Thanksgiving: a birthday?

Thanksgiving this year, was also our little man's birthday!  We celebrated the holidays with my father's family in California.  Thanksgiving was at Uncle Scott's house, and he and Kim did a fantastic job!  A lot more than I had first expected attended: Grandma Anne, Scott and family, Dad and Mom, Riley and family, us, Tracie and family, and Stephanie with her new husband.  It was great getting to spend time with everyone!

Chilling with the grandparents.

Our little man.

The two of us (an actual picture of me).

Scouting the Black Friday ads.

From the left: Shayla, Jessica, Kim, and Scott.

Anna, Adella, and Claire (Tracie's daughter).

Zack couldn't even make it to dinner without a nap, and we had to start without him.

Adella and Johnny sitting at their table (Tracie's son).

The set up!

Kim had a fantastic idea to give the kids each a present before dinner and tell them they could only open it if they sat at the table and ate their dinner.  I think Adella was the only one who had a hard focusing on her plate.

After dinner we broke out the birthday fun, and celebrated the first year of Zack's life!

Our party theme was Little Big Man.  His cake went through a battle with cellophane even with our precautions. 

Because it was Thanksgiving, I knew everyone would be more interested in eating pie and dinner than cake.  Instead of the regular cake, I decided to only make goodie bags with cookies for them to eat later.

Zack was dressed up in his party hat for a moment to take a few pictures before he was allowed to dive into the cake. 

He was a bit frustrated with his clothes being removed and let us know how he was not going to wait patiently on his birthday.

Had to help him quickly because he just stared at the cake.



When it comes to food, and especially treats, Zack doesn't have to be told twice how tasty it is. 

 

It was slow and go for the destruction of his cake, but he sure enjoyed every bite.



Cheese! (one of his words)

Next to the opening of the presents.

What is this?

 

Zack likes what he found inside of the wrapping paper.

He was very excited about the Little People plane he got from Tracie and family.  He loves Little People.

Still not too sure what to do with this...

Everyone wanted to play with the new toys...

...even daddy.

He looks so dapper in his cute birthday outfit from Grandma!

Marine Wildlife: Surprising

During the vacation, we had the opportunity of staying at a beach house situated, literally, right in front of the HSU Marine Laboratory.  So for fun, we took the kids over to look at some of the fish.  They are all bundled up so nicely because of the cold rainy weather.

Looking at the aquariums in the laboratory with Anna (pink jacket).

Sitting on the railing (which I noticed on the way out was a no-no).

Pointing out the fishes.

Not sure what this little exhibit was about...

Sleepy head resting on daddy.

Adella and Anna were so cute together.

Getting to touch some wildlife. 

There were also anemones in the touch tanks out back.  We don't have any pictures of that, but both Adella and Zane were shocked at how they would latch on and pulled away quickly. 

California Trip: the trip without Thanksgiving or Birthday included

November has been an ultra busy month for us with travel and vacation... how bad could that be, right!  We did the very same trip to California two years ago when Adella was only eight months old.  This time was a bit different because of my cousin Stephanie Creps having her wedding on November 10th.  Mom and I decided we had time and should attend this special day for Stephanie and Kieth.  We took the trip in two days again  so the kids wouldn't have to sit in the car for fifteen straight hours. 

Stephanie invited us to the rehearsal dinner, which only mom and I went to with Grandma Anne. 

We came home to this:

Zacky was getting a little sick at this point and was so hot, they couldn't put him to sleep with his sleeper on because he was so hot. 

The next day was the wedding and it was wonderful!  We met up with Scott, Kim, Shayla, and Jessica for the ceremony.  Zack was a bit of a handful because he didn't feel well, but that did not dampen Adella's attitude.  Stephanie looked gorgeous and the rest of the company was good lookin' too! 

Waiting for the ceremony.

Get a good shot of the back of Steph's dress and Kieth.

Adella thought Steph was a princess... that's what a wedding dress should make us feel like right?

Adella with Claire, her second cousin.  She loved her.  Claire was the flower girl.

Cutting the cake!

After the wedding, we pretty much had all the time in the world.  We just spent quality time with Grandma Anne and helped her get lunches ready for Scott and his two deck-hands.  We had a lot of time to talk after the kids went to bed, which has always been my favorite way to spend the evenings at Grandma's house.

Waking Grandma Creps up in the morning was always funny.  Adella had a creepy way of standing over her and staring at her until she woke up.  Then Zack would join in and they'd play on the air mattress for a little while with Sammie (Grandma's dog) too. 

We had to get creative to keep the kids entertained and Grandma pulled out her fabric scraps.

Zack being Zack.

Adella spent a good deal of time coloring at the desk in Grandma's living room.  Zack wouldn't be too far off, because he likes to be around his sister. 

One of the greatest parts of the trip was when Zane joined us!  It had been a long ten days without him, and we were thrilled to have him with us for the rest of our vacation. 



This picture was taken from the Beach house we stayed in when Zane, Grandpa Creps, and Riley and Treesa joined us. We had a great time here!  It's crazy how calming it can be to stare at the unsettled ocean from a quiet, comfy living room.


The beach is always fun to see when we go to California.  The first few days at the beach house were gloomy, rainy, and windy.  Personally, I enjoy this weather, but we were really fortunate to have a couple of absolutely gorgeous days, perfect for beach going. 

Daddy and the kids enjoying the waves.  Obviously it was chilly that morning.  We got up before everyone else and the day was so clear and perfect, we had to get out as soon as possible to enjoy the day; the only problem was the lingering chill. 

Zacky on the rock!

Adella on the rock!

We also walked down the pier in Trinadad.  We could see it from the kitchen window of the beach house, and at night, it was lit up like a runway.

Zack on the pier.