Thanksgiving Wrap-Up

It was so great to have Gabby home for a week.  It sure flew by!   She fit in some fun activities including lots of eating & sleeping, shopping, getting a new tattoo (Winston's paw print), hanging with her friends, filming a short video with her dance crew, two photo shoots, a movie (Justice League), a volksmarch and decorating the house for Christmas.  She is currently on her way back to Arcata, but will return in just 3 weeks for a long winter break.  We are so excited that both she & her sister will be home at least two weeks together.  We have lots of fun things already planned!  Bring on the holiday season!

It's always my job to fluff the branches.  Sadly, this will be the last year for this tree.
It's really old and a lot of the needles kept falling off. 

Obviously exhausted after putting up both trees.
We missed our helpers Corey & Winston! 

Sadly this will be the last year for these little guys, too. 
They are in way worse shape than they appear and the poor penguin no longer lights up. 
Our outdoor décor keeps shrinking! 

A few pictures from one of the photo shoots she did over break. 

This is my fav. 

Sumner Volksmarch (#15)

Gabby voluntarily came along yesterday on our guided volksmarch in Sumner.  It's been great having her home for Thanksgiving break!  We started at the REI distribution center & walked on the Sumner Link Trail, following along the White River on its way to join the Puyallup River.  It was cold, dry day.  There were a lot more people there than we had anticipated.  I guess they either did their Black Friday shopping early or they really did #OptOutside.  Afterward we had a yummy meal at the Buttered Biscuit in downtown Sumner. 

Scott does not like the cold!

The White River was a bit dark, muddy and running very high due to the heavy rains we've had.

Auburn Volksmarch (#14)

This morning Jennifer, Clarissa and I completed another 5k volksmarch in downtown Auburn.  (Scott didn't come because he is sick.)  Scott & I volksmarched in this area before, but this time we had a different route.  We had great weather, which was unexpected but very welcome.   There were some interesting sculptures along the route; our favorite was the giant ostrich that was made out of silverware.  Another great volksmarch!

The baby ostrich was made with forks.

The body was made of spoons.

 

This was part of the Veteran's Memorial Park.

Girls Update

Not too much to post; the girls are both doing well.  Gabby will be home in a week for Thanksgiving break, and Corey's study abroad ends in just 4 more weeks.  Crazy how this semester has flown by.  Some recent photos...

She's been doing lots of rehearsal for two Senior Choreography pieces she was asked to perform in.  She is a lead in one of them. 

She is going to turn into biscuits and gravy!

Darn pot heads!

Gabby sends us A LOT of food pictures....

She attended this dance performance on campus.

Arcata has had an unusually warm summer/fall, but the weather has finally become more typical.

Bunny Halloween costume and her boyfriend Ethan is a lumberjack.

Corey had a stomach bug that lasted about a week.  She is feeling much better now thankfully.  Her entry is a bit dramatic...

She took a surfing lesson and had so much fun she's going again next week.  Look how tan she looks!

She is in for a rude awakening!

Dash Point Volksmarch (#13)

Today we completed our 13th volksmarch in Federal Way at Dash Point State Park with Jennifer.  We have only hiked here one time before.  It's a very pretty park with several different trails and a creek that leads down to a beach with views of Vashon Island.  It was raining in Tumwater when we headed up there, but luckily we enjoyed a fairly dry hike (it only sprinkled a bit at the end).  It was a very pleasant surprise.  Afterward we had lunch at the Poodle Dog restaurant, which had great food. Another fun adventure!

We found some big leaves on the trail.

Beatles vs Stones

Last night we attended the Beatles vs Stones concert at the Washington Center in downtown Olympia with some friends.  I'm not much of a Stones fan, but the band was pretty good, and the fake Mick Jagger had some seriously funny moves.  The Beatles band definitely won that battle!  Such a fun night!

L to R: Scott, me, Teresa, James & Michele