November | 2021 | The Calisoffs

With no where to go and no one to entertain I expected a quiet weekend. I was surprised how busy we were!

We had out the usual Thanksgiving dinner followed by a round of Do You Really Know Your Family?

Maybe Aaron is too young to get the sharp knives this year?

Playing games with my family was one of those things I dreamt of when I was pregnant and envisioning how my future family would be together. Laughing and joking while competing in a friendly game which brings us all closer together and gives us fond memories to cherish forever. But as many of us parents now know, the dreams you had when you were pregnant never become your future reality. You think those dreams are a way for you to plan for your future, but they are really a lesson in managing your expectations.

Most times when we do family games it ends with someone quitting in frustration, angry name calling and always the word, “cheating” is thrown around at some point. I’ve even gone as far as buying games from Peaceful Kingdom which sells games where the players have to co-operate instead of compete.

Surprisingly the game didn’t go sideways this time. It wobbled a bit then righted itself. Aaron’s eyes only brimmed with tears but they didn’t fall. Most arguments about who won the card were quickly forgotten. And Ben won, proving that he actually knows himself and the rest of the family better than the rest of us. Which surprised everyone at the table, even Ben.

We also spent the weekend putting together some bits for Sam’s teacher’s bulletin board. All the kids helped which made it so much more enjoyable. Perhaps this is what I should have been envisioning when I was pregnant?

The twins are there for scale. (I’m not actually going to staple them to a bulletin board.)

Saturday we had a soccer session.

Sunday was the start of Hanukkah. So when the boys woke up, they were greeted with this…

The Hanukkah Bears brought LOTS of candy to decorate gingerbread houses with. And chocolate coins to bet with in the dreidel game. We spent the morning building and decorating.