365.3: WEEK 45

Oh, what a week it has been! My heart is heavy that it is now over. For a year, I planned and saved. For a year, I lived off of the wonderful memories of taking our kids to Disneyland. For a year, I daydreamed about doing the trip again with just the mr.. And here we are, on the other side of a long awaited trip. I've got a few photos to post, but that will be later. For now, here is our last week in photos. Playing at the park after school. Having a rough day. Staying with Mimi and Papa for a couple of days. DISNEYLAND! CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE! Spending some one on one time with the man I love most. Snuggling my littles.

November 5th - November 11th

365.3: WEEK 44

Halloween is over, so you'd think things have slowed down a little. Nope. Not a bit. The mr. and I are getting ready for a solo trip, so life is still pretty much full-on chaos over here. Last week was amazing, though. Missing two front teeth. Drawing with sidewalk chalk. Dressing up as the Avengers for Halloween. Little preschool Halloween party. Waiting for the kids to get out of school. Doing gymnastics after hiking Peralta Trail. Reading with cousins visiting from out-of-town.

October 29th - November 4th

HEROWEEN

This year, the youngest set the stage for our Halloween costumes. When I began asking for costume ideas in the middle of the summer, she insisted on being Hulk. As fall approached, she stayed adamant in her request. She wanted to be Hulk and wasn't backing down. After a quick survey from the other five, it was quickly determined that we would be doing an Avengers theme for Halloween (thank you China and Ebay for a majority of our costume pieces). We had a wonderful night with family, friends, and neighbors at our annual neighborhood Halloween carnival. Hotdogs. Soda. Popcorn. Cotton candy. Pony. Bounce house. Goldfish. Duck hunt. Bean bag toss. ALL OF THE THINGS. Even a flash mob. It was amazing. Side note: the older four weren't allowed to wear their costumes to school (because I'm a mean mom), so these first few are from earlier in the day...
Happy Halloween from Captain America, Captain Marvel, Thor, Doctor Strange, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Black Panther, and Hulk.

365.3: WEEK 43

It's full on craziness over here. Halloween is two short days away and I still have to finish sewing costumes and hanging cobwebs. There are only nine weeks left this year and I feel like we already have significant plans for each of those remaining weeks. Last week was no exception. Listening to a silly podcast. Coloring with chalk. Picking out pumpkins at the pumpkin patch. Attending a ballet at Symphony Hall. Going to the school carnival with Mimi and Papa. Playing at one of two family reunions. Feeling under the weather.

October 22nd - October 28th

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365.3: WEEK 42

We have reached the point of the year where time is going to just fly past because of the upcoming holidays and birthday celebrations. There are Halloween costumes to make and holiday card photos to take and Christmas gifts to buy. So far, I have handled the stress well and haven't had any anxiety attacks surrounding these things. We'll see if I make it out of the holiday season unscathed... Last week was mostly great. Going on a family walk in the cooler weather. Seeing my oldest two in action at parent-teacher conferences. Putting out pumpkins. Feeling sick to my stomach. Visiting a nearby fire station for a tour. Washing the car. Having a bad day.

October 15th - October 21

BREAKING OUR FALL

I am three weeks away from my next epic adventure. But memories from my last trip are still fresh in my mind. Last week, during fall break, I decided to make use of my oldest being in fourth grade and obtained a National Park pass from everykidinthepark.gov for our family. If you have a fourth grader, GO CHECK IT OUT. It is a free pass that will get your family into all national parks across the country (and many state parks) at. NO. COST. And since I will basically have a fourth grader each year for the next seven years, you better believe we will be making the most of that pass with every chance that we get.  This last week, we decided to check out Wupatki National Monument up in northern Arizona. It was PHENOMENAL. We visited Montezuma Castle during spring break, but it doesn't even come close to the Wupatki pueblos. At Wupatki, you are able to get up close to (and inside of some of) the pueblos. There are five or six incredible structures in the area that are easily accessible and well maintained. Wupatki is on the same loop as Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, so both areas can be visited in one day. While we drove past Sunset Crater and the [amazing] surrounding lava fields, we didn't take advantage of the proximity. Instead, we drove about an hour southeast to Meteor Crater. Now... I have to be honest. I didn't love Meteor Crater. Part of that comes from the fact that I am the idiot that didn't realize that it is NOT a national park. Oops. After a 50+ mile drive just to get there, I couldn't say no. So I sucked it up and paid the $45 entrance fee for our family. Fine. It was fun, but I found Wupatki to be worlds better. In the end, we all had a wonderful time exploring some of the stunning sights that Arizona has to offer.
BTW, the second to last picture is proof that my kids are not always picture perfect for a photo. I was about 1000% percent done at this point and just ready to go home.