Knee Deep in the Water Somewhere

This is one of our new favorite songs and exactly what we couldn't wait to do in California. Lucky for us it was 80 degrees the day we headed to the beach, so we could actually get in the water and soak in the sun. That was heavenly.

We started the day doing some whale-watching at Point Vicente.  We saw a grey whale passing by that blew about 3 times.   

 Eleanor was really hoping to spot a dolphin.  She even wore her dolphin shirt for good luck, but the whale was the best we could do.

 It was great to watch the "professional" whale watchers who camp out there.  They were serious! Their board said over 500 grey whales passed by there this season!

We love the palm trees in California!  I guess they just seem so exotic to us mountain people.  I didn't do that much better at getting in pictures on this trip, but at least we got a couple family shots. 

From Point Vicente we headed down the Pacific Coast Highway to Seal Beach.  We stopped to buy some fresh strawberries from a roadside stand - ah, heaven.  That and some In and Out made a great beach picnic. 

This was Katie's first time at a beach and she just lived it up.  What kid doesn't love a sandbox of that size?! Eleanor and Gavin stayed in the water together looking for shells and enjoying the waves.

 After Seal Beach we kept going down to Newport Beach.  There were so many surfers out!  It was cool to watch them. 

 These girls had so much fun at the beach that they literally couldn't decide if they wanted another day at Disneyland, or to go back to the beach again!  It was a blissful day and a fabulous trip. 

We ended up doing one more day at Disneyland and then flew home.  Short and sweet, and just what we needed! The girls are still talking about it all the time - and hopefully they will for the next 4 years!

Princesses on the Loose

Our second full day at Disneyland was a blast.  We started with the Character Breakfast at the Plaza Inn - I just love how beautiful that place is. 

I think the girls are in a perfect state of bliss here.  All you can eat breakfast (especially strawberries) and Minnie Mouse together!!

Gavin captured this awesome moment when Captain Hook came over.  Katie was terrified of him and buried her head the whole time he was there.  Hilarious. 

 Thanks to Grandma for new princess dresses for Christmas, the girls were dressed and ready to meet as many princesses as they could.  Eleanor loved Rapunzel with that amazing hair and Katie was very partial to her twin, Snow White. 

 We headed over to California Adventure and our favorite spot - Flik's Fun Fair.  I just love all the creative details they put in here! Amazing what you can do with an unlimited budget and creativity.

Mr. Incredible posed just for us!  I'm still trying to talk Gavin into being him for Halloween...

Eleanor got to dance with Phineas and Ferb and the Fireside Girls!  She had so much fun learning all the dances to the familiar songs from the show.

Escape to California

Our last Disney trip was four years ago over Leap Day.  We thought that would be a fun tradition to keep, but Leap Day is getting a bit too close to baby day for us, so we moved our trip up to January.  The girls were so excited - or "encited" as Katie kept saying. 

Even before we got to Disneyland, that first day was about the most exciting thing Katie's ever experienced.  She loved riding a bus to the airport, train at the airport, escalator, moving sidewalk and then flying in an airplane for the first time. 

I rode most everything, but the Tea Cups were past my limit.

Pluto was the first character the girls met this time.  Katie just squeezed him and didn't want to let go, it was so sweet.  Eleanor loved being in charge of the autograph book. 

Gavin was able to convince Eleanor to go on all the roller coasters with him - this was their first. 

Katie had a very clear sense of which characters were nice and which ones she didn't want anything to do with.  Tinkerbell was a huge hit, but she wouldn't even stand next to Vidia because she was a mean fairy. 

We really enjoyed the Soundsational Parade.  Thank heavens for the wheelchair we borrowed for a place to sit!

Katie never made it back to the hotel (right across the street) awake.  Both girls were too worn out to even eat dinner most every night!  This picture is about 8:00. 

Graham Cracker Construction

Every year, for as long as I can remember, my family always makes Graham Cracker houses at Christmas time.  Since I was the host, I had the big job of making the perfect frosting to stick everything together. 

Eleanor is getting better each year.  She added lots of cute embellishments to her house this year. 

Grandma made the adorable wagon and even came prepared with her own set of mini lights to decorate it!

Grandpa's bird house was awesome.

 I went for some charming row houses this year.  Loved the wafer-cooking "siding". 

 Matt had grand plans for his Parthenon and did pretty well getting as much as possible done before he had to hop on a flight back home.  The rest was left in ruins...
Gavin was busy constructing his Christmas present, so he had to take a pass this year.  That means we expect great things next year!

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

We enjoyed a beautiful Christmas morning together.  I love seeing the kids come out together when they hear the Christmas music.  This might be the last year we get them both in footie pajamas. :)

 The first thing Katie saw was this sucker from Grandma and Grandpa.  The presents could have stopped right there for her and she would have been fine.  That girl is a sucker for suckers, yes, I couldn't help it.

 I love how sweet these two are about giving gifts to each other.  Katie knew exactly what she wanted to get for Eleanor and after we were lucky to find it - she promptly told Eleanor precisely what it was.  She still couldn't wait to "surprise" her with her gift.  Eleanor made Katie a little paintbrush holder for her watercolor brushes and got her new paints.  That is Katie's super favorite past time.  Seeing how much they love each other just melts my heart!

 Katie did a little better keeping her gift to Dad a surprise.  She held it in ... right up until this moment when she hands him his gift and says, "You can open your surprise - it's a Dr. Seuss shirt." Hilarious!

 Eleanor didn't ask Santa for anything.  She doesn't really play with toys that often, so figuring out the perfect gift for her was hard.  We decided on her own set of scriptures with her name on them.  I wasn't sure what her reaction would be, but this look was genuine.  It really was her favorite gift.  I'm so glad.  Especially when she told me that was what she was secretly hoping for.  Whew! 

We enjoyed having a leisurely Christmas morning followed by a great church service.  And Christmas dinner was so fantastic, I'm still thinking about it.  The kids felt incredibly spoiled by everyone's generosity.  There was lots of love for all our family, friends, and most of all our Savior whose birth we celebrated!

Christmas Eve

It was a first for us to host family at our house for Christmas!  We were so excited to have a new blanket of snow to make everything beautiful.  Once Katie discovered eating the white stuff she didn't stop.  I think it's her new favorite food.

 It was too powdery to stick together, but Eleanor and Katie managed to make some cute snow blobs. 

 Of course, time with cousins was a huge highlight!  Lilly usually prefers to play with Eleanor, but since she was unavailable - she and Katie had some sweet bonding moments together. 

Our nephew Tyler is just the cutest thing. 

 We started a hair-braiding party and pretty soon everyone was sporting them - even Tyler, who has some spectacular locks for a 10 month old.

 Our efforts at a Nativity presentation were somewhat laughable - but hey, we were having fun.  Eleanor was the angel, Katie was a wise man (she presented her balloon gift on bended knee), Lilly was Mary. 

 Matt, the shepherd, very closely watching his flock by night. 

The kids all enjoyed getting a special video from Santa that highlighted something specific they were working on this year.  Luckily, they were all on the nice list, so there was a lot of anticipation going to bed Christmas Eve.