Nana and Grandpa's "Thank You" Day!

This summer we moved.  There was A LOT to be done compared to our last move, when we didn't pack ourselves, and we had a lot of help.  Nana and Grandpa provided much of that help and we wanted to say THANK YOU in a special way.  So, today we took them to Disneyland!!  I made them all take a picture at the entrance like the Disney "what's next?" campaign from the late 80s and early 90s...  "Paul, we worked Nana and Grandpa to the bone in our move.  Where are you taking them now?!" "We're going to Disneyland!"

Then I let them take a regular picture.  :)

It was a chilly day and there was a 30% chance of rain starting at noon.  It had already rained by the time we arrived.  Oops.  Our first stop was a new favorite ride in California Adventure, "Mater's Junkyard Jamboree."

It started drizzling while we were in line...

but we had fun anyway.

By the end of our ride, the rain was starting to pick up and so we raced over to The Little Mermaid's indoor ride...

and then swam over to King Triton's carousel.

It was then that we decided that we had to get out of the rain and into a show.  Unfortunately, we had to wait a little while for a show to start.  That "little while" was enough to have us (myself at least) wondering if we could stand a whole day of the rain and cold.  But, we made it inside eventually and enjoyed a great Disney Junior show where the kids forgot about how cold they had been just minutes before. 

Once out of the show, we found Pluto and Mickey hiding in the lobby of the restaurant next door.  Emily was very excited to see Pluto...

 but Everett wasn't so sure that he needed to be anywhere near the big doggie.

Luckily, Mickey protected him...

and didn't really want to let Everett go after the pictures were taken.

The rain, thankfully, had let up a lot while we were in the show and we were very hopeful for better weather as we headed into Disneyland.

Our first stop, after much fruitless searching for indoor dining, was an outdoor lunch.  Emily and Everett had already eaten their packed lunch, so they just enjoyed some hot cocoa and warmed themselves up a bit...

before we went over to It's A Small World.

While in that line, we finally saw the sun and some blue skies!!!!!

Yes!

After our cruise,

everybody else went on Buzz Lightyear's ride...

while I waited for them to join me on the curb where I was saving spots...

for the parade!

 (As soon as Emily saw the princesses arriving...

she felt the need to stand up!)

(Again, she received many kisses and was delighted to the core.)

It was a great parade and not everyone was prepared to leave when it was over.

But, when we left, we went straight for the Mad Hatters so the kids could pick out some ears.  I have little doubt that Emily will drag her groom to Disney and wear these "bride" ears...

 but she did quickly select her first set of ears right after trying those on.

Everett, on the other hand, was a bit of a mad hatter himself and tried on several...

before ending up with his final selection.

It was a cold and wet day but we sure had fun!  Hopefully Nana and Grandpa will be ready to help us again the next time we move!! ;)  And, thanks for our new Disney duds!

*We split from Nana and Grandpa after one more ride, about 4:30pm, and they stayed to see two shows that they really enjoyed.  Hooray!

"Thanksmas" Vacation II

Something else that was going on the evening of the 9th, right after we arrived in Wichita, was some inspecting of gifts.

The collection of gifts for our Christmas celebration on the 10th drew MUCH attention!

So, the kids were very excited when it was finally time to open gifts on the evening of the 10th (after basketball games and dinner).  Except, there was ONE more thing before "Christmas" - annual pajama picture time!  (Four of the five grands getting ready for pictures.

Are you kidding me with these adorable grandsons?!)

This year we chose another new location so some of us took it upon ourselves to pose for a check of the lighting.

(Nana and her babies)

Then, with only a few of us still missing, we took a couple of Nana, Grandpa, and their grands.

Finally, the real deal!

And our little family alone.

But, that wasn't the end.  That's just when things got interesting...

and Everett was wondering WHAT was going on!

In true form though, he took the picture taking and his instructions very seriously.  (Emily and Cooper, however, thought someone said seriously silly I suppose.)

But the silly one came next.

And hooray!  It was finally Christmas!

This year, Nana and Grandpa gifted these Mickey ponchos from Daddy and Aunt Sarah's childhood.

And they also gave the kids new luggage.

 But Everett didn't go too far - after all, he had to check in with Charlie every few minutes.

The next morning rocked too.

The kids enjoyed playing in the garage with the fog machine...

 and the new remote control helicopters.  (look for a little light amid the "fog")

There was just a little time to hang out...

before we had to hit the road.  What a fast and furious but FUN visit we had!  Thanks Uncle Reagan and Aunt Sarah!
Funny, tidbit: on our way home, Everett had no idea that Emily was watching a movie as he rode along backwards until we stopped and I put him in the middle to change his diaper.  He was QUITE interested in Elmo dancing across Emily's screen!

And for the remainder of the trip, he got the DVD player while Emily got Daddy's iPhone.  Everett was a happy camper.

*Our little family's annual pajama pictures...

2008

2009 (apparently we didn't do a small family pic?!)

2010

2011

2012