Christmas 2010 (in sepia)

Here are a few pictures from Christmas 2010.



I love Sam's expression in this photo


Sam on Christmas morning with her new Hex Bugs


Rocking the personalized duct tape scarf I received from Missi's sister Ella


The kids had to solve a puzzle that spelled out "Great Wolf Lodge," and represented a family trip we are taking there in February


Missi and the kids at the Farm on Christmas morning





One of the most fun parts of Christmas was the opportunity to do some target shooting with our good friend Jesse. Drew had been looking forward to this for a loooong time, so he was really excited when we surprised him with it on Christmas morning. Here is Drew shooting Jesse's .22 rifle.


Sam of course loved seeing Jesse and Nicole's daughter Taylor


Missi and Nicole


Here is Drew shooting Jesse's AR-15


Even Missi got into the act, and it was her very first time shooting a gun in her life.

The Great Rose Bowl & Disneyland Road Trip!

On Christmas morning we surprised the kids with a book that informed them that we would be taking them to Disneyland, Legoland, and the Rose Bowl! This was something that we had been thinking about ever since it became a possibility that our beloved Ducks might make it to the "Grandaddy of them All"

We packed up the 4Runner and left Portland on Sunday, December 27. Our first stop was in Roseburg where we were able to see our great friends the Newtons. They used to live in Seattle and have recently relocated to the 'burg (boo!) but we were really happy for a chance to see them for a few hours. The Newtons also have a really great dog named Jack.



We woke up at 3:00AM on Monday morning and drove all the way to Anaheim, where we checked into our hotel a few blocks from Disneyland. Here is Sam in her jammies in the car watching a movie.


On Tuesday we hit Disneyland and the kids loved it!










Wednesday we headed about an hour south to Legoland. While it was an experience we don't necessarily regret, we probably won't be going back to Legoland. It seemed to be focused on much younger kids, and after the thrill rides of Disneyland we were a bit "let down" with what Legoland had to offer.




This is a picture of Drew being forced to go on a ride that he wasn't all that excited about. As expected, he ended up loving it.


Look at that look of glee on Sam's face!


Drew with the Lego Indiana Jones


Legoland featured this huge and very impressive models of various cities around the globe made entirely out of Legos.

Thursday (New Year's Eve) we returned to Disneyland and fought huge crowds everywhere we went. The kids were troopers and we managed to make it to midnight, even though Sam was basically falling asleep in my arms.





















Friday we packed up and headed to Pasadena and the Rose Bowl! Even though the Ducks didn't get the result we had hoped for, we had a really good time. After the game we hit the road and pushed it hard all the way home to Seattle, driving through the night and finally getting home about 12:30PM on Saturday. We were exhausted but it was a great time!


Here is Missi setting up our little tailgater. It was great to see a bunch of friends from Eugene and Portland who had made it down to Pasadena for the game.














Here are the kids passed out in the back of the car.

A Great Christmas Gift!

My sister Jessica's family gave all of us these great gifts for Christmas - pine boards that had been "personalized" for each of us. The kids also received a painting set to decorate their boards. Here are a few pictures of the painting process and the finished products!







This was taken the morning after the painting, and you can tell that Sam had just climbed out of bed!

The Santa Train

While I am generally not really into promoting the whole Santa/presents/Rudolph/materialistic side of Christmas, we got some tickets for the Santa Train from a friend and took the kids. It was a pretty fun experience, but our enjoyment was severely tempered by the frigid temperatures. You board the train in a small town outside of Seattle, then ride the train a few miles down the track to another depot, get off and get cookies and cocoa, and visit Santa. It's a great idea, but the one problem is that the old restored train cars don't have any heat! And we just happened to go on a day where the temperature was probably 25-30 degrees! We tried to bundle up as best we could, but you'll notice that we all look pretty chilly in these pictures. The kids got to see Santa (Drew asked for binoculars, Sam asked for a Barbie), and we warmed up in the "kitchen car" with some cocoa and cookies. It was a fun, albeit VERY cold, experience.


Missi and I on the train trying to stay warm


Here is one of the old restored train cars. I love the old-style text across the top that says "Spokane, Portland, & Seattle"


With snow on the ground and scenes like this little pavillion just across from the train depot, the whole experience seemed very Norman Rockwellish.




Doesn't this picture of the train depot just look like something from a Rockwell or Thomas Kincade painting? Very "Americana."