Life in a Blur

So apparently November just came and went!  I shouldn't be surprised, as time has a tendency to do that, but it's amazing to realize how much faster life seems to move in America than it does in Kenya.  Life doesn't move slowly in Kenya (at least not for us Americans), but it does move slower than life here.  At least that's what I've decided after the last seven months of life in America!

Since life has been a blur, filled with wonderful and good things (but still in a blur), I'm gonna post a smattering of photos that encapsulate our life recently.  Lots of trips, lots of time spent with people, a bit of homeschooling in the middle, and lots of never-ending "life chores" as we like to call 'em.

So here's an overview of what we've been up to:

In the middle of everything, trick-or-treating did happen for these munchkins.  They had talked about it for weeks because, duh, free candy and, duh, costumes in public.  I very much prefer to be creative with Halloween costumes, but when you're not home even half the time, the creative juices are not flowing and you grab whatever costumes are hanging in the closet.  Two superheroes and a Sith lord.  Check, check, check!  We tagged along with Corrie's and Aubree's families - two of my closest friends from childhood.  Since they both have all boys as well, there were eight boys in our crew running through the neighborhood on a sugar high.  Life doesn't get much better than that!

Asa has been practicing his Maasai warrior skills...

Also, this has been happening, sort of.  Potty training just isn't a priority right now.  We haven't dived in, but are kinda sorta encouraging this.  That's all we can muster these days!

We enjoyed the first snowfall of the season!  It was a wet, sticky snow - perfect for making snowballs and throwing them against the garage door.  It was the first time Asa has ever played in the snow and it was super fun to watch our boys enjoy winter!

We went to Florida!  It was a family trip with my family to celebrate my dad's retirement.  We did a lot: Disney, Gatorland, Busch Gardens, Medieval Times, and Legoland.  The kids had a blast, and we appreciated warm weather once again.

After Florida we headed to Georgia to spend Thanksgiving with Eli's grandma and extended family.  It was such a fun and refreshing time.  And we had such a feast!  Eli's family were amazing hosts and we're so grateful we had the chance to be there.  Here are 4 generations of Hallquists/Horns:

On the drive back to Michigan (did I mention that we drove to Florida and back???) we stopped at Mammoth Cave just for fun.  Our boys loved it!

After all that, we made it home and soon got a Christmas tree.  Meaning, we went to my parents' house and cut down a tree from their property because free trees are the best trees!

And now we are home again.  We're thankful for the Christmas tree and its lights that greet us every day, and for Christmas music that puts us in the holiday spirit.  We're glad to be here for Christmas this year and enjoy the typical American traditions.  We even love winter!  It's great to see snow and sleep on flannel sheets and drink hot chocolate.  It's a good time of year to be in America.