Thanksgiving: a change in plans

The Thiels planned to drive from Wisconsin down to Illinois to visit Mom, Dad and Grandma Joyce. Then about a half hour before we were about to leave Claire threw up. She seemed to be fine afterwards, but Elise had thrown up 2 days before so now we were fairly certain that Daryn was going to come down with whatever it was.

To avoid spreading our sickness (and an eventful car trip) we settled in and made preparations for an impromptu Thanksgiving dinner. No comparison to Mom's fantastic feast and gorgeous table. But luckily it involved more than just saltines and sprite.

We employed the girls to make cranberry garlands.

There were some saltines involved that day, but Elise thought that was ok too.

Oh, and the other cranberry craft was... pincushion oranges?... abstract turkeys? Not quite sure what to call this one.

Getting ready to eat. Check out the pretty new table Nathan finished that morning.

"I'm thankful for my chicken dinner... And turkeys."

Afterwards:

Nathan felt queasy all evening - it wasn't the food, we think. Krystle was out of commission all Friday. Daryn (the ticking time bomb) never did throw up but spiked a fever the whole next week with a sinus infection. So we were glad we didn't subject Mom and dad and Grandma to this, but we missed them terribly.

The end. Hopefully. Of the sickness, not the Thiels.

Thiel Halloween

Mom sent us out a couple packages filled with treats and costumes prior to Halloween. The girls loved them! Thank goodness Grandma had the foresight to pack 2 pairs of red sandals. As you can see, Daryn REALLY likes dressing up... Claire, not so much. She was not happy when I was trying out her costume on her. She was a bit wary about the whole Halloween thing. She wasn't a fan of pulling out pumpkin guts. She said "It's too dirty" while Daryn was attempting to eat any and all stray pumpkin seeds.

We finally coerced her into her "Boo" costume* with the promise that she would get candy.

At that point she definitely caught on to the spirit of Halloween:

(Obviously she eventually got some candy).

We made an appearance at Trunk or Treat and then in downtown Sugar Land where all the stores opened up and passed out candy. By that time Claire was ready to put on the whole costume if it meant more treats. There were lots of kids, adults and DOGS dressed up. So many people said Daryn was sooo cute as she was toddling down the sidewalk (They also thought she was a boy dressed as a dog**, but that's ok).

*Boo! is an obscure British cartoon that we watch online (hulu). It consists of Boo, a patchwork pear-shaped character, and his friends laughing duck, sleeping bear, and growling tiger. These guys hide all over the place and little British kids - they have an accent, and I stink with accents so they might be Australian? - find them. It has kind of warped Claire's understanding of Hide 'n Seek because now whenever we get close she jumps out and says "Here she is!"

** If Daryn's costume looks familiar it's the same "Red Baron" coverall we used last year for Claire's Scooby-Doo costume. It's a very versatile costume. Maybe a little too versatile...