The thing I'm thankful for right now, is elastic waistbands.

Ahhhh...that time of year again. The time when we get together with family and eat until we can't move, then we watch football, then we eat again. This my friends is Man's favorite Holiday. Thanksgiving. As Kevin James once said..."Thanksgiving, man. NOT a good day to be my pants." Hahahaha!
I must say though, I love this time of year as much as the average sports watching turkey glutton for so many reasons. It seems like as soon as Thanksgiving hits, Christmas just fills the entity with the spirit of Christmas. The air is crisp, and it's freezing, but I just don't mind it so much because there's something snug and comforting about hot cocoa and Christmas music in the background, while researching this years hottest Christmas toys online.
I'm getting ahead of myself though. I need to update what we've been up to.

First,

We had our 3rd Annual Itri Pre-Thanksgiving Pasta Pigout.
We started the tradition 3 years ago when the Itri boys who were all spending thanksgiving with in-laws wanted to have their own day this time of year when they could all see each other and enjoy the art of inhaling a nourishing cuisine. It turned out to be pasta themed since, as Italians, it's what they do best. Everybody brings a pasta dish they know how to make and we all enjoy it as a whole.

This year there was made from scratch Lasagna...courtesy of Scott and I.


Dan and Kelsey made an impressive meatball sauce that went with their angel hair pasta:


Todd made a chicken giblet pasta, that entailed heart, and liver mixed into the pasta. Some weren't brave enough to try it, but I thought it was tasty.


Aunt Jill, J. dee and Jason, and Jen brought the desserts, plastic-ware, and salad.


After eating and hanging out for a while, we played the game "What If" which when you play with Itri's, can fun and daring all at the same time...then we watched the movie "Inception" since several people in the group hadn't seen it yet.

After dinner discussions:




Dani and Linkin....SOOO cute!!






Anyway, good times were had by all.

Note: This pasta feast happened the night before Thanksgiving...so yeah. We've been eating a lot this week.

ON TO THANKSGIVING!!

When we're in Utah, we usually spend Thanksgiving with my parents, BUT they went to Vegas this year to my brother Mike and his wife Jenna. Although we were invited, we had just driven to Disneyland and were sick of driving with the kids, plus we spent over 400 bucks on our car getting new tires for the snow and such, SO we passed.
In a way, this was really exciting because even though we've been married almost 6 years, it was our FIRST Thanksgiving without in-laws on either side of the family. Check us out, we're grownups!! Look ma, we did it all by ourselves!!



This is the day I realized that we don't own any super fancy dishes, and we have yet to buy them. For some reason, it never occurred to us to buy the fancy stuff because we always ate the fancy dinners at one of our parents houses. Still, for what we had, it wasn't bad. At least the food was good. Next year baby.


Every Thanksgiving, Scott, me and the kids put up the Christmas tree. This is the kids favorite part. If you ask Crystal, Thanksgiving is more about putting up the tree than the Turkey.









Later on in the evening we decided to join the Itri boys at their Aunt Jill's house to hang out


Even though it was fun to hang out at Jills, we were all a little worried and sad because Jon and Dani's little boy was sick and had to go to the hospital. We were really thankful though that little Linkin seemed to be doing well while in the Hospital though, and that he was able to be treated in time. He's been in our prayers for the last two days, though we heard he's doing good now and is back home.

Okay, so this is the mushy part where I talk about what I'm thankful for, so please skip this part if you wish because I understand if it's boring.
I'm most thankful for the people in my life who love me. My family and friends who truly know me and love me in spite of my weaknesses.
I'm thankful for a husband who loves me in spite of myself. He makes me feel pretty when my hair is messy and I'm in sweats, and wearing glasses and no makeup. He makes me feel like I'm the only girl in the world, and every other girl is just in the background...even when we're not getting along. I know that if I were to cut my hair, dye it purple, and gain 150 pounds and stop shaving my legs, he would still adore me because he loves me for who I am...and a guy like that is nearly impossible to find. Scott and I are opposite in a lot of things...but we're best friends. We have the same goals in life, we have the same love for comedy and fine foods, we love our children like crazy, and we love each other. He takes good care of me, and I feel safe when I'm with him.
I'm thankful for the two most adorable, most hilarious children in the universe. I love my kids so much that it could be considered borderline madness. Even though I'm exhausted at the end of some days, I miss them when they're not around me, even if it's just a few hours. I constantly catch myself staring at them while they're cuddling under blankets on the couch in front of the TV, or talking to their toys, or pretending they're Princesses and superhero's because I can't believe how amazing they are. I can't believe they're mine, and that those two, perfect little beings actually love me, and they love me with all their hearts. There's nothing like feeling little arms around your neck, or slobbery little lips kissing your cheek, or hearing the most wonderful sound/sentence in the world, "I love you mommy."
I'm thankful for my true friends who I've laughed and cried with over the years, who've been there with me during my ups and downs and stood by me through thick and thin. I'm not talking about the friends from the mothers tales who jump off a cliff and you follow...I'm talking about the friends who if, out of your own stupidity you jump off a cliff into the river...they get in a canoe and start rowing your way so they can save your dumb butt. THOSE are friends, and I'm thankful for their dumb butts as much as they're thankful to have mine. There's a quote that says "I believe that friends are quiet angels who sit on our shoulders and lift our wings when we forget how to fly." That's how I feel about my true friends.

