On Thanksgiving break…pictures will follow in a few days!

My sister is here this weekend for a short visit.  On Friday I picked her up from the airport and she and I went to the “So You Think You Can Dance” live show at the Rose Garden.  We had a great time, although we both agreed that it was way past our bedtimes when we returned home after 11 pm.

On Saturday Amy and I hit a few holiday bazaars while Tim and Lex played together at home.  Then we drove to Salem that evening and had dinner with Aunt Winnie.

“Hurricane Lex” hit the manor by storm this visit.  He was pretty good in the dining room, but man, that kid has some energy.  After dinner he ran down Aunt Winnie’s hallway about fifteen times in a row, jumping and laughing.  He was drawn by the red fire alarm on the wall (which unfortunately was low enough for him to reach) and attempted to pull it several times.  And then after he tipped over the lamp in Aunt Winnie’s room, he tried to play with all of the breakable keepsakes sitting out on her tables.  Her place is definitely not toddler-proof, but we managed to stay one step ahead of him for most of the visit.

Awww…he appears so innocent.

This morning Lex and I met a few members of our play group at Pump it Up Jr., a place featuring bouncy houses and slides.  The first time Lex went there he was very intimidated and didn’t do much.  But today he had a blast.  He even climbed up the slides by himself (and some are quite tall!)

Some random child slid into us during this shot…

I think I’ll have to take Lex here more often, because this afternoon he took a three hour nap!

Lex spent the morning after his birthday party unwrapping all of his new presents.  His friends were very generous and he got some great stuff.

A new Mother Goose book:

A ramp racer:

A stacking board:

Hot wheels!

A magnifying glass:

A new boat for the bath tub:

And even more…I just didn’t get pictures of everything.

Today was Lex’s birthday party at Gymboree with all of his friends.  He had a blast and really enjoyed being in the spotlight.

Here’s half of the group photo:

And the other half (but a few kids arrived after this was taken):

parachute time:

a kiss from Gymbo the clown:

Loretta and me:

Loretta’s new son Christopher slept through the party:

Tim and I decorated the party cupcakes with all sorts of fun things, from M&Ms to Froot Loops Cereal.

Lex blowing out his candle:

Lex had so much fun at his party.  It was a great day!  (And Tim and I loved the fact that we didn’t have to clean up…the Gymboree crew did everything!)