Gobble Gobble!

    Thanksgiving 2014 was spent in our new home in Coopersburg.  Mike and I were in charge of getting the turkey done and done it got!  My good friend, Laura, gave me a recipe on how to brine and then bake the turkey.  Everything was looking promising until we cooked the turkey for 6 hours instead of the 3 hours as indicated in the recipe.  Add in at just the moment we discovered the turkey was way overcooked (legs flopping to the side and everything!), Allie woke up from a nap coughing so hard that she threw up everywhere.  People tell me I will laugh about this someday.......

 Anyway, Thanksgiving was fine and the turkey was pretty good underneath that burned skin.  Still missing my mom very badly, but the twinjas always help to put a smile on my face.

Ready for its epic 6 hour journey!

Little Thanksgiving arts and crafts!

You mean it's not a tradition to eat ice cream out of the container with your fingers before eating Thanksgiving dinner???  It is in this house!

Time for dinner!  Loving our new table!

Twinja love

 We headed out Friday morning to find out Christmas tree...it was cooooold and windy!

Twinjas say, "This is ridiculous.  Why are you peopling making us tromp around this field to find a tree we're going to bring into the house?!?!?

The twins were less than thrilled....

"Are we done here?"

"Heat and a candy cane??? I approve!"

"Get me out of here."

It's so high!

"Go, daddy, go!"

 The twins then headed back for a nap while Mike decorated the tree.  Allie woke up early so got to help decorate a little bit!

  Cameron woke up a little later...please see his reaction to the tree below..

"And now you put lights on it???  You people are crazy."

"But I guess it's kind of fun!"

   Finally, the next morning Melissa the Elf made her first appearance.  Melissa came to the Rocc Flock during December of 2012.  My mom invited her to our home which was one of the many things she did for the twins during her last few weeks of life.  The name Melissa also came from my mom.  We were always big fans of "Dancing with the Stars" and watched a lot of episodes together in the emergency room and hospital rooms during the last few months of her battle with cancer.  Melissa Rycroft ended up winning that season and my mom and I loved her.  So, Mom suggested we name her Melissa and of course I agreed.
 One other story about Melissa and my mom that I'd like to share....as many of you know, my mom lived with Michael and me during the time she was trying to recover from the brain tumor causing her to lose feeling on her left side.  During the night, she often times had to call to me to help her get to the bathroom.  The second or third night Melissa had visited our home, Mom called to me to help her get up.  As we were making the journey from her room to the bathroom, I saw her looking all around.  I asked her what she was doing and she answered, "Looking for Melissa!"  We had a really good laugh together at 2:30 in the morning as she made her way to the bathroom.  My, how I miss that laugh...

"So, she's going to tell Santa how I behave?  I better be good!"

 Here the twins are discovering the beauty of the ipad....Michael and I never realized how magical it could be!

 Stay tuned for the next blog about a visit from the big guy in red!