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We had a great Christmas season this year and we needed it! This year has been a rough one so we were dearly in need of some good holiday cheer. And we got it! You can always count on Christmas. That's my philosophy for life. Christmas will always be there at the end of the year beckoning to me to last just a little longer. And when I make it there I can breath and release and bask in the happiness that is Christmas. And then somehow I can get up again and make it through another year. Oh thank you Christmas! Thank you so much for being my never failing friend.
We were able to again spend the holidays with both sides of our families which is such an amazing blessing. I don't know if it will always work out this way forever, so we are especially grateful for every year that it does. Audrey got LOTS of crazy fun cousin time and Hannah, still being little, got LOTS of cuddle time with grandmas, grandpas, aunts, and uncles. And Andrew and I got that break from real life that we always need.
We spent the first half of the break with Andrew's family at his sister's house in Layton. It was the first time Audrey started completely leaving our side to go play with her cousins for hours and hours. She loves all the attention from Lynny (except if she's just woken up) who is 4 and Hazel who is almost 2. We hung out with everyone, ate some good food, played games (the sentence/picture game- a Dobbins family favorite now!), talked a lot, and set up Christmas morning surprises together when the kids were all in bed. This was the first Christmas of everyone in the Dobbins family together after missions! Our kids are lucky to have some very fun and crazy and attentive uncles. It was both Cassie's and Hannah's first Christmas as Dobbins and it was so great to have everyone together after so many years. I'm sad we didn't get as many pictures as I wanted. I also am sad that I haven't blogged about Matt and Cassie's wedding earlier in December- it was a GOOD time. We sure do love that Cassie! And Matt. Matt is good too. Sadly we somehow didn't get any pictures with them at Christmas :(
The day after Christmas we jumped on a plane and headed for my home in SF. Sometimes when I go home I can't believe how lucky I was to have grown up there. This little ocean town, right on the coast (literally, my high school was less than a mile from the shoreline) has so much character. So many different kinds of people and things to see, close enough to a big city but far enough away to not overwhelmed by it. I can't even begin to describe the amazing view out my front window. Once when I was young my Uncle Tom was standing by himself looking out the window and he turned to me and said very seriously, "I hope you appreciate this view. Because you're going to miss it someday." This time being home it made me want to cry realizing how very much I do miss it, how very right he was that day. Being so close to the ocean has deeply deeply deeply instilled a love and adoration of nature in me, and a deeply deeply deeply rooted need to spend quiet time in it often. We checked out a children's book from the library one time called "The Specific Ocean." It was about a girl who goes to the ocean on a family vacation and wants so badly to bring part of it home with her. In the end she doesn't because even though the ocean is big, it isn't endless and if she took some of it the ocean would be a little bit less. So we ocean lovers who live far away can only bring it home with us in our memory and in our hearts. And in seashells. I guess that will have to be okay with me for now. Okay enough of my ramblings. I love and miss the ocean. I'll leave it at that for now.
The week with my family was great. All of us were together as well and there were lots of games and loud craziness. 14 people sleeping in one house...just a normal day at the Hanaikes. It was nice to have so much free time but also a lot to do. Went to the Golden Gate Bridge at sunrise, had a big Chandler family get together, visited my Hanaike side of the family, hung out at the beach (a foggy drizzling cool beach, which is my favorite kind ever), saw Star Wars, had a Minute To Win It party, and played Blindfold Karaoke (if you don't know what that is ask me and we will play it!). Andrew and I even got to go out just the two of us one morning. We got a bakery breakfast from Columbos and went and sat on the beach eating and talking. It was like we were young again and didn't have kids- except that of course most of what we talked about was about our kids anyway. We were also able to go to the Oakland Temple for a session, which we haven't done since we were married there. My lovely cousin Becki went through for the first time and I'm so grateful I was able to be there sitting next to my cousins and sisters. Julia and I had some hilarious (and irreverent) moments that I will remember and reminisce about with her forever (aka: make her feel awkward). I seriously love my cousins so very very much. Everyone told me when I was young that I would find my best friends in my own family and I don't think I really believed them until now. I was able to have some really good talks with my mom and dad and Julia which I think I really needed. These connections with my siblings and parents are so important to me. And we all know the saying "There's no place like home" right? I think it should read "There's no place like Mom." Because that's the truth for me.
It was a pretty perfect vacation.
The girls were so cute on the slide that Julia and Mariah wanted to give it a try...it took awhile to get there.
We also got to see some of our best friends The Snowdens! After not seeing each other for almost 2 years they drove down from Sacramento to see us and we were able to spend several hours together and finally meet each other's kids. We felt so dumb after they left that we didn't get a picture all together!
So all in all we had a pretty spectacular Christmas. We are SO grateful for all the wonderful gifts we we received for ourselves and especially for our girls. They are so lucky to have two families that will always love and adore them. And Andrew and I are pretty lucky too. Even though we are the far away cousins we feel that love everyday from both the Dobbins and the Hanaikes.
