Sunday, March 31, 2013

Happy Easter

Happy Easter!  We hope you had a wonderful one!

We started our Easter weekend off at Funderland for a little egg hunt fun.  While we were waiting, everyone had a terrific time sliding down the Old Woman and the Shoe slide.

 




Afterwards, we had to take a cruise around the crooked mile. 


Amanda and Will were VERY excited to have their picture taken with the Easter Bunny.


Natalie was not very excited about that idea at all.  She buried her face in mom instead!


We did a little more sliding.
 
 
 


And a little craft.


Will and Amanda were ecstatic to run into Humpty Dumpty.  This was my favorite part of the day because Will called him Humpty Da Dumpty the whole time! 
 


And then we were FINALLY ready to collect some Easter eggs.


Natalie, Amanda and Will wait patiently by the sidelines.


They collected their eggs and then turned them in for a prize.  Here they are with Dad showing off their new treasure.


On the way back to the car, we stopped for a little hanging action.  Those girls LOVE the monkey bars!
 
 
 
 
 
Posted by Picasa
 
 
 
 


After we got home, we had great fun coloring Easter eggs.
 


Everyone went to sleep with great anticipation.  There was excitement during the night as we had the biggest thunder storm during the night.  We were all afraid that the great bunny would not make it to our house.  But he did! 


I think Amanda was excited when she saw her basket!
 




Will was excited about his light up pillow pet.


So much so, that he gave it a giant kiss!
 


He was also quite excited about all of the candy!


And his new Iron Man shirt.


The girls liked their butterfly shirts too.


Natalie loves her new unicorn.
 


And the kids were very excited to see what the secret Easter bunny left for them on the front porch.  A big thank you to the secret Easter bunny! 
 
Posted by Picasa
>

Sunday, March 3, 2013

A Sweet Sixteen for Bodega Bay

 We apologize for our delinquency in posting to the blog.  Unfortunately, our less computer crashed and we have not had anywhere to download photos.  We will soon be transitioning to a new operating system so please bear with us as we try to recover all our old photos and learn the new system.

As tradition has it, the Bodega Bay clan made their 16th annual visit this year.  The trip began as a couples weekend getaway, but now the kids far outnumber the adults!  Below, are some wonderful photos of our trip!  Many thanks to Stephanie for being the weekend photographer as we accidentally ran out of the house without our camera.  

Natalie, Amanda, Ali, Addie and Dempsey enjoy the wonderful morning weather outside our patio facing the golf course and ocean.



Will carefully inspects the gas grill with a brush in hand. 



The girls far outnumbered the boys, so there were lots of girly activities over the weekend, such as hair braiding.  Below, Dempsey braids Natalie's hair. 


Now, Amanda's turn.



As the kids began to out number the adults, a new tradition was formed several years ago.  One weekend day is the day for the "boys" to get out and enjoy a round of golf.  On the other day, the "girls" enjoy a day at the spa, a trip to the local bread company and some wine tasting.  This year, the weather was phenomenal -- it was very warm and sunny!  So, on the boys day out, all of the moms and kids took a great hike to the beach through Pinnacle Gulch.



Will lost his feet while at the beach, and he is waiting here for Mom to bring them back!



The trail is very windy through trees, rocks and shrubbery, just perfect for our little explorers.


The Pacific Ocean is very cold, but the kids were brave enough to get their feet wet.



A picnic on the beach, what could be nicer!


Well, maybe building sand castles!



Or maybe, collecting sea shells.  Natalie shows off her gems!


Or even, flying kites!



Kite flying was such a hit this year, it migrated up from the beach to our back yard next to the golf course.  Here, "Aunt" Stephanie helps Natalie let out some string.


Natalie took to Stephanie very quickly, and was always having her play games and assist with arts and crafts activities.


Here is a great photo of Mom and Will watching the kite flying. If you hold the picture upside down, Will then has a smile. 



Amanda was also a excellent kite flyer.  Her kite went clear up to the clouds to shoo them away.


Dinner time!  Spaghetti and meatballs were a hit with all the kids.  Their faces really show how much they enjoyed the food.




Ah, so beautiful!  We can't wait until next year!!