We had a blast at this hat store
Getting silly
Checking out the water with daddy
Mike helping Caroline and Jaxon with a sand castle
Happy birthday Brian!
The whole gang at Legoland. Yes, that is a huge lego Christmas tree
Caroline got nudie in the waterpark part of legoland
Riding the train with her daddy
There was lots of fun stuff for little kids at Legoland, which was great.
Who is a little fairy princess?
My sweet nephews and niece- Hayden, Jaxon and Aspyn
The family and the Thanksgiving feast
Caroline really got into the mashed potatos. She mashed them up with her hands!
My mom rented a house just north of San Diego for a week, so that the whole family could get together and celebrate Thanksgiving. It was great, because everyone was there, which hasn't happened in 2 years. Caroline got to spend a lot of time getting to know and play with her uncles, aunts and cousins. It was a beautiful house, even if it needed a bit of maintenance outside and had a lot of annoying things that didn't work (the hot-tub accidentally drained three times, the grill didn't get hot enough to cook properly, etc). But it was big and had a big yard with a grassy area and a gated pool. And an AMAZING view of the beach down the hill.
We had a nonstop busy week, with three trips to the beach, pool time every day, and trips to the Wild Animal Park and Legoland. And oh yeah, Thanksgiving dinner. We were SO blessed with the weather- it was mid-70s and sunny every single day. It was so fabulous! Most of the clothes I brought were for 60s-ish weather (what was forecast when I left), but luckily Mike came out a little later so he could bring me and Caroline a few more things.
There was a bit of the requisite family drama- what would a family trip be without it?- but by and large the whole group got along well and enjoyed spending time together. My niece and nephews are so stinkin cute and everyone loved playing with Caroline. Mike got a chance to do some surfing, which he enjoyed. We also got a couple of visits from friends- my wonderful friend Carol came up with her family and spent a day in the pool with us. And Mike's good friend Tony, who he knows from Boston, came up for some beach and pool time with us as well.
Thanksgiving dinner was a feast, as expected. We cooked all day and had the standard fare, plus some unique ones. We made a sweet potato gnocchi, which was tasty, but probably too labor-intensive on a day of too-much cooking anyways.
I was so thankful for the time to spend with my family, because even if they occasionally drive me nuts, I love them all so much and really wish I could see them more.
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