Fall Family Photos & Thanksgiving 2021

 We were thankfully able to come out of quarantine in time for Thanksgiving!

I love going to the same steps at Cull Canyon in Castro Valley every year to take this photo. It's sweet to see how much the kids and grown.

                                           

 

Veterans Day & Mission Carmel

Nick and JP were asked to speak at our Veteran's Day Chapel about their service.  They prepared a presentation of what it was like to be at West Point and talked about each of their time in the Army.  Nick shared a video of some super cool helicopter maneuvers and JP's video showed tanks and explosives.  At the end, they had the kids chant "Go Army! Beat Navy!" We are so proud of them!

                                               

                                                  

                                                  

Hannah is studying missions in 4th grade and chose Mission Carmel to study  for her final project.  We took advantage of Veteran's Day to make a trip to Carmel to see it for ourselves!

Carmel-By-The-Sea

The most glorious place for a picnic.

Emmy couldn't leave the beach without cleaning up the garbage.

Ice Cream for the drive home.

So, when Emmy was in 4th grade the mission model was optional, so I assumed it was the same for Hannah.  Thankfully, we were prompted to check the assignment more carefully after chatting with some parents on the soccer field side lines and learned that it was in fact not optional any more. So, it was much to late to buy the model on Amazon and was unavailable anywhere local, so we decided to make an edible mission.  It was a big project but was so much fun to be creative!

We were exposed to Covid and therefore had to quarantine for 14 days. Hannah's teacher graciously allowed her to present her mission in the courtyard at school.  

Halloween 2021

 It really was a no-brainer what our costume theme would be this year given our total preoccupation with all things Harry Potter!

Pumpkin carving the night before Halloween!

                                                

The power went out while we were carving pumpkins, so we called it early.

Showers by candlelight

                                                    

Reading an old favorite "Room on the Broom" by flashlight.

Julia and her bestie, Maddie

Hannah and her friend, Mason.

Hermione Granger

                             

Harry Potter, of course.

What a cast of characters!

                                          

Trunk or Treat at Creekside Church

Halloween Party in Diablo

Luna Lovegood

Fleur Delacour

Brothers! Nick really stepped way outside his comfort zone with this costume.  All in the name of family spirit!

We swung by Greenbrook on the way home to trick-or-treat with Hailey and Becca!