There’s always something so sweet about the days after Thanksgiving—the leftovers are in the fridge, everyone is home together for a few days, and we officially start looking forward to Christmas.
This year, our Thanksgiving weekend included Mordecai’s third birthday party, a spontaneous ice cream trip, lots of coffee runs, and LEGOs scattered across the house. I snuck in some Christmas prep, published a book (!!!), and soaked up every moment of family time.
The feeling I carried all weekend was simply gratitude—for this special season and for our family. Here are some moments from our Thanksgiving weekend that I want to remember. 🤎
Cartwheels and Cupcakes 🧁
After having Sadie’s birthday party at a local gymnastics gym back in September, I knew right away I wanted to do the same for Mordecai’s third birthday. The entire experience is just so easy for parents and so fun for the kids. The facility takes care of everything—the décor, hosting, and even the food—which is such a gift.
With our tiny house and a November birthday, hosting everyone indoors just isn’t realistic. If it were summertime, we could easily spread out in the yard… but Pittsburgh in November doesn’t exactly cooperate with those plans. Choosing the gymnastics gym made everything simple. All we had to do was show up with our birthday boy and three little candles for his cupcakes.
We booked an hour of playtime, invited all of our family and Mordecai’s neighborhood friends, and spent the sweetest afternoon celebrating and playing.
The kids all had such a great time playing—even Dakota! Poor baby girl had come down with the sniffles (again… I’m convinced she’s forever battling something), which you can totally see in the photo above. She rallied, though, and even managed to play a bit!
Our sweet Sadie surprised us the day of the party when she said, “Maybe I shouldn’t go to Mordecai’s birthday party.”
We were so confused until we realized she was worried about feeling nauseous like she had at her own birthday party. Her seven-year-old brain had associated the gymnastics gym with that unpleasant stomach ache, which was heartbreaking. We explained that her party had been so exciting, she had been on the go in the days leading up to it, and hadn’t eaten a proper meal beforehand—all of which had contributed to that icky feeling.
This ended up being a great opportunity for her to break that negative association—and she did! As soon as we arrived and she spotted her cousin Caroline, she was totally fine and had the best time. Whew, parenting… it’s something else!
My absolute favorite moment of the party was when we sang happy birthday. At three years old, Mordecai is just beginning to grasp the idea of birthdays and how we celebrate them. The party host placed his cupcake in front of him with three little candles, and we all started singing. He joined in, looking around like, “Wait… whose birthday is it?” It was just the sweetest thing!
We headed home from the party feeling so thankful for everyone who came to celebrate with us! Mordecai was surprised he’d been given gifts. His little eyes were wide with wonder as we opened them at home. He’d unwrap something and instantly turn to find me or Jimmy, shyly grinning from ear to ear, as if to say, “Did you see this? This is so cool!”
Eventually, all the fun caught up with our little guy and he crashed. He fell asleep on Jimmy and took a quick nap, and Jimmy said he loved every second of it. It’s so rare for a toddler to fall asleep on Mom or Dad, and it brought him right back to the newborn days with Decky. 🤍
It was such a wonderful day full of family, fun, and joy—the kind of day I’ll always remember.
Cones and Creations 🍦
The theme of the long weekend was play, play, play! The kids (and Mommy!!) loved having Jimmy home, and it felt so special to have that extra time together. Sadie and I made lots of art, we grabbed Starbucks coffee every morning, and Mordecai worked on his very first LEGO set! It truly feels like I was just helping Sadie with her first one yesterday. You can check out this post to see toddler Sadie 🥹
We put together a fire truck set, and I quickly learned Mordecai’s LEGO play style. If you’re a parent and your child plays with LEGO, you know they all have a style. Some kids carefully build a set and proudly display it. Sadie enjoys putting a set together and then playing with the figures on it. I, however, learned that Mordecai is the type to crush my heart.
We spent about twenty minutes tediously putting together a fire truck… and he instantly took the whole thing apart. Yup. He’s one of those kids. 😂
Once everyone was officially stir-crazy on Saturday night, we headed off to Lowe’s—our family’s sweet spot for shopping. I enjoy looking at the décor and plants, Jimmy checks out the tools, and the kids love all things seasonal like blow-ups and Christmas trees. There’s plenty of space to walk around, nothing is too breakable, and the workers are always kind. Jimmy grabbed some extra Christmas lights for our house… and then we topped the night off with ice cream!
There’s truly nothing like getting ice cream before the kid’s bedtime when it’s thirty degrees outside! We had to get out and about, though. And also—how cute is Mordecai in his garbage truck hat?! My sister gave it to him for his birthday, and his face absolutely lit up when he saw it. Like, I wish I could bottle that expression up and replay it whenever I’m sad. He was thrilled to have his very own garbage truck hat and proudly wore it all night long.
As our weekend wound down, I started to do a little Christmas prep. I wrapped advent calendars for Sadie and Mordecai, along with all of the kids’ Christmas-themed books so they could open one each day. Sadie even pulled out her Christmas dress to wear to church on Sunday and had me tie a red ribbon in her hair.
Poor Dakota didn’t make it to church on Sunday because of her sniffles. I figured the other moms probably wouldn’t appreciate her wiping her snot on their babies. 🤪 I’m hoping and praying this little bout of sickness doesn’t turn into another ear infection for our poor Koko!
Sunday also happened to be the day my devotional book officially published, and I couldn’t help but laugh at how fitting it felt—my book on motherhood going live on a day I was quite literally covered in baby snot. If that’s not motherhood, I don’t know what is. And you know what? I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Other Notes and Thoughts 📝
- Mordecai received this baking kit for his birthday from Jimmy’s sister and we had so much fun making M&M cookies! I absolutely love Mordecai’s passion for helping in the kitchen. 🤗
- I ordered a 2026 calendar and started filling it out! How does a new year start next month?! 📅
- Sadie has been loving playing with our nativity set and using it to act out the store of Jesus’ birth as I read it from her Bible. 📖
- Pittsburgh was dusted with a few inches of snow on Tuesday and I kid you not, the kids were trying to bust outside with their sled at 7:00 am. ⛄️
- Okay, stationary lovers—tell me: what’s your favorite pen? I used to be a Pilot G2 girl, and then I switched over to Paper Mate Ink Joy. The other day, I went on a deep research dive—fountain versus rollerball versus gel versus felt-tip, ink thickness, different brands… and I got totally overwhelmed, haha. I really want to get more into pens. 🤣🖊️
- Currently living in this vest because Pittsburgh is cold lately! 🥶
- Bible verse I’m loving: Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 🤍
As our long weekend came to a close, I felt so grateful for these special moments—the laughter, the fun, and even the sniffles. A special birthday, LEGO building, ice cream adventures, and the first touches of Christmas prep all remind me how full and beautiful our family life is. Thanksgiving weekend was a perfect mix of fun, family, and gratitude—the kind of weekend I’ll always hold close to my heart. 🫶
Living My Full Life 
I love this post- I actually teared up on more than one occasion due to the absolute cuteness of Decky. He totally cracks me up sometimes, and I love how he still cuddles and plays with my hair 🥰. I’m so sad we had to miss his party, as our weekend was spent driving to upstate NY to attend a funeral for my dear and precious Aunt. I will truly miss her, but KNOWING she is with our Lord and Savior in heaven is so comforting.
I hope Dakota feels better soon, she has certainly had a long bout of sickness. CONGRATULATIONS on your book – I’m still awaiting my copy as I type this.
I honestly don’t even think of a style of pen- I guess I’m lame 🤣
love you, Madre