Check out our handsome Tiger! Here is Griffin’s pre-school picture from this year and below is his Tiger class photo along with teachers Miss Jen and Miss Irma. He is really enjoying school and comes home telling stories about what he did and talking about his friends. It’s pretty cute! He eats lunch there too and typically eats really well. When I pick him up and he is telling me about his day we check out his lunch and he is so proud when he eats really well 🙂
On Tuesday, Election Day, we headed to the polls and took Griffin along. Our polling location is always active and busy yet we don’t have to wait so we were in and out pretty quickly. Afterward we headed to our traditional Annie’s Southern Kitchen for a tasty breakfast before Kevin and I headed to work. 
Here are a few others from this week before we left on our annual trip to Tennessee. Finn loves player with Cooper and Cole whenever they are home and outside. They enjoyed a fun afternoon playing in the leaves. He also made some fun artwork with Debbie this week including a Turkey, a pilgrim hat, and a feather hat. Â 
I made it to Fox in the Snow for a special treat one afternoon after a doctor appointment at Riverside. Â We met with a genetic counselor, the specialist, and the sonographer who performed a detailed ultrasound called the Ultra Screen where they look at the thickness and fluid in the cavity of the spinal cord area at the base of the baby’s neck (called nuchal translucency). This measurement, along with a blood sample of mine that we had sent off in the mail, is used to assess the risk of Trisomy 18, 13, or 21. An increased thickness can indicate possible chromosomal issues and because of our history with Nathan and his Trisomy 18 diagnosis, we opted for the least risky procedure that would provide insight on the health of the baby. We were elated to learn that the scan showed a very normal spinal area/thickness. The baby was actually in a perfect “textbook” position when she first looked so she got some great images. They also look at the nose for the presence of a nose-bone which is another positive, as the lack of one can also indicate chromosomal issues. Everything looked wonderful. I left feeling so relieved. It doesn’t mean everything is guaranteed to be perfect by any means, but it was reassuring to hear from the specialist that the baby looked great.
We left early on Friday morning for our trip to the Smoky Mountains. We arrived at our cabin, Smoky Bear, and were a bit scared at the sight of the driveway and its pitch. Yikes! It was kind of like going up and down a roller coaster where you can’t quite see where you are headed! But after a few trips we were good to go 🙂
Finn loved playing with the oven mitts and a package of ping pong balls that we purchased to play some “baseball” in the cabin. It was amazing that he was able to catch so many!
Smoky Bear had a pool! We enjoyed playing in the pool although it was not very warm! So our stints were rather short but we had plenty of good times!
One of our first adventures in Tennessee was a new adventure for us. We drove through part of the Smoky Mountains National Park and saw some landmarks there like the Chimney Tops area on our way to Clingman’s Dome. A new adventure for us this year as we walked the paved, very steep, half-mile trail to the summit at 6,643 feet, which is the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Here is our family selfie at the top of Clingman’s Dome. Â It was a hazy day, with all of the forest fires in the area, so the views weren’t as great as we were hoping. But it was a fun adventure to the top!
