November.

The beginning of November marked our first snow fall.  It wasn’t too much and melted and was gone the next day.  The girls had to walk uphill to the bus stop…in the snow.  Ha ha!  Now they have a story for their grandkids someday.

 We flew to Arizona to visit family.  The Husband found out last minute that he had to work and wasn’t going to be able to make the trip with us so I flew by myself with the three kids.  Flying out of Spokane wasn’t too bad.  Bill helped us get inside and to the security line.  I had Ryan in a carrier on my chest and was carrying his car seat.  And because he was on my chest they sent us through a family line where I had to have my hands swabbed by a TSA agent.  It didn’t take too long and we were on the plane in no time at all.  When we got on the plane a flight attendant helped carry Ryan’s seat to an empty row for us where I buckled it in and got everyone settled.  Ryan was by the window, then me, Maylyn was next to me, and Kaeleigh was across the aisle.  Well, as the plane begins taxiing down the runway another flight attendant (a different one than who helped me) comes over and tells me that Ryan can’t be over the wing of the plane and we’ll have to move seats.  So she asks these gentlemen a few rows back if they’ll trade seats with us and the first flight attendant who put me in that row came and apologized and offered to hold Ryan so I could carry all of our crap to the now vacated row.  Talk about embarrassing.  The pilot had to stop taxiing so we could do the seat swaps and everyone on the plane was staring at me as I unbuckled Ryan’s seat moved rows and buckled it back up. To top it off, Ryan was just starting to fall asleep before the move and then refused to sleep for the whole flight after the switch.  It was great.  I don’t know how many cookies that kid ate but I was doing anything and everything to keep him from crying.

 We celebrated Kaeleigh’s 10^th birthday while we were in Arizona.  Everyone came to Peter Piper Pizza to celebrate with us.  It was so great to see my family and friends.  A few of Kaeleigh’s old school friends came to her party also. 

 It was a short trip but lots of fun…until the flight home.  Sky Harbor airport is a nightmare.  It makes the airport in Spokane look like a library in comparison.  We got to the front of the security line very quickly, surprisingly. Ryan was on my chest again in his carrier but had fallen asleep this time around.  So again they pull me aside to swab my hands but this time I set off an alarm.  I have no idea why but the TSA agent grabbed all of my stuff and took me to this separate table where they proceeded to swab all of my belongings and wouldn’t let me touch any of it.  I had to be taken into this little room so that I could get a pat down from a female agent while another female agent and Kaeleigh and Maylyn looked on.  Keep in mind that Ryan is still asleep on my chest this entire time.  It was ridiculous.  Obviously I looked like a dangerous individual with two kids and a sleeping baby.  Let me tell you something, those agents have to pat you down everywhere.  I had to loosen Ryan’s carrier so she could feel under my boobs and everything.  Luckily we arrived early for our flight because that whole fiasco took forever and stressed all of us out except for Ryan who slept through the entire thing. Until we got on the plane and then he was all rested and didn’t want to sit in his car seat so I spent another flight with a wide awake one year old trying to entertain him with snacks and all of the pamphlets in the seat pockets in front of us.  I even took advantage of the free Wi-Fi on the plane and the free TV they offered to distract him.  It didn’t really work.  He spend the last half an hour or so fussing.  Getting home was a lot harder than getting to the airport.  Bill had flown out a few hours before we flew in so he left my car in the parking garage and I got a luggage cart to transport all of our things to the car.  It was exhausting.  I told Bill that I am never flying by myself with all of the kids ever again.

 Kaeleigh’s actual birthday was November 15^th so we took her out to dinner.  She chose Olive Garden.  And when we got home we had some cake and the kids got to Skype with family.  I don’t know if I’ve mentioned how much of a Harry Potter fan Kaeleigh is but the girl just loves HP.  Bill found the perfect gift for her.  It’s Hermione’s wand and time turner necklace.  Sadly, about five minutes after Kaeleigh opened her gift she and Maylyn started arguing and Maylyn sat on Kaeleigh and broke the wand.  We haven’t found a glue yet that will keep it together.  Maybe it really is magic…

 I also buzzed off all of Ryan’s hair this month.  It had gotten to the point where he would twist his hair around his fingers and pull handfuls of it out.  He actually sat pretty still while I cut it; I was very surprised.  And now he looks like a little man!  It makes me sad to think about how quickly he’s growing up.