Thanksgiving - Not what we had planned

We had planned a snowy, ski-in/ski-out, relaxing Thanksgiving at Beaver Run resort in Breckenridge. We had dreams of beautiful days skiing together on the slopes, apres-ski in the hot tubs, and a few fun evening activities like tubing if we had enough energy left. That did NOT work out. There was no snow, staffing shortages everywhere (what??? how can starbucks be closed?!) and Beaver Run was in such bad shape that the line to check in was 2 hours and no clean towels. Ummm, no thanks. We quickly pivoted and got a full refund at the resort, Grant got us two rooms at a Hampton Inn nearby, and we cut our trip short by 2 days. 

We stayed with the Haughians Friday night and Saturday night. Had a fun adults dinner at their country club on Saturday evening. And on Saturday during the day Grant and I took our kids to Pike's Peak which was a fun outing. I think my favorite memory is Colton falling asleep on Grant on the train ride back down the mountain. 

On Sunday we stopped by Cave of the Winds on the way to Breckenridge and Cadie and Grant strong armed me into going on the Terror-Dactyl. Never again. It was a beautiful, clear day and the kids all had fun on the high ropes course.

After a VERY complicated late-afternoon and evening trying to check into Beaver Creek, deciding to abort mission, and getting settled at the new hotel, Grant and I left the kids watching TV in the room and we got Chinese food at a place in the parking lot of the hotel. We skied at Keystone on Monday and Tuesday. It wasn't bad, but not many runs were open and the final run to get to the lifts was very steep, crowded, and slick. I was proud of us for making it work and we do really well together with family skiing. We have a system and it works really well. Grant rebooked us to head home on Wednesday. Thank you Grant!

We had a super fun time on Wednesday at Santa's Workshop. It was adorable, the rides were fun with very little lines, and it snowed like CRAZY. We headed straight to the airport from Santa's Workshop. Made it home in time to get a good nights sleep before celebrating Thanksgiving at DD and Big John's. Cadie was especially glad to be with the family. She values tradition. 

While it wasn't what we had planned, we made the most it!

Am gonna try to stick to the facts with this one because it can get emotional kinda quick. The Saturday after Thanksgiving was a bit stressful. Rained out SMU game, Grant feeling pressure for an upcoming trial, Colorado trip not going as planned, everyone a bit edgy... I caught Grant off guard with a reaction to a fairly common question and it sent him into a tailspin. I pressed and Grant hit the ceiling and broke a bone in his right hand. It was a lame ending to an overall difficult Thanksgiving. Here's hoping for a better Christmas break (no pun intended).

Farewell Fall Football Season

While we were in Napa, Nina & Papa and DD & Big John were helping to celebrate the wrap-up of the YMCA Fall Football season. Colton had a bit of a lackluster season with Coach Dan Cherkassky. It didn't help that practices were on Wednesday nights and Colton hated missing Bible Study so we ended up missing most practices. Colton enjoyed the end of season pizza party and climbing trees after the games in Curtis Park.

Ranger had great improvements for his first tackle football with Isaac Haas. Ranger was incredibly focused and worked hard to tackle and score to earn sticker stars for his helmet. Even though the tackle part made me nervous, I loved watching him play and yelled so loud when he would score. Plus, I cannot get over how handsome he is in his uniform. They played an "under the lights" game at Highlander Stadium to cap off a fun season. Big John and Papa were on the chains most games and cheering for most games.

Napa

We were so excited that Misha and Nick joined us this year. The weather was perfect, the food amazing, and the company even better. The trip got off to a bit of a rocky start for Grant and I with our flight on Thursday evening getting cancelled around 11pm after hours of sitting on the plane. Luckily, Grant was on top of it (as always) and as soon as the flight was delayed, he proactively booked us on the 6am direct flight the next morning. We got a few hours of sleep at Nina and Papa's house, and then headed back to the airport after a 4:30am wakeup call. We were on the same flight as Misha and Nick which worked out and we headed straight to San Fransisco to explore.

First stop was Boudin Bakery for some sourdough bread and brunch. Next we had fun playing games at Musee Mecanique. We stopped and looked at the seals on the way to the Ferry for Alcatraz. Nick and Misha had never been to Alcatraz and I think the last time I went was before kids. It was a bit creepy, as I expected. One fun surprise was spotting Whales while we were looking out over the ocean by the courtyard where the prisoners had outside time. We drove to check into the hotel, Sheraton Sonoma County, and then had a beautiful dinner under the twinkle lights at Layla's.

Saturday was our wine tour and we were joined by a fun group of Mom's on a girls trip from Wisconsin. They were really chill and it made for a fun day. Our stops included Mill Creek, a second place that I don't really remember and didn't like much, and Notre Vue. The view really was good at Notre Vue, but overall the winery seemed a bit short staffed and we didn't get the service we have experienced in the past.

Sunday Grant and I had brunch together, then we went back to the hotel and picked up Nick and Misha and had an amazing lunch at Mustard's. Nick and I had fun enjoying pink prickly pear margaritas together. We drove around Napa and then ended the day watching the sunset at Fog Crest Winery.

Monday we took Misha to the Livermore Premium Outlets because she really wanted to check out the Gucci store there. Grant and I dropped off Nick and Misha and got some coffee and drove around a bit. We did get back to the outlets in time for me to get a pair of Adidas that I have been wanting, and I got a great deal.

Because he is so good at planning, here is the itinerary provided by Grant Walsh the Travel Agent.

