Thanksiving 2015

So much to be thankful for this year...

God has truly held us through a massive change and move, and provided so abundantly for all of our needs.

We are most thankful for Jesus - he truly is our everything.

It was such a joy to celebrate with the Madson family this year - it had been over 10 years since we had been together with them for Thanksgiving.

Our dining room table all set up the night before.

The whole crew - my parents, brothers, cousins, my cousin Gayle and her family, and Aunt Jan and her son Mike.  It felt like an official initiation for our home.

Turkey, turkey.

The spread.  I didn't realize how much I had missed my moms raspberry jello salad.

Cousins - in heaven to be together.

So fun to have family around our table.

Our front driveway - how awesome is this?  And hilarious.  My brother brought his trailer over so their family could camp in our driveway for a few days (so so fun).  My aunt decided to drive her new motorhome over for the day as well - OC RV park was officially open.

Cousin football after a late afternoon lunch.

They had so much fun.

Our sweet neighbors came over for pie and wine.  This was such a fun night of hanging by the fire, watching football, and heating up turkey leftovers when we finally got hungry again.

 The next day...

Grandpa Jack in the Grand Forest.

The boys did this...

While the girls did black Friday.  I haven't laughed this hard in a long time.  We had so much fun.

It was quite a successful day.

That weekend we also cut down our Christmas tree at a wonderful tree farm just off the island.

Hot cocoa and snacks to go.  It was a gorgeous day.

We stopped at Bella Luna for pizza on the way home, which looked out over this.

Happy boys.

A misty morning run in late November - I love the fog hovering over the Sound.

And the ferry and sun breaking through.

Winter was coming.

A glimpse of November

As a wet El-Nino winter neared, we decided to take the plunge and have the house painted.  

Before (this was taken in August)....

After!

Late Fall Dahlias in our kitchen window.

Will's last day of soccer.  Another super wet one.

Day off of school meant a chance to explore.  We ventured to nearby Kingston and checked out a friends little gluten free bakery (which is amazing - Miracole Morsels).

 Then we headed to Point No Point lighthouse.

Which was stunningly beautiful.

There were many whales out in the main channel throughout the day (which we didn't see), but it drove tons of seals, sea lions, and porpoises close to shore, which we did see!

 Striking a pose.

Another one.

And another.  The lighting here was too good, I couldn't pick just one ;).

Another wet Saturday of soccer - Caden with his sweet little team.

Grandpa and Grandma came for the day

And got in on a power outage.

Will lost his first tooth!!

 Tooth fairy action (good thing Will doesn't read this yet).

I SO enjoyed meeting two of my cousins for lunch in Seattle one day!!

Andrew with his team on his last day of soccer.

I had to include this pic - it was a blurry time celebrating with Caden's team at Hammy's hamburgers that night!

Working on our Thanksiving tree leaves.

November means wind storms.  And power outages.  The boys discovered the fun of drawing with charcoal.

With December drawing near, it was time to think about our Christmas card.  Our sweet friend Krista was kind enough to come by and take a few pics for us.  She's SUPER talented.

Goofy boys on our front step.

So thankful for our new home.

The Christmas card pic.

And a little taste of reality. :)

Grandpa Jerry and Grandma Dee Dee visit - Andrew and Dad are another year older!

We were SO excited for Jerry and Dee Dee to arrive!

They caught an early flight, which gave us a few hours to play in Seattle before the boys got out of school.  We started at the Sleepless in Seattle house.

Then ventured up to Kerry Park, my favorite view of Seattle.

And then lunch at the Space Needle!

It was a beautifully, clear day to take in the view, and such a perfect way to start their visit.

Alas, we were on the ferry...

And bound for Bainbridge.

Reunited :).  We started by taking them to some of our favorite beaches.

There was a cool cloud layer over the water, Seattle poking up on the other side.

Walking back to the car - I love this view!

Pritchard park - hard to see the Olympic mountains poking through behind.

 This is such a great beach - looking back at the ferry dock, Seattle to the right, Olympic Mountains to the left.

Back at home, working on homework and a crossword puzzle.

Andrew is TEN.

Double digits is big.  Opening a present before school (look at how dark it was!).  This was a memory foam topper for his bed.

My happy 10 year old.

That afternoon we ferried over to Seattle.

Love these boys.

We stopped into the original Starbucks.

And then walked down to ride the giant ferris wheel!

Looking back at our ferry.

Happy boy - this was a fun way to celebrate his day.

And then we had a fun (and very long) dinner at Red Robin.  It was so fun to have Uncle Josh, Grandpa Jack and Grandma Kathy, and Tinkham (friend from DC, in town for business) join us!

The next day we enjoyed visiting the amazingly gorgeous Bloedel Reserve, here on the island.

By the reflection pool.

Walking up to the Japanese tea house.

And beautiful garden.

Exploring the trails.

This beautiful Japanese maple.

Looking back at the tea house.  This place is amazing.

Another wet morning of Saturday soccer.

 Halloween!  This was such a fun night.

We started at a local retirement community.

And then walked into our precious little town, where everyone trick or treats at the local shops.

Running into a few buddies.

Our sweet neighbor and fellow Kindergarten buddy.

There was minecraft action.

We ran into the Schei's at a perfect photo op location.

The next day we had Andrew's official birthday party.

He wanted a Seahawks cake this year.

 We had his party at our local indoor swimming center.  The grandpa's held down the cabana while the boys swam.

This is what you get when your father in law/retired event industry professional lays out your birthday plates and napkins. 

The boys spent most of their time in this lazy river.

And the water slide (love our cousin P).

Will and daddy getting off the slide.

Andrew trying the rope swing.

Birthday cake time.

Happy boy.

Thankful for new buddies to celebrate with.

And lunch with family!

That night we celebrated Dave's birthday at the Sounders game!

Showing them our local coffee shop.

And Fay Bainbridge park - our biggest beach on the island.

First fire - perfect spot to enjoy halloween candy.

A quick stroll through the Grand Forest.

We found these HUGE leaves in our backyard.

On our way to the airport, we stopped by the Starbucks Distillery and Tasting Room.

They even had some gluten free treats.

A wonderful way to end a wonderful trip!  We are so incredibly thankful they were able to come!!