disneyland. at christmas.

A lovely tradition that I am so thankful to be a part of. The Robertson family's Disneyland day. We do this every year after the park has been decorated for the holidays. A good time was had by all.

It was our niece Phoebe's first time to the park... her first ride was The Jungle Cruise (and I am happy to say we had a wonderful guide... this really does make or break the ride). 

 

Blake and I (since we live so close by) arrived first and found a snow machine that they use in their parades on the fritz and took some picture as the snow fell on Main Street. I met Mary Poppins and that made my day.

 

Blake and I rode the Buzz Lightyear ride when we first arrived and got stopped right in front of one of the secret high scoring spots. Blake hit it enough time to max out the point tallier on the ride. When we got to the end we saw that he had gotten a high enough score to be ranked 2nd for the day (so far). Very impressive. 

 I made this hat the night before and finished making the ear flaps and the very last parts as we pulled in to our parking spot (almost right next to the escalators, might I add).

It really was a lovely day. The air was crisp. It only rained a tiny bit. Probably the risk of rain kept some people at home which made it less crowded than it might have been. Wonderful.

There is a teeny tiny spot... It is a Buzz Lightyear balloon that escaped. To infinity and beyond

In the evening there was a bit of rain. Blake and I were waiting to meet up with the rest of the group (after unsuccessfully going to get coffee-- longer line for caffeine than most rides!) and we sought shelter under  an umbrella in adventureland. I was wearing a lego backpack and this led to us making friends with a lego obsessed 3 year old and his mother. Blake and the little kiddo had a lot in common.

The Happiest Place on Earth lived up to its name that day.

it is here!

O how I love the smell of pine in our apartment. This year we decorated over three different nights.

The first decorating happened the day after Thanksgiving. We got all of our Christmas bins out of the garage and put out several things that go up on the wall or sit on counters. Like advent callendars, candles, and nativity scenes.

On a different night we picked up our tree and rearranged our furniture to make room for the giant, full... well, it is big branched... tree that we found.

A couple days later we got out all of the ornaments and decorated with "Christmas Vacation" playing in the background and hot cocoa with Irish Creme to enjoy.


This is our fourth Christmas as a married couple and so far every Christmas season has been extra busy due to the fact that Blake also has finals during this time. This is why several nights were needed.

The good news is that this is Blake's senior year! Next Christmas will be a holiday season without finals and all nighters. 

That will be a Christmas miracle!

But for now I am just so thankful for  a husband who makes time for things like decorating even when he is super busy and stressed. I am so very lucky.

a little bit of spontaneity

 I believe having an element of surprise and leaving your life and plans open with a bit of wiggle room is good for you.

My husband is in his final year of school at Long Beach State and recently we've been coming to the realization that our time here, in this city, is limited and coming to an end. We have loved living here and have mixed feelings about moving away.

We are excited about the next chapter and moving back to San Diego but aren't sure if we are totally ready. So, the plan is to maximize the time we have left. Of course, being his senior year, Blake is pretty swamped with school projects.

He has, however, been surprising me with making time for all sorts of little spur of the moment adventures.

After a day at work, I arrived home to Blake asking if I wanted to change andhead to beachwood bbq... an amazing place in Seal Beach with amazing food and wonderful beers on tap. We shared smoothered frieds even though the kitchen was closed (they are so stinkin great!) and a couple tasty beers.

Then, a couple days later, customers at Trader Joe's reminded us that Long Beach was having their Christmas parade later in the evening.   

So we headed there after finishing our shifts and enjoyed some coffee while enjoying an event that makes a big city like Long Beach feel very small town-ish.

I love my husband. I love my town. I love little, unexpected adventures. The end.

november the 27th

just a quick note: tomorrow is Cyber Monday and as a result I have a coupon for you.

Use code HURRAY at checkout for 20% off anything and everything!

and now for the real post...

today in photographs.