Thursday: Grant and Erin arrive at OAK at 10:15pm and stay overnight at Springhill Suites by the airport. (Editor's Note: That obviously did NOT work out!)

 Friday:

• Grant and Erin will pick up rental car at OAK airport and then pick up Nick and Misha when they land at 8:10am.
• We can drive to the SF Bay Area and park near Fisherman’s Wharf. There are lots of things to see/do within easy walking distance along the waterfront.
• For breakfast/brunch, we recommend the Bistro Boudin Bakery (home of the original SF sourdough bakery—delicious!!!).
• After brunch, we will have a few hours to explore before the Alcatraz tour. Here are some of the options in the vicinity: watch the wild sea lions at Pier 39, watch street performers, play a few antique games at Musee Mecanique (a one of a kind experience), take a ride on the historic street/cable cars, visit America’s oldest and largest Chinatown, get ice cream at Ghirardelli Square, etc. (If we run out of time to do everything we want, we can also drive back to the Bay Area before we fly out on Monday evening.)  
• 1:30pm tickets for Alcatraz Island Tour that departs from Pier 33 (confirmation # 4586800; face masks required for tour). Depending on how much time we decide to spend on the island before catching the return ferry, we should allow about 3-4hrs for this tour.
• After Alcatraz, drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to head north to the Wine Country. Depending on traffic (which will likely be heavy on a Friday afternoon/evening), it will take us about 60-90 minutes from Fisherman’s Wharf to arrive at our hotel, the Sheraton Sonoma Wine Country Petaluma.
• 8:30pm dinner reservation at Layla at MacArthur Place (29 E. Macarthur St, Sonoma, CA 95476; about 20 minutes from hotel)

 Saturday

• 9:30am pickup from our hotel for Platypus Wine Tour to North Sonoma and Russian River Valley. We will visit 3-4 wineries (selected by our tour guide/driver), enjoy a picnic lunch at one of the stops, and then they will drop us back at the hotel around 5:30pm.
• From our prior experience, a short 1-2hr nap before dinner will feel great after a full day of wine tastings (and I hope even Nick will have partaken in the tastings despite not being a huge fan of wine). Haha!
• 8pm reservation at Brewster’s Beer Garden, as we know Nick might enjoy a local brewery/taproom and this was the only one I found that accepts reservations. If there is a different spot you want to visit, we’re totally flexible! For example, these are also fairly close to our hotel in Petaluma: Lagunitas TapRoom & Beer Sanctuary and HenHouse Brewing Co. (these two are across the street from each other), and The Block Food Park & Beer Garden.

 Sunday

• Because our formal tour on Saturday will be on the Sonoma side of the region, we thought it might be fun to do our own self-guided tour over to the Napa side on Sunday.
• Depending on how early we wake up (and we’re fans of sleeping in!!!), we could do breakfast/brunch at the famous and historic Butter Cream Bakery in downtown Napa.
• Most vineyards/wineries require reservations for their tastings and tours (typically lasting 75-90 minutes each). Here are some places we’ve been and know we enjoy but we’re open to trying new places, too!
• Chandon (best-known for sparkling wines; good example of a large commercial winery; great outdoor seating areas on rolling hillside)
• Laird Family Estate (nice elevated seating area that overlooks their vineyards)
• Prisoner Wines (one of the most popular places to visit, as they have won a number of recent awards)
• Madrigal Family Winery (small, family-owned, great wines)
• Hans Fahden (in the Calistoga area, northern end of Napa Valley, pretty gardens and nice tasting room)
• Varozza Vineyards (family-owned and operated for over a century)
• I’m sure we will remember names of other places once we start exploring and recognizing things!
• 9pm dinner reservation at Bottega Napa Valley (6525 Washington Street, Yountville, CA)

 Monday

• Totally open!
• One place we’ve never been but would like to see is Armstrong Redwoods State Nature Reserve (just reopened last week!). They have giant redwoods and hiking/walking trails. It’s at the northern end of Sonoma County.   
• Depart OAK at 6:05pm and land in DAL at 11:30pm.

Cadie's ears are pierced!

I waited until I was 13 to get my ears pierced, and we did the same for Cadie. I felt like 13 was a good age to take care of the piercing, pick out your own earrings, etc. Nina wanted to get her ears re-pierced so we all went together for a double-ear piercing party. La Lobe did a great job and it didn't take long. We had hoped to go for dinner afterwards, but Cadie was feeling homework pressure so Nina and I went out together afterwards for dinner and we had such a nice time together. Cadie, you are so beautiful WITH or WITHOUT pierced ears. I love you!

Happy Halloween

It was a last minute, chaotic and fun Halloween. Whitney and Mitch Myers had us over to dinner before trick-or-treating and we all laughed because Mitch used a coupon and had about 20 pizzas! No one was hungry! Drama included a trip to Yesterland Farm with a friend of Cadie's who did NOT enjoy the outing, Cadie and Jack Ranger not wanting to wear costumes on Halloween to the point of tears, a wind storm blowing down the haunted house on Amherst (don't worry, neighbors pitched in and it was rebuilt in time for Halloween!), a last minute pumpkin scramble for UP Pumpkin Day (the light-brite pumpkin was under-whelming, here's to better planning next year), Grant setting up a super scary ghost display in the window at DD and Big John's and scaring lots of little kids, and we all got separated on Halloween evening with JR going with Mitch, Hudson, and Hunter; Colton and I together; and Cadie and Kamryn going with Nina and Papa. Everyone got plenty of candy and lots of memories!