Thanksgiving, Parts II and III

So, yesterday after Molly left far too early (sniff!), Amanda, Jenn, David & Anne decided they wanted to head to Mt. Tabor for a long, hard hike. I would have loved to join them but we needed to put Rachel down for a nap and...she napped for 2 1/2 hours! Then I decided I needed to take a nap and staggered upstairs to the attic, lay down on the futon and napped for TWO HOURS! I never fall asleep in the middle of the day! Could be the exhaustion from the planning and cleaning up after dinner on Thursday that did it.

Amanda & Jenn were kind enough to take Rachel for a walk while Drew & I cleaned up from breakfast yesterday. We feel it is worth noting that a) she wore her hat for THEM, but she never wears it for US; b) when she saw Drew backing Molly's car down our driveway, she stood stock-still, perhaps sensing that it wasn't safe to walk; and c) after a quick walk around the block, she turned right into our driveway as if she absolutely knew where she was going. Could it be that all those walks we took this summer with her in the stroller and me eating gelato have sunk into her memory somehow?

Then Drew & I took Rachel to Laurelhurst Park and I ran into a mom I had met in mom's class named Naomi. Her daughter, Isabella, is chunkier than Rachel but is more confident in her walking. She had an adorable set of rain boots on, which her mom got at Fred Meyer. That's good to know because Rachel can finally fit into the pink raincoat that Grammy and Grandpa got her when we saw them in California! She needs a spiffy set of rain boots to match...

When we got back, we ordered sushi. Drew & David went out to get it while Rachel and I hung out on the couch together and looked at the fire that Drew had built. After a while I fell asleep, and before I knew it, Rachel lay down on my chest and fell asleep, too! It was so cute! David took pictures.

We all watched "Slumdog Millionaire" last night after Rachel went to sleep. This morning, we slept in even later -- until 9:30! When Drew peeked in to Rachel's room, she was sitting in her crib playing quietly with her stuffed dolls and animals. David begged to feed her, and she ate all of the hard-boiled egg he gave her. She also loved looking at the pictures of herself that David showed her through the camera's viewer! Drew made pancakes and bacon, which set off the fire alarm (drat our ventless stove!), then everyone started gathering up their stuff to head out.

So now TLG has been asleep for 2 1/2 hours, Drew is out shopping for fixings for turkey & dumpling soup that he will make tonight and we will enjoy tomorrow night, and I have put in the 145th load of laundry and emptied the 523rd load of dishes from the dishwasher. My chorus is performing tonight. If the weather cooperates, we'll probably take Rachel for a walk this afternoon.

Life is good.