Christmas photo shoot. . .

I realized that we usually have quite a few occasions for the kids to get dressed up/have a photo op  each holiday season.  We usually go see Santa, Zoo Lights, Ixtapa for Kessi holiday dinner, church pageant, and Christmas mass.  This year, we were 0 for 6!  I always enjoy all of those activities, but didn't miss them too much.  I think these days it's such a different mindset, that we're more used to switching gears. We watched more holiday movies, and enjoyed the slow, coziness of the season.

 It was December 20th, though, when I realized that I did want the kids to use some of there nice dress-up clothes that we have tucked away in a bag to get dressed up for a picture, or in this case, 10 pictures:). 

 

I saw this on Etsy and thought it was a cute idea for the year with no in person Santa:), so paid $4 and bought the template! 

December. . . .

We started decorating a week earlier than usual this year! We still didn't get our tree until after Thanksgiving.  Pat took some of the kids and cut our tree down just up the road from our house. He thought it was fine to do that, but I'm pretty sure it was illegal:).  They got a great one, though! We're used to our little Charlie Brown trees, which we always grow to love:), but this was a fun big one! And it was fun to decorate in our new house!

One of the things I liked doing this Christmas is putting up a "Giving Tree".  It was a felt tree with pockets for each day of December.  Each day, the kids would read what they either got to do for someone else, or a fun thing to do as a family, or both! 

Beautiful night for a walk down the hill! 

Kate made her own hat for hat day.  Annie received a blinking lights one from her teacher! 

Enjoying the beautiful sunrise!! 

Our previous neighbor, Annette, has ovarian cancer.  There was a cancer fundraiser selling shirts with her name on the back, so we bought some to support her! 

Making ornaments! 

 

Grace is 11!

Grace turned 11! Every year Grace has a birthday, I think that she already seemed the age she turns for a couple years:).  When people say, "Can you believe she is already (insert age)?" I always think to myself that she has always seemed at least a year older than she really is:).  But this year, 11 seemed just right! We had a fun day celebrating her! It was the first day of their Christmas break, so it already felt like a great day! 

Kate and Will organized a treasure hunt with clues around the house that led to presents.  Her present of nerf guns from them was the last clue:). 

COVID birthday visit to Grandma Reen and Papa Bill's! 

Fun outdoor celebrations with cousins and friends the weekend before her birthday! Her cousins came over on a Friday night to play outside and have burgers! 

And the next day, Grace wanted to play flag football with her a few friends at the park! We lucked out to have a beautiful sunny day! 

Thanksgiving

As with most things COVID, our Thanksgiving was different this year. It was our year to celebrate with the Kessi family.  Instead of a large gathering, we had a pie night at Bobby and Carrie's with Bill and Maureen to celebrate with them, and quarantined for a week so we could hang out with Bobby and Carrie at their beach house.  It was really fun to hang out with Bobby and Carrie, and the kids had so much fun together!  We rented wetsuits for the kids so they could go crabbing and paddle boarding in the water near their house.  

              

 

Halloween!

We had a different Halloween this year as we didn't do the traditional  trick or treating, but instead the kids did a treasure hunt with their cousins.  The kids loved it, and I was happy they enjoyed it but missed the energy of walking around our neighborhood and seeing everyone in the community out!

Will was an ape, Grace, a wolf, Leo and Leopard, Annie a witch, and Kate a tennis player. I'm grateful for our bin of dress up clothes which is where they mostly found their costumes! 

We dump our our costumes around October 1st, and they have fun dressing up in all the costumes, and know they can find something to wear in there! 

We stopped by a few neighbors' houses to say hi and pick up treats they had for the kids! It was fun to be back in our old neighborhood! 

They had fun doing the treasure hunt with their cousins!! 

The loot was a little smaller, but I was surprised how much they still got!! 

They had so much fun organizing all of it! 

Showing their pumpkins after the pumpkin carving party! 

I made everyone go for a walk because it was so beautiful out!! 

They had a cupcake decorating competition.  Pat was the judge, and Grace won!