We were able to again spend the holidays with both sides of our families which is such an amazing blessing. I don't know if it will always work out this way forever, so we are especially grateful for every year that it does. Audrey got LOTS of crazy fun cousin time and Hannah, still being little, got LOTS of cuddle time with grandmas, grandpas, aunts, and uncles. And Andrew and I got that break from real life that we always need.
We spent the first half of the break with Andrew's family at his sister's house in Layton. It was the first time Audrey started completely leaving our side to go play with her cousins for hours and hours. She loves all the attention from Lynny (except if she's just woken up) who is 4 and Hazel who is almost 2. We hung out with everyone, ate some good food, played games (the sentence/picture game- a Dobbins family favorite now!), talked a lot, and set up Christmas morning surprises together when the kids were all in bed. This was the first Christmas of everyone in the Dobbins family together after missions! Our kids are lucky to have some very fun and crazy and attentive uncles. It was both Cassie's and Hannah's first Christmas as Dobbins and it was so great to have everyone together after so many years. I'm sad we didn't get as many pictures as I wanted. I also am sad that I haven't blogged about Matt and Cassie's wedding earlier in December- it was a GOOD time. We sure do love that Cassie! And Matt. Matt is good too. Sadly we somehow didn't get any pictures with them at Christmas :(
The day after Christmas we jumped on a plane and headed for my home in SF. Sometimes when I go home I can't believe how lucky I was to have grown up there. This little ocean town, right on the coast (literally, my high school was less than a mile from the shoreline) has so much character. So many different kinds of people and things to see, close enough to a big city but far enough away to not overwhelmed by it. I can't even begin to describe the amazing view out my front window. Once when I was young my Uncle Tom was standing by himself looking out the window and he turned to me and said very seriously, "I hope you appreciate this view. Because you're going to miss it someday." This time being home it made me want to cry realizing how very much I do miss it, how very right he was that day. Being so close to the ocean has deeply deeply deeply instilled a love and adoration of nature in me, and a deeply deeply deeply rooted need to spend quiet time in it often. We checked out a children's book from the library one time called "The Specific Ocean." It was about a girl who goes to the ocean on a family vacation and wants so badly to bring part of it home with her. In the end she doesn't because even though the ocean is big, it isn't endless and if she took some of it the ocean would be a little bit less. So we ocean lovers who live far away can only bring it home with us in our memory and in our hearts. And in seashells. I guess that will have to be okay with me for now. Okay enough of my ramblings. I love and miss the ocean. I'll leave it at that for now.
The week with my family was great. All of us were together as well and there were lots of games and loud craziness. 14 people sleeping in one house...just a normal day at the Hanaikes. It was nice to have so much free time but also a lot to do. Went to the Golden Gate Bridge at sunrise, had a big Chandler family get together, visited my Hanaike side of the family, hung out at the beach (a foggy drizzling cool beach, which is my favorite kind ever), saw Star Wars, had a Minute To Win It party, and played Blindfold Karaoke (if you don't know what that is ask me and we will play it!). Andrew and I even got to go out just the two of us one morning. We got a bakery breakfast from Columbos and went and sat on the beach eating and talking. It was like we were young again and didn't have kids- except that of course most of what we talked about was about our kids anyway. We were also able to go to the Oakland Temple for a session, which we haven't done since we were married there. My lovely cousin Becki went through for the first time and I'm so grateful I was able to be there sitting next to my cousins and sisters. Julia and I had some hilarious (and irreverent) moments that I will remember and reminisce about with her forever (aka: make her feel awkward). I seriously love my cousins so very very much. Everyone told me when I was young that I would find my best friends in my own family and I don't think I really believed them until now. I was able to have some really good talks with my mom and dad and Julia which I think I really needed. These connections with my siblings and parents are so important to me. And we all know the saying "There's no place like home" right? I think it should read "There's no place like Mom." Because that's the truth for me.
It was a pretty perfect vacation.
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| audrey and isla were actually trying to sleep i guess... |
The girls were so cute on the slide that Julia and Mariah wanted to give it a try...it took awhile to get there.
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| but once they did it was GRAND! |
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| this is what a toddler staying up till midnight looks like. (actually she was the only kid that made it to midnight and she was happy again by then) |
We also got to see some of our best friends The Snowdens! After not seeing each other for almost 2 years they drove down from Sacramento to see us and we were able to spend several hours together and finally meet each other's kids. We felt so dumb after they left that we didn't get a picture all together!
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| audrey and abbey on our beach walk. at least we got a picture of them! |
So all in all we had a pretty spectacular Christmas. We are SO grateful for all the wonderful gifts we we received for ourselves and especially for our girls. They are so lucky to have two families that will always love and adore them. And Andrew and I are pretty lