Heading to the Beach

We ended up going to the beach 3 times during out trip, though the first day was by far the nicest weather. I don't have many pictures from the other two days because my battery had died and then it was too windy to get Finn out of the car on the last day. 

Coronado was a great beach and the kids had a blast. The adults enjoyed basking in the sun and getting a little wet and sandy as well.

Henry spent a lot of time searching for shells until he was running from a wave and fell face down and got completely covered with water. He didn't mind the fall much, but he was pretty cold after, so he wrapped up in a towel and then fell asleep on the blanket. He napped there for quite a long time until it was time to leave. Talk about relaxing.

 Mia, Gavin and Mallory managed to get in the water on every beach trip. They love outrunning those waves.

 Wyatt wouldn't go near the water, but once he discovered that the beach is really a giant sand box, he was in heaven.

 Grandma headed out to the ocean.

 Claire was so hilarious hauling water up the beach. She would take her bucket to the edge and try and get as much water as possible and then run back fast, spilling a lot of it. It didn't seem to bother her though, she just kept making more trips.

 Right now, Finn doesn't seem to love the beach. It was a bit too bright and breezy for him, but he was content to be carried around for awhile.

 What a mud monster.

 Jaren was so excited to have his mom bury him in the sand.

 Mallory and Gavin worked intently on the castle moat, even if the castle didn't get much attention.

The Resort Life

We had a super great day at the Resort Monday. We did lots of running around in the grass and sun, and even explored all of the things to do at the rec centers. The kids thought it was great to have a place where they could get on a playground or play the Wii at the same time. Even though it was a little chilly, everyone enjoyed a dip in the pool.

Wyatt kept saying he was Not getting in the swimming pool, but of course he ended up jumping on it and loving it.

 Henry and Gavin having a blast.

 Tatum and Jade got a little wet, but gave up first and sat all cozy in their towels in the sun.

 The hot tub ended up being the preferred location for most people to hang out.

 Mara braved the water slide, so she could't be harassed too much by the oldest nieces and nephews.

 Gavin even gave a scream as he hit the water.

San Diego... Finally!

We just finished our first 24 hours in San Diego. All of the secret planning to surprise Grandma Cardon has finally paid off. She was quite surprised to show up for her first night at the resort and find her room full of family. The Grandkids were so excited about the idea of surprising her and even though there were some close calls, none of them gave the secret away. Hearing her laugh when she realized we were all here was the best.

Grandma and Claire all snuggled up to talk. Claire had a lot of catching up to do with Grandma since she has spent the last several weeks avoiding talking on Skype or the phone so that she wouldn't give away the surprise.

 Wyatt and Jaren spending too much time using the iPhones even in sunny California.

 Tatum and Jade sharing a little bear hug.

 Rachel got to bathe Tatum and Jade in the giant spa tub, that was also enclosed in glass and had only a small door. Wading in was the only option.

Today we headed out to go to sacrament meeting. I had looked up the address for a nearby chapel that met at 11am. We arrived to find that the wards that met there had changed times for the beginning of the year, and we were just in time for the spanish branch. We had a laugh and then stayed for the meeting. Afterwards, Nathan and Papa told us what had gone on that most of us missed due to our language barrier.

All of my handsome boys dressed up for church.

We also went to walk around at the San Diego temple. It was a bit chilly for San Diego standards, but very nice temple grounds.

 After the Temple we went to the Mormon Battalion museum in Old Town San Diego. We took a tour that walked us through the journey of the Mormon Battalion on their way to California. Gavin even got to be the family soldier and receive his uniform and rations for the trip.

 Taking aim.

 At the end of the tour the kids got to pan for gold and try out the old well. Luckily, no one fell down.

 Wyatt in the covered wagon.

Christmas Morning 2013

What a fun morning we had. First Christmas in our new house. First Christmas for little Finn. The older boys had spent quite a bit of time pondering their Christmas lists and drafting letters to Santa. Luckily, the both included a variety of gift ideas and then asked Santa for the ones they believed Mom and Dad were least likely to get them. Wyatt was just a bit confused about what was going on this year, so he was easy to please.

I love how they look marching in by height trying to spot which presents are theirs.

 Finn was up earlier than normal to join the fun. Though he may has been a bit distracted from his present.

Wyatt had to stop his playing to read a book.

Gavin got his first sets of Pokemon cards from Santa, since both Caleb and I have said that we just don't like them.

 The present opening last quite a while and was a lot of fun, since the boys really enjoyed all of their gifts and wanted to pause in between every present to see what their brothers had opened as well.

 Finn loved opening his presents because he kept moving at attack speed to try and eat the wrapping paper. Even when all of the paper was gone, he still also liked his toys.

And just because we should prove that their parents exist and got presents too. Caleb opening his football from the boys, who were just as excited about it as he was.

 Me, opening up some new running clothes. Gotta love Christmas morning. We do.

Christmas Eve

We love Christmas Eve with the Cardon cousins, and this year lived up to all our expectations.

There was a tense moment for Gavin in the morning when the snow started falling and the wind was blowing hard, and he worried that they wouldn't be able to make it to your house. Luckily, they arrived without isssue.

We went to work on our of or festive plans, including the cookie decorating for Santa.

Henry, Libbie and Mallory getting to work.

 Mia and Gavin are always fairly meticulous in their art and cookie are no exception to that rule.

Mallory was by far the most detailed, adding little eyes and buttons to her creations, made from tiny sprinkles.

 Stacy brought some Christmas minute-to-win-it games for the kids. They all had fun trying them out, tho I only got pictures of Jaren and Wyatt playing the stacking game, 2 year old style.

 Finn was not in a great mood, despite the good company, but Aunt Stacy was the baby whisperer for awhile. She even kept him happy while listen to Claire tell her a story about something.

 Then, of course, came the annual opening of Christmas Pajamas. Everyone loved this.

 Especially Wyatt. He was still a bit confused about why they were in a circle holding presents, but that all changed when he pulled out Angry Birds pants.

 Just a funny little shot of all the Cardon boys. We forgot to send Stacy the blue pjs memo for this year, but Jaren is the most Christmasy of all.