Winter zoo trip

Look at our 2 big kids riding the "horsies" all by themselves! (actually, Cora was accompanied, don't worried. We took this picture after the ride was over.) We spent a chilly morning at the zoo over the long Thanksgiving weekend. It was very un-crowded and we enjoyed a leisurely walk through some exhibits we don't often go to see. The highlight was feeding the birds: I think they were a bit hungry due to the lack of visitors that day.

Larson was a bit skeptical at first about whether he actually wanted to try feeding the birds himself, but decided to try it out and thought it was pretty cool!

We had such a lovely 4-day weekend. No call, no deadlines hanging over our heads, no shopping. Just a few days with enough activity to enjoy ourselves and enough rest to feel rejuvenated - not to mention good food! Ahh, wouldn't it be great if every weekend was like that? :)

We give thanks

For the first time in many years, we gathered with family on Thanksgiving. Considering the chaos of having 4 small children to run after, my sister and I felt pretty proud that we actually got edible food on the table. Nothing fancy, just the Thanksgiving essentials: turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, mashed potatoes, salad, green beans and pumpkin pie.

When the day after Thanksgiving arrived with sunshine and very few clouds, we decided to head to the park rather than doorbust for bargains.

A walk in the park on Thanksgiving 2008:

And the same walk in 2009:

This year we have much to be thankful for. Health, happiness, employment, wonderful friends and family. We humbly give thanks for these riches in our lives!

Just generally cute

Pumpkin carving, a bit late this year

Because of our SD trip, we carved our pumpkins after Halloween this year. Late, but no less fun! Larson was so diligent about collecting the seeds for roasting, but guess if he actually tried any...

Garbage truck - not my favorite game

At first Kate and I thought it was cute that the boys were pretending to drive a garbage truck on our couch. But the game quickly deteriorated when they decided to shove all the toys off onto the floor and then run around like madmen refusing to put any of it away. Notice that Larson does not have pants on. Not our finest hour. :)

Larson has now coined the phrase "dumpstering" whenever the boys decide they want to make a big pile of something. Is it just our kids or is this a 3-4 year old boy thing? This is one phase I won't be sorry to see go!

Halloween in San Diego

The whole family went along when I attended a conference in San Diego over Halloween. We enjoyed staying at a very family-friendly resort near the water and hanging out at the beach, even though it was too cold to go in. We didn't do much sight-seeing, but just enjoyed our time relaxing together. I actually had to give a talk and those who know me well, know that this was just a bit anxiety-provoking. A lot of late-night time was spent practicing in front of the bathroom mirror of our hotel room while everyone else was asleep. :)

Larson requested a very pack-able Superman costume this year, which he helped me pick out on the internet. Doesn't he look adorable all super-heroed-up? We found a cute neighborhood for trick-or-treating and were surprised at how many parents were in costume. I guess they really get into Halloween in San Diego! We'll know for next time.

After last year's plan of only allowing one piece of candy per day resulted in the Halloween loot lasting almost until Christmas, we decided to do something different this year. It's actually, surprisingly, what most dentists recommend: we let Larson basically eat as much candy as he wanted. It was all gone in about 3 days! We gave the new plan two thumbs up. Give it a try if you're brave enough.

Larson has declared that next year he wants to be Peter Pan, Cora should be Tinkerbell, Dad should be Captain Hook and I get to be (get this) one of the mermaids from the lagoon. If I'm lucky, my mom might actually help me sew costumes for the kids when she visits this summer. (So I might have actually already purchased the Tinkerbell pattern. I know, I know...but I couldn't help myself -- it is SO cute!)

Pumpkin Patch 2009

Our annual trip to the pumpkin patch provided the kind of fall weather I've come to expect around here: lots of early low-lying fog draping the landscape like a sheet, then warmth and sunshine later on. And lots of mud in the fields. Good thing we remembered our rain boots! Last year you may remember that Brett missed out on this outing (he was in Australia, the poor guy...), but this year we had quite a crowd which included both Grandma and Grandpa and the Pacynas, plus the four of us. Wyatt and Larson had a blast riding the hay wagon and running around the fields looking at all the pumpkins and farm equipment. The biggest hit of the day with the boys was the apple cider press. It was actually pretty cool, and the young man making the cider was kind enough to let the boys throw some apples in the hopper. All I kept thinking was, "I sure hope this gets pasteurized!"

Because of all the wet fall weather, we had to be careful to choose pumpkins that were actually still intact and not a little, shall we say, soft (ie, rotten!). This farm also grows gourds around the perimeter of their pumpkin patch that you can cut for yourself, so I had fun filling up a bag with the cutest and weirdest little shapes for our table. I'm a total sucker for things like that!