We headed over to the St. Regis Tree Lighting for a little evening jaunt.
It was fun as I ran into an old coworker, Windy form the Mantage.
And then we met up with the Hemeons and Tackys.
Free Hot Chocolate and goodies, a warm fireplace, and fun friends…what more could you ask for?
I love that Scout is loving to learn Catan!
And Reese is a saint that he sits through these really slow games!
The cousins and I headed down to Encinitas Beach to meet up with the Brockbanks.
I am not a major lover of the beach, but this was really fun.
Mostly because there was a huge sand burm that we rented boogie boards to surf down.
Scout was a natural.
Meanwhile Navy was filling and emptying buckets like a meticulous master.
And Dash was Chip Clipping his nose.
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I don’t know why I don’t have any pictures of the cousins…but it was a really fun day with everyone!
There is no secret that the day the cousins and we take our Santa pictures, might be my second favorite night of the year — right behind Christmas Eve.
This year it was a mad rush to get to Santa, because we knew he left at 8:30, and we were still getting ready at home at 8:00. Good thing the people at the Santa station love us, and always are so nice to us. I have been told in years past that our group of hooligans are their favorite group each year.
That being said, I think the pics turned out cute.
Thank goodness for an early Christmas gift from Grandma of darling matching PJs!
Perfect for a Santa pic!
Brett went with the pastel theme which I also thought was darling.
You’ve got to love the baby and Santa pics!
And the Sissies and Santa.
And the cousin girls.
But the toddler boy whispering into Santa’s ear, just might be the winner.
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Then the chaos began.
Might I add….this started when all of the kids were younger, and it really was chaotic with all of them. But now it has evolved into, “it is a tradition for every rule to fly out the window, and we get to be crazy without our moms laying down the toughest of laws.”
We were running out the door so quickly, and I was driving my mom’s car, which meant I left a stroller behind.
THANK GOODNESS for these little cars that cruise the mall for forgetful moms like me!
Then it was off to do a little shoe shopping, where my kids found black nylons that transformed them into crazy faces.
After shoes, we headed over to the playground where four other cousins joined us.
Calin, Skilly, Trey and Doey left crank-calling at home to be with us on the famous” close-down-the-mall” night.
The kids played and played.
Pips loved her freedom.
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Our time at the playground wasn’t as long as usual, because we got to the mall so late. But about an hour after the playground, many anxious boys were begging to go on to our next adventure.
So off we all went.
You know the drill.
The humiliating drill.
After the two above pictures (which all occurred in less than five minutes) I called it a night.
Good thing — because about 30 seconds later, the Security Guard on the people mover showed up.
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We slowly walked out, as the kids retold stories from the night.
They thought they were all so cool!
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And 10:45pm, just as we were going to all pack in our cars, we passed by Cheesecake Factory.
I jokingly said, “Hey….we would be stupid to take all of these hungry kids home to just mess up the kitchen.”
Then Brett said, “I agree….table for 17 please!”
After an hour of eating, three kids asleep, Pippi eating like a trash disposal, and the cousins laughing an plotting for nest year….we really called it a night!
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Until next year!
We always have a good time with the cousins.
But our Pranksgiving this year might be one of our best times yet.
It involved a little crank calling about free turkeys.
A few crank calls to the cousin’s friends.
And the best crank call yet…to Bryan, the future father-in-law.
Micah was hilarious. We were dying at his abilities.
I am glad to report that Bryan stood up for his ginger son, and his abilities to be a great future husband to Dayna.
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Happy Pranksgiving!
Mix heavy playing hours with light sleeping hours, and this is the face we get.
At this time of the year, I am REALLY thankful for after-the-cousins-leave-naps!
There’s nothing quite like a good pick-up game of cousin football.
Which even included some sideline fans!
And some nearby park goers who also cheered every once in a while.
As usual, we headed down to the harbor to check out the Turkey Trot.
And this time, Seth told his boys that whomever could beat Micah in the 5K, would get $100.
Check out all of these tired runner.
But it was worth the exhaustion, because Gabe, Christian and Spank won $100.
(Maybe Covey did also?)
Poor Seth didn’t know that Micah isn’t in his best shape at the moment.
Scout ran the whole 5K for the second year in a row.
But when he was bummed that he didn’t get the $100, Micah said if he could beat a kid that was dressed up as “Flash” in the kid’s race, he would get $100. And I’m proud to report that he is $100 richer after that kid run.
And Navy was escorted by Seth, although she bowed out half way through.
These spectators got the award for being the cutest.
We saw Bree, Alexa and Grandma down there which was really fun — especially for Dash.
Check out this cone head!
After we got home, we all got to working on our Thanksgiving dinner.
I love seeing a young boy working!
Then there was some competing against Papa.
Not many could beat his 40 push ups.
But Papa couldn’t hang with this crowd on the one-foot balance.
Then we headed over to Auntie Gails for some tasty food.
You’ve got to love this pic of the old and young.
Poor Alexa probably feels like crazy-town has paid her a visit after we see her, but my kids adore her in on their antics.
We didn’t get a group shot this year, but we got some good ones of Grandma and the orphans — AKA my poorly-dressed/manicured kids.
And finally, it was full circle when we headed back home for round two of tasty food!
I am always surprised and impressed by how well Navy and Rose get along.
They are darling together.
As soon as they get together, the first thing on their agenda is art.
They color, draw, and paint all day long.
I love to see their finished products.
I was especially excited to see this masterpiece when I went outside to leave in my car.
Rose with fairy wings.
And big-bow Navy.
You can imagine why I stopped Dash, cold in his tracks, to wash his hands.
Just a little outdoor fun, mixed with poorly repaved streets to make outdoor fun a little less fun.
At least for me….because I am pretty sure my kids don’t even care.
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