Getting ready for Christmas in Wisconsin!

The day after Thanksgiving, the girls were ready to decorate for Christmas!

How do I look in the tree skirt?

Jill was excited to be able to place the tree in the front window.  

Their house in Kansas didn't have a front window.

And the girls have this other tree in the family room for their own ornaments.

We enjoyed listening to the family practice the special number they will do for Christmas Eve.  Adam didn't have his guitar for this particular practice, but it was just so pretty!

Adam and Jill went out on a date later that night and we took the girls shopping for this year's ornaments.  First we stopped here.

Claire found just the one on the Pink Princess tree.

An upside down tree

 We went to a couple of other stores to find ornaments for the older girls.

 Then we went to Culver's!

 And because Claire can't have dairy, we brought her own ice-cream.

Then we drove around town looking at lights. 

 This year's ornaments.

We gave our children ornaments every year.  When they got married, I wrapped up their ornaments and gave them at their wedding shower.

The next morning it was time for us to head out for Kansas.  Adam and Hannah had left for church early so we did silly waves with these 3.  So sad leaving them.

Because... 

 Good-bye Wisconsin!

This day for some reason, we saw MANY people our age on the road.

Baby boomer - will travel!

The sky was so pretty this day!

We've never seen the road so busy between Des Moines and Emporia!

It usually has very little traffic.  But not this day!

It was bumper to bumper and they were driving FAST and FURIOUS!

  We didn't take the longer scenic route - 

just went along with the traffic the fastest way possible.

When we got to KC, we drove by a Costco that had police everywhere and crime scene tape too. This isn't my photo but it is just what I saw.  Googled it - a man came into the store brandishing a rifle.  An off-duty policeman happened to be shopping and killed the guy.

The Kansas sky was so beautiful as we were on the last leg of the journey. 

Thankful in Wisconsin

 We celebrated our 3rd Thanksgiving dinner (the other 2 here in Kansas) in Wisconsin with our daughter and family.



And now silly

 Lots of food!

 We enjoyed a rousing game of spoons.  Yours truly won!

Papa purchased a book of classic children's stories to read to the kids while we were there.

The weather was really nice.  The winter blast hasn't hit yet.

So we went to a park.

Claire singing to an abandoned baby that she rescued. 

 Papa and Sophie worked on Sodoku.

Claire was getting into the Christmas spirit.

Can't we put up the tree?"

"Not today.  Tomorrow, after Thanksgiving" mom replied.

So, instead, Claire got out her Little People Christmas characters to play.