Christmas

The Bible Study group I joined for the 2013-2014 school year had a very fancy Christmas tea, just the sort you'd expect from Newport Beach. 

I accompanied Jilly's first grade class to a production of The Nutcracker, and bought Ben and Gordon tickets so they could see it at the same theater at UCI. Evelyn had seen it in a previous year. Everyone enjoyed it. 

Gordon loved riding the bus with Dad. 

The University Hills ward Christmas Party. Jilly was afraid of Santa again. 

Gordon using the box Grandma and Grandpa Cows shipped their Christmas gifts in as his seat to watch "Whit Christmas." The kids have loved this movie ever since they were very small. 

Decorating the gingerbread house that Grandma Chickens sent us. 

Christmas Eve picture with our skinny tree. Uncle Dan spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with us. 

Enjoying their new set of paints. 

And a contract that Mom and Dad need to remember as the kids become teenagers. Mom told the kids the story of how when she was 10 or 11 she told Grandma and Grandpa Cows she wouldn't be a bad teenager and they wrote up a contract and had her sign it. Mom did remember as a teenager that she had signed it, and that helped her remember to not be a naughty teenager. 

Merry Christmas From Lego Santa and Gordon

More to come soon.

Gordon and others

Gordon loved Superheroes and Legos at this age. He still struggled with how to actually play with Legos, but loved visiting the Lego store with Dad and looking at the sets. Dad didn't mind helping him put them together one bit. 

Dad and Gordon being silly with a new camera app. Gordon was four years old here, and finally starting to sleep completely through the night except for needing to use the bathroom some nights. Mom was thrilled! 

The girls wanted to make cupcakes and frosting and Gordon got to frost his own, which he immediately ate. The blue fingernail polish is a nice touch. 

In his favorite pair of pajamas and coordinated accessories. 

Gordon took a tumbling class and loved it. He could literally run circles around the rest of the kids and never got tired. 

Playing in a container of flour. This provided so much mess entertainment!

Evelyn built this monkey/toy fort of sorts. Gordon even at a banana to complete his outfit. 

Another superhero treasure for the superhero-loving kid. He also loved watching Dad play Lego Superhero video games. 

Mom and Gordon would go shopping at Target and he always wanted to sit on the big red balls. I don't know if it had anything to do with the bouncy balls on the Wipeout game show, but he liked to perch on them. 

For months, his favorite ride at Disneyland was the Monorail. He eventually branched out to California Screamin' and Grizzly Mountain River Rapids.  

Winter in California

Bike rides in the cooler weather are nice. 

Visits to the beach were much less crowded, though it was too cold for swimming. 

The kids were content to play in the sand, but they really wanted to wear their swimsuits and get in the water.  

Visiting the beach is free therapy. 

Winter is also when we frequent the playgrounds that typically fry during the warmer months due to their lack of shade. 

Disneyland is beautiful during the holidays and much cooler, thankfully. 

Coming into Tomorrowland 

Gordon loved the Buzz Lightyear ride in Tomorrowland. 

It might be winter, but you can still try a water slide for the first time. Peter and Melinda Andersen spent a few days at one of the Disneyland Hotels and invited us one afternoon for swimming. 

Winter also means clear and cool sunsets. Fashion Island is silhouetted against the sun. 

Halloween and Jilly's Birthday

 I told Evelyn to document the fact that I, me, myself, was carving these pumpkins instead of the children who begged to buy carving pumpkins. They ran around on the playground instead. 

From the left, Princess Leia, a princess, and Batman. 

 Mommy dressed up too, at the girls' request. 

 Funny cut-out pictures at a local Halloween festival. 

 The finished product - the glow sticks were kind of cool. I still prefer candles though. 

 One afternoon trip to Disneyland and the teacup ride. 

 Another family bike ride in which Jill decided a "nap" was in order and Gordon agreed. 

 Jilly turned seven at the beginning of November, and requested cheesecake and strawberries for her dessert. A girl after her parents' hearts. 

 She got Legos for her birthday and worked with Evelyn to get them together. 

 We went to California Adventure the next day in honor of her birthday and had lots of fun. She specifically requested to ride California Screamin'. She always looks afraid in the pictures, but loves this ride. 

This handsome man is always behind the camera. So here he is in front of the camera. 

10th Anniversary

We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary in October and decided to make a Disneyland date out of it. It'll probably be the only anniversary we can spend there. On the Christmas break following our wedding ten years ago, we came to SoCal and went to Disneyland. It was my first time. And it only cost $63 to get into the park. It seems like a hot deal now!

The only food we bought on that first Disneyland trip was a bowl of clam chowder in New Orleans Square. We honored that little memory by getting another bowl on this date. 

California Adventure's Cars Land. 

In line for the Cars ride. The line was long as usual, but it was fun to stand in line together and not worry about trying to keep the whining and Gordon in check. 

I went on the roller coaster for the first time on this date. I was terrified at first, but now I think it is one of the funnest rides in the two parks. 

We walked around Downtown Disney for a bit and stopped by the Lego Store. We'd watched 'The Avengers' the previous night and had fun with this guy at the Lego store. 

Ben brought home flowers for me, along with some 'Dang' brand root beer. I don't think he's ever forgotten my birthday or anniversary. I'm actually the one prone to forget those milestones. Ten years has changed us, but all for the better. Getting older can't be too bad when I've got someone this good to grow old with.