Rewind: Disneyland...A Very Long Post :)

Whew! I've been MIA lately... life has been busy; lots going on with our family! So, now I'm backing up and catching up...

Thanks to budget cuts... we now have a Thanksgiving Break. (Fortunately or unfortunately?) We decided to take advantage of the time and take the girls to Disneyland. Merilyn was the perfect age for the adventure! Everything was so magical - it was delightful watching her.

Flying to California - That was a big part of the adventure! Especially since Trav forgot to take his pocket knives (yes... more than one!) out of his backpack...

Day 1: We actually didn't go to Disney this day. It was raining, so we walked down to a theater near our condo. We watched Puss in Boots in 3D. Later that night we made a spaghetti dinner and had everyone join us in our room.

Day 2: We hit the park today! It was a beautiful, sunny day.

Ali and Natalie needed a little convincing that they weren't too old, nor too cool, to get on the carousel ride. Thank you, Gramma, for that little nudge. I'm sure they ended up enjoying it after all... :)

After lunch, Ali and Natalie went with the Daddies on the "big kid" rides, while Casey and I took Meri and Johnna on Dumbo, the Casey Jr. train, and more carousel time.

That night we came back for the Holiday parade. So cool!

The next day we took a break from the park and went putt putt golfing. It was another beautiful day! We enjoyed playing, and pizza after. Then it was back to the room for naps before hitting the park for the evening.

Disney California
One of the days (I've lost track of which one) we spent time over on the California side. We took the girls on the Tower of Terror... Ali loved it, (which makes Travis happy!) however, Merilyn asked if we could go home as soon as we got off... and please promise that we won't be doing it again!

Here I am showing Mer how much "fun" we were having!

We stood in line for.ever for the new Buzz and Woody 3D lazer-blaster ride. The girls loved it though, so I guess it was worth the wait.

Thanksgiving Day

Our family went into the park early hoping to get on The Pirates of the Caribbean ride. (It still wasn't open!) But, we got to meet Minnie Mouse and Pinocchio, so the girls were happy. :)

From there we met everyone over at Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast. It was such good food! :) Although, the girls were more interested in meeting all of the characters.

After breakfast, we went back in and hit Autotopia. Ali was thrilled to have her own license! :) I rode with Mer... and I think I still have a little whiplash!

We went to Mike's daughter's house for Thanksgiving dinner and football, of course! We had a great time. Thank you, Helen!

After dinner we went back to Disney - again. We were set to make the most out of our 3-day pass! We took several more turns on the rides, and snuggled in for the Fantasia water+lazer-light show. It was awesome! By this time The Pirates ride was finally open, so we jumped on that! Then on to the Jungle Cruise, (at night, all by ourselves... it was so cool!) and finally to the Tiki Room. We closed down the park! :)

It was an amazing, fun... memorable trip.

Bring on Christmas!

A Christmas story for each night of December.

The stockings are hung by the chimney with care.

Gifts are made for IAs and parent helpers.

Cookies and treats are made for the girls' teachers.

We are ready!

Christmas Programs

Ali had her program first... it was actually still November when her class performed. In fact... it completely snuck up on me! (So, thank you Gramma, for helping her get a beautiful dress... the night before... oops!)
By the time I got there (early, even!) the auditorium was packed. Our seats weren't too close to the stage, therefore, the pictures of the performance were not great.

Merilyn's program came next. She was right in the front row, and our seats were closer, so the photos for her performance are much better! She was a bit of a cheeseball... whenever she saw the camera, she either smiled, posed, or hammed it up.

Fashion Sense?

Or not...? Merilyn likes to change her outfit several times a day. Two things never change, however, lipstick and hair bows. It seems her new favorite accessory - that seems to go with everything - her cowgirl vest (from Halloween).

Another Beaver Game!

We went to see Stanford trample the Beavs... yes, we were prepared for the worst! It was a very rainy and cold day! We weren't prepared for it to be so cold, so Trav and I walked up to the bookstore to get gloves and hats.

After eating and playing at the camper, we all headed out to the stadium.

We had a great day... and we managed to stay warm and fairly dry. (Thank goodness our seats were undercover! The diehards that were in the open were soaked!!) The game was actually pretty good... until the 3rd quarter. What is it about the second half that brings the Beavs down?! It was okay though, because Merilyn fell asleep in my lap for the second half, so I stayed nice and toasty warm while the game fell apart.

Happy Halloween!

Merilyn and Daddy picked out our pumpkins at the field trip to the pumpkin patch. Grandma Sandy got to go along with them this year! She'll probably do more amazing things with her pumpkins... like make delicious pies! (Ours will stay on the porch until December...)

Thank you Gramma Barb for making Meri's costume! It was exactly what she had hoped for! She said she was Jessie from Toy Story, but she didn't really want to have the "Jessie-looking" outfit. She's got to have her own spin on things! :) Ali had been wanting to be a pirate since the summer. (She said her idea came because she loves the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland.)

Casey and her family came over for Mom's spaghetti and trick-or-treating through the neighborhood. This year, Charlotte got to join in on the fun! I thought she might make it to 1-2 houses and then go back with Gramma. But, no! She wanted to go everywhere and do everything that the big girls were doing. In fact, when Casey said it was time to go back, little Charlie-Belle was not happy! Gramma was able to convince her to come inside when she brought out the candy...

We can always count on the daddies to not miss a chance to get in on the action... a country hick and a dog catcher. I came home from work and saw a strange man carving a pumpkin on our back porch. It took me several minutes to figure out it was my husband! With the hat on, and his head down, I truly didn't recognize him! Great costume, pa!

Junie B Jones!

Mom found tickets to Junie B Jones... Jingle Bells, Batman Smells! The girls loved it!! We started our day with a wonderful breakfast at Sam's. The girls love a good buffet!

After breakfast, we went to the NW Children's Theater for the performance.

So cute!

After the show, the girls got to meet the actors, and had them sign their programs. Ali brought the book along, and asked all of the characters to sign that!

Merilyn with Junie B Jones!

Ali and Meri with May... Junie's lifelong "enemy"!

The girls with Junie B's "stuffed" elephant.

Of course, after the performance, the girls were starving. Hah! So, we stopped by Red Robin for a quick snack... except for Ali and Natalie, who ordered full-on meals! (Growing girls!?)