroller and high chair set for her babies, which she absolutely loves! She also received a new Barbie, a Dora doll, Wonder Pets figures, Disney Princess sets, Chutes and Ladders, Candyland, and Memory. All the kids received a little gift bag too!
After the party ended, Beth, Dave Corrie and Mike stayed and we all went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Milford. Taylor loved the food and had a great time! We then went to Brighton to go bowling! Taylor had a lot of fun rolling the ball down the lane, but her favorite part was the fan on the ball return! Cosmic bowling began around 9pm, and Taylor thought it was really neat! Taylor had so much fun that on the way home she asked "Do we have to go home?! This has been a great day!"
Thanksgiving was spent at Tony's Mom and Dad's house, with Uncle Marc and my mom. Dinner was amazing and everyone had their fill. During dinner Taylor and my mom played "bad guys" with spoons and awesome sound effects. They were absolutely adorable! Bushka, Taylor and I played Candyland and then Keith, Jenny and Jessica arrived. Shortly afterwards we all headed home.
December was the month of Christmas! December 5th we went to the Toledo Zoo to see the "Lights before Christmas." It was a cold evening, but well worth it. The amount of lights that were out were awesome, but Taylor was a little sad that the animals were not out. That is until we realized that Santa was there! She was very excited, and even knew what she wanted to ask Santa for for Christmas! While waiting in line, she ran around the auditorium and played, but when we got really close she began to get very excited! When it was our turn, she walked up to Santa and looked at him and paused... Santa asked what she wanted for Christmas and she she shyly replied "doggy stickers." They took a picture and she ran up to me and said "I told Santa what I wanted!" It was wonderful!
Throughout December her preschool began a little project in which every child was able to take home "If you take a mouse to school" and the stuffed mouse. Taylor had her turn and was very excited to play with him! He ate dinner with us, played with Taylor and even slept with Taylor. When the day was complete, we wrote in the book what they did together and placed a picture of Taylor with Mr. Mouse.
On December 21st, Tony's family came over for dinner and gifts. The dinner was great, with ham, beans and a casserole. Everyone ate and then we opened gifts. Taylor received an amazing doll house with a ton of furniture! Everyone was very happy with the gifts they received, and Kayla even sang to us on her new Karaoke machine!
December 22nd was the Christmas party at Taylor's preschool. They sang songs, read stories, played "Where's Rudolph" in which Taylor was a reindeer twice, and made a Christmas tree out of food! But the best part was a visit from Santa! Each child brought a book to exchange, and when they saw Santa they recieved a book! Taylor was very excited! the children sang for Santa and his helper read them "The night before Christmas."
December 23rd we all went over to Marty's to celebrate Bushka's birthday, which falls on Christmas Eve. Marty cooked an amazing dinner, and Taylor received a Christmas gift from Marty, Elyse, Bruce and Beth. Taylor and Bushka opened them and were very silly with what she got! The shirt, sweater, pants and dress are adorable!
December 24th Bushka, Grandma and Papa came over for dinner and gifts. For dinner we had Golumpki and mashed potatoes with an apple pie for dessert. After dinner everyone enjoyed the complany and talked for a while before opening gifts. Because it was Bushka's actual birthday we got her some flowers from Taylor. When it came time to open the gifts, Taylor ripped them open! She recieved some pretty cool things! She got a Dora plate set, some puzzles, and a Zhu Zhu pet! After dinner Taylor, Daddy and Bushka sprinkled "reindeer food" on the snow so that the reindeer woudl know where to go. After everyone left we put our cookies and milk for Santa, and Taylor headed off to bed.
Christmas morning Taylor woke up and immediately asked of Santa was here. When Daddy explained that he came while she was sleeping she replied with "I missed him?" We ran downstairs to see if the cookies and milk were gone, and sure enough they were. We then had to check Taylor's stocking. We took it down and Taylor opened the gifts inside and ate alot of the chocolate for breakfast! She then opened her gifts from us and Santa, and looked really excited by what she recieved! She was even genuinely excited about the clothes! When it came to the final present she asked "Is this a baby?" Sadly, it was not. She did recieve however, a fit pack game for the TV, Lincoln Logs, Hi Ho Cherrio, Cootie, Hungry Hippos, a full art box, a vaccuum, a ton of books, and much more. She got over it fairly quickly and immdiately wanted to open the toys.
After we all played with the toys for a while, we all got ready to go to Great Gram and Great Gramps. It was great to see the family, as we have not seen them in over a year. Taylor loved playing with her cousin Lauren, and had a great time with the rest of the family. After the amazing dinner spread, Taylor recieved even more gifts! This time she finally recieved the baby doll she wanted! The doll is from Great Gram and Great Gramps, and it moves its mouth to feed, opens and closes its eyes, cries, laughs and babbles. She was so happy!
The cousins: Dan, Kate, Lauren, Me, and Taylor