Yes, I'm thankful for my material blessings, a good home, my husbands job, my job, etc...but mostly I'm thankful for the people I love, who love me back...all the other material stuff means nothing without people who love you.

Hope you all had an awesome Thanksgiving.

Disneyland!! Christmas style!!!

This year we decided to try Disneyland in November instead of October so we could catch the Christmas Decorations. ALSO for the first time, we drove. I was terrified about how my kids would be during a 12 hour road trip, but they were honestly really good. It helped that we let them watch stuff on the portable DVD player, played Disney music, and had lots of snacks.





On the way up we stopped in Las Vegas and spent the night at my Brother Mike and his wife Jenna's house. They were so nice to help us split up the drive that way. We had to make good time in the morning so Scott figured out a way to let Crystal eat breakfast as quickly as possible.



When we finally got there, the kids were really happy to just hang out in the hotel room because they were so sick of the car.


Seth always gets into mischief if you give him a good 3-5 minutes and sure enough he got himself stuck in the suitcase thing.




Since we were so tired we just relaxed at the hotel during the afternoon. We usually go to the beach, but since we drove instead of flying this year we were wiped out. That night we went to Black Angus restaurant.


It was here that we discovered that Seth knew how to balance a spoon on his nose. We couldn't stop laughing. We found out later on that my cousin Roger taught him how one time when my parents were watching him.



Of course you can't go to Black Angus without eating their amazing chocolate cake with TONS of fudge.



The next day we went to Disneyland. I loved all the Christmas decorations!










The first ride we went to was the Haunted Mansion. During the Halloween and Christmas season they center the ride around the movie "The Nightmare Before Christmas" a movie our kids love, so they would naturally love the ride, right? Wrong. Seth was TERRIFIED. For those who've never been, during the beginning part of the ride you step into an elevator where the portraits on the wall seem to get longer and there's a scary voice narrating that you'll never escape, then projections of ghosts float to the ceiling, there's a crash of thunder and lighting, an image appears on the ceiling (since it was Christmas, it was Jack the Skeleton's face) and then the lights go out and it's pitch black. As soon as the lights went out following the thunder Seth screamed "NOOOOOOOOO!!!!" in full terror, and the whole elevator laughed. Other than that the rest of the ride was okay for him. Though he refused to go on it again.










We went on a bunch of rides,the kids loved the Teacups and the Merry go round, and Seth's favorites were Mr. Toad's wild ride, and Winnie the Pooh. Crystal loved Snow White and Peter Pan. We always bring sack lunches to the park so we can save money. The restaurants there are really expensive, and we were already eating out every night. It's fun to find a bench with some shade and have a mini-picnic.









When Seth, who's still only two, got tired of walking, he got to ride in the baby carrier. I wanna take a minute to plug the ERGO baby carrier. It's seriously the best and safest baby carrier on the market. It's the most comfortable carrier for me AND Seth. It doesn't ride up his crotch like a lot of other carriers do, it gently cradles his bum as if someone were actually holding him. We've used it for three years at Disneyland to carry Seth in and every year it does an awesome job. It can carry up to forty pounds, so I can even carry Crystal on it if I wanted to, and it doesn't even feel heavy because of the way it's designed and because there's a waist belt that helps balance the weight of your child on your body so that you're not feeling pain in your back, shoulders or neck. If you go to the website you can see that it's a little pricey, but for us it's been well worth the price. He even fell asleep in it while we were waiting in the FOREVER long line for the Peter Pan ride.



Seth couldn't stop laughing on the merry go round. He even sang "The Lone Ranger" music. (My Dad introduced him to that show).




"Weeeee!"


We watched the Disney Christmas parade that night. Disney always does an amazing job at their parades, there not like the boring stuff we see at home, you can tell they put a lot of money into it, and of course the Christmas music in the background is playing the whole time. At the end of the parade Santa makes an appearance in his sleigh and the kids went nuts for it. The pictures don't ever do it justice.















"Ho Ho Ho! Meeerry Christmas!!!"



We ate dinner at the Cheesecake factory that night. Seth loved the black beans, which was kind of a good thing since riding in the car from the road trip made him constipated.



Every day we took a bus from our hotel to the park so we wouldn't have to pay for parking. Here we are the next day waiting for the bus.




The kids enjoyed riding the bus like it was an actual ride at Disneyland. Every time the bus would start driving, a voice on the intercom would say "The bus is now departing." For some reason, Seth really liked this sentence, and would continue to practice saying "The bus is now departing" over and over again every time we rode the bus. Even randomly walking through the park he would turn to me and say. "Mommy, the bus is now departing" and he would feel smart because he was saying big words. He made me laugh a lot during the whole trip.

Since we had a hopper pass, and we spent the entirety of the previous day in Disneyland, we decided to spend the whole day in California Adventures this time.


We ran into "Sulley" from the movie 'Monster's Inc.' RIGHT after we got off the 'Monster's Inc' ride, so it was sort of perfect. I love the excitement on Seth's face in this picture.


There are a lot of 3D shows in California Adventure. The two we saw were 'The Muppets' and 'Bugs Life.'Again, Seth was TERRIFIED of the Bugs Life show. Since his poor two year old mind still has a hard time discerning pretend from reality, he thought the movie was coming to life and trying to destroy him. To be fair, it is a little intense. A huge evil Grasshopper literally bursts through the walls and threatens to kill everyone in the theater. At one point giant tarantulas lower from the ceiling in an attempt to land on the viewers, and along with smells and bursts of wind and sprays of water that go on during the show, it was all too much for Seth and I had to take him out of the theater before he went hysterical. I took him out into the hall and a Disneyland worker who felt sorry for him game him a "Disneyland Employee" pin he could wear on his shirt, which cheered him up a lot.





Seth holding his pin while sitting in the hall. He's still a little sad here and wouldn't look at the camera, pretending to be distracted by his shoe instead.


Crystal on Crystal on the 'Flicks flyer' ride




During the night we actually crossed back over to Disneyland because we wanted to see the fireworks show. The fireworks were Seth's favorite part of Disneyland I think. We were able to get a really good spot right underneath the castle and the fireworks were so close that Seth kept putting his arms out to try and catch them. People nearby were yet again laughing at him because he kept squealing and laughing because of how happy he was.
After the fireworks the lines get a lot smaller for the rides because a lot of people go home. We were able to get on the "Small world" ride, which usually had a ridiculous line this time of year because of all the Christmas stuff they do to it. Again, these pictures don't really do it justice.




Scott and Crystal on the elephant behind us during the Dumbo ride.


Crystal and Seth posing outside of "Mr Toad's Wild Ride" this was Seth's favorite ride because he got to drive.


On the last and final day, we had to head over to California Adventure again because to see the new "World of Colur" Show, you need to get in line for a "fast pass" in order to get a good viewing spot. The world of color show is fantastic. It's basically the fountain show outside Las Vegas' Bellagio on steroids. Huge colored fountains of water burst into the air with images of beloved Disney Characters projected on them, along with perfectly orchestrated music and timing. The show lasts a half an hour and is well worth the wait.

Scott heading over to get a fast pass




After we got the fast pass we got in line for the famous Toy Story ride. This is one of my favorite rides. Unfortunately since it's most peoples favorite ride, the line was almost an hour long. Here are some pics of us in line:






During the afternoon, we went back to the hotel to take a nap because we were all tired. Seth hadn't pooped in almost 3 days and finally had to go. Unfortunately he's not quite potty trained, but REFUSES to poo where people can see him. He tried to hide his head under the bedtable desk, but it wasn't quite working for him:


He still felt exposed, so I built a blanket fort for him to go in so he could go do his business in his diaper, which he was really happy about.


When we went back, we went and met the Princesses. This is what Crystal had been waiting for the whole trip. She even had her princess dress on, and had the best night ever when she got to meet her idols. It was so cute seeing how excited she was when we were waiting in line to go in. For those who haven't been, it's really nice because your child goes through and can meet and talk to the princesses one on one, and then pose for a picture. It was her favorite night ever.









While we were waiting for the World of Colur show to start, Seth got bored and started acting loopy





All in all it was a successful trip. We had a lot of fun, a lot of laughs and the kids had a blast. Since we've gone every year for the past three years though, we're thinking of taking a break for a while and maybe going again in another 2 or 3 years.

I leave you with the only complete family picture we took. Have a nice day.