Ah, a four-day weekend was just what the doctor ordered! And I took a lot of pictures.

How much is "a lot"? Well... Penny and Jess still had plenty of cute in them on Thanksgiving when my camera informed me that I'd filled up the card.

I don't know how many I'll post - many of them are similar, and I haven't checked focus on all of them yet. But you can believe there'll be some pictures up on the album soon.

And since it's Monday morning and I'm feeling lazy, you get a preview! No, no, don't thank me. It's a labor of love.

I've had this dress since I was 7 months pregnant with Penny. Every few months, we'd hold it up to her and say, "Nope, still won't fit." The night before Thanksgiving, Matt held it up to Penny and said, "Hey, she could wear this." It's still a bit big, but soooo cute. (The hat is left over from her Easter hat last year, but still quite adorable. And she actually will wear it for more than 10 seconds at a clip.)

We had this Hickses over for Thanksgiving, since their family plans had fallen through. Or, as I told K.T. after talking to my mom, "My parents would be delighted to have Jess over for Thanksgiving! And you can come, too." It was a lot of fun. Aside from a brief wobbly that Penny pitched when she wanted either juice in a cup, or milk in a bottle, but not the horror (apparently) that is milk in a cup, both babies were very well-behaved, and (of course) adorable.

But, you know, that old Grinch was so smart and so slick He thought up a lie, and he thought it up quick! "Why, my sweet little tot," the fake Santy Claus lied, "There's a light on this tree that won't light on one side. So I'm taking it home to my workshop, my dear. I'll fix it up there. Then I'll bring it back here."

I'd made Matt a turkey for his birthday dinner, and then put the carcass into my stock-pot to make soup. The next morning, Matt was in the shower, and Penny was playing in the kitchen while I tended to the soup. I turned around to check on her at one point, and found this. Naturally, being the marvel of parenting that I am, I ran for the camera.

One of the words in Penny's comprehension vocabulary is "hat." Whatever she's holding, all I have to do is say, "Is that a hat?" and she'll put it on her head. If it turns out to actually be a hat, sometimes she'll wear it for a little while. I couldn't resist when she picked up my brother's Stetson. Tell me you could have.

--Liz