Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Thanksgiving Weekend 2016

Rocky and Daisy had no school on Wednesday so they got to stay home and annoy Ike.  He loves his sisters but he also enjoys his alone time.  His new thing is that he squeezes himself into the tiniest box he can find.  He isn't that concerned if the box had previously been filled with socks or underwear.  He just throws all that aside and climbs in.
 We have a tradition of seeing a movie at the movie theater since there is always something good that comes out this weekend. This year was a treat.  We got to see Moana and we all loved it.

This year Spencer View Thanksgiving went to a whole new level.  A few of the families worked on the decorations and transformed the place.  We had incredible food and so much fun playing games and making friendship bracelets.  It was one of my favorite Thanksgiving meals ever.


The Turkey Train Rides Again



My Eugene sis, Nicole.  This is one of my favorite photos ever.
 This Thanksgiving was truly delightful.  I got to go on a long run with my dear friend Laurie in the early morning on the Ridgeline Trail.  I spent all morning hanging out with my family and cooking in the kitchen leaving just enough time for a little nap before the meal.  I spent the afternoon with friends eating and eating and eating so many delicious things and so many desserts.  And I got to end the night snuggled up with Brandon watching Miss. Fisher's Murder Mysteries.  I love this holiday.  I have so many things to be grateful for and am so very blessed.
 We went to the Science Factory so we could take the traditional family photo.  But, we forgot that maybe you should look at what your kids are wearing if you are going to take a picture.
 We had planned on going in and enjoying the museum but when we realized that our family pass didn't work there we switched gears and went to the Natural History Museum where the pass is good.  It was a success!

 Scientists in action.

 And we finished it off by doing our Christmas nails.  Rocky took the picture so she isn't in it.  She also took 15 pictures of her own feet, which explains why she has limited access to my phone.


 The Buttercup wig is the best toy we have ever had.

Ike adores the warm laundry.  Before I can finish pulling the clothes out of the dryer he is snuggled up in them.  It is the one time in his week that he is awake and still.  Every time he does it I want to jump in there with him.

Yep, that pretty much sums her up.
 This picture of the kids watching the election results come in kind of makes me feel a little queasy.  I wanted to leave it out but I like to remember back to that happy time before the world came falling down.  Of course I am just being dramatic and we all hope the best for Mr. Trump.  And if you love him I still love you, but he just really isn't who I wanted to win.  I was so excited about voting for a woman and when Hillary didn't take the Whitehouse by a storm I was absolutely shocked and really bummed out.  Since this blog is the archive of our family history I am including the photo.  It will be interesting when I come back to it in 10 years and see if my mind has changed.  Eight years ago I posted about how excited I was to see President Obama elected and I still go back and feel that same way.  Now I just feel really sad that we can't keep him and Michelle for another 4 years.
I hesitate to even mention politics on this blog because some people that I respect greatly will disagree with me.  But in the end I think it is amazing that we can all decide and vote according to what we think is right.  This election, more than any other has made me realize how lucky I am to be able to vote.  I am even feeling grateful that people who disagree with me can vote too because everyone deserves a voice.  In the end I think most of us all want the same things but we all just have different ideas on how to accomplish them.
And I still feel so lucky that I was able to vote for a woman for the president of the United States, even if she didn't win.


Somebody found the brownies.

Jim came out to Eugene for Comic Con and he and Brandon spent all evening talking about costume making.  I thought Brandon's Halloween costumes were amazing but the stuff that Jim does is out of this world.  It was so fun to see him and we felt so lucky that he stopped by.

Aren't they the cutest cousins?
 The amount of annoyance that Ike gets when people are in his space is the exact amount that Rosy insists on being close to him.


 She is my snuggle baby and when I try to move an inch she moves right with me.  It is especially awesome when she falls asleep and snores right into your ear.


Black Beans
 A miracle has occurred!  The construction on our apartment finally ended!  I am actually a little sad to see the construction workers go because they were super nice.  Rosy was sad because she told me that she thought they were cute.  I told her not to get any ideas.
They brought all this big equipment to carry away all the materials and Ike was totally into it.  We gleefully waved good riddance to the materials and extra fencing.  Our grass is already starting to grow back.
 I got back from a run the other day only to find that I had left my keys in the door.  Cool.

 No wonder I love going on a run with the double jogger.  Seriously, could there be two cuter passengers?
 Sometimes when I am with my family I feel like my soul is going to burst with happiness.
 I know that this little cartoon that I made for Laurie's birthday is not very good but it makes me so happy.  I just want to remember it.  I think the thing that I really like is my cool friend, but I also think it is fun to pull out the watercolors for myself, even if it is just to mess around.
 Rocky went to Activity Days and came home with a pie that she made.  She was so proud of herself.  I was proud of her too, even more so when she let us take it to share with our neighbors.  I expect a lot out of her because she is the oldest and because she has such a good soul.  Sometimes I take her for granted and I am taking this moment to record just how much I appreciate my firstborn child.
 She is a great big sister.

 Ike keeps himself entertained by playing games on his plastic phone.  I keep waiting for him to get mad that the screen never changes but he doesn't seem to mind at all.  If it is just a solid picture does this still count as screen time?  Do you think I can keep him fooled until he is a teenager?

Rosy behind the scenes getting Sailor in costume.

Halloween 2016 The Princess Bride


 This may be my favorite Rigby family costume yet.  It might be because I just look so good in a goatee.


 Sometimes Brandon is just the best dad ever.  He worked so hard making those swords and all the costumes and it was so much fun.


What? That's not a creepy dude, that is my little girl.

 Sometimes I think that preparing for Halloween is much more fun than the actual day.  This is especially true at our house where Brandon does all the costume making.
 This year the weather was perfect and the girls were big enough to actually do some of the carving themselves.  I already knew that kids can bring magic back into holidays but I am pleasantly surprised as they get older how much actual work they can get done.



 We have had this bird's nest above our door for a couple of years now.  The birds have abandoned it but I always hope that they will come back.  I need to give up on the idea though, especially now that the construction crew just went ahead and painted it as they were doing the rest of the trim.

What do kids do when they get a day off school?  Play school of course.  Rocky is a strict task master.  Usually the younger kids play and it is a little less serious but when the big kids comes out and makes her appearance the littles all fall in line and get studying.  Bijoux is a little bit more understanding.  The girls love this game but to tell you the truth, Ike really isn't into it.  He wants to run around and play but I lock him in his high chair so that I can get dinner ready.  Maybe that is why when he gets let out that he hits me with the tinker toys.

At the Art Museum

Babies in the Wild
 It took me about a week to figure out what Ike had gotten into but then I found a watercolor set that was missing the blue.  Mystery solved.

Jungle Book movie night. Even Ike is into it.
 After the rough soccer season I almost gave up on sports forever but Rocky begged to do volleyball.  She started out way behind the other girls on her team but it has been fun to watch her skills improve and the enthusiasm she has for learning.  She is an eternal optimist.
The Cheering Crew

Game Stance