Some Downtime and The Creepy Santa

I always breathe a sigh of relief when I get to the end of the week.  Typically, Mondays aren't too bad, but they're Mondays... enough said.  Tuesday mornings are jam-packed.  And Wednesdays are the busiest of all.  They always includes lots of yummy produce...

...and usually a required mid-morning stop for caffeine and treats...

...some story time fun...

...you know the usual.  By the end of Wednesday, we're ready for some breathing room.  Lucky for us, Thursday and Friday come with a more relaxed schedule which suits the boys and I splendidly.  We have time to do things like this...

...it felt like Thanksgiving in our house.  YUM!

There's even time to make some new ornaments for the tree with the babysitter while Mickey and I brush up on our parenting skills...

...the boys nailed it with their paper ornament, don't you think??

We usually have time to check out some new books at the library too...

...it's a highlight of our week.

We get especially excited when the weather cooperates and we get to enjoy some of our free time outside.  Today was one of those days...

...obviously, we decided to spend the morning at one of our favorite parks.  This time we remembered to bring the bikes too.  The boys discovered the thrill or riding them down the little hill...

...they are definitely their father's children :-)  Little thrill seekers!

The excitement didn't end there...haha.  After the park, we got lured into Walgreens by a sign boasting free photos with Santa.  Since I'm one to push my luck with the boys, I ran the idea by them and decided to entertain them with a visit to Santa.  Let me just say, I think we're back to square one with our fear of Santa after meeting this creepy guy...

...is he not the worst Santa ever??  He was even more creepy in real life.  Of course I couldn't pass up the photo opp but I can't blame the boys for insisting that I come with them and not get too close.  Without photo proof, how else would anyone truly understand just how creepy he was???  Next year, we'll be sure to pass on Walgreens tempting offer.  Haha!

Time to get ready for Miriam's visit.  We're excited to have her company this weekend.  Family time is the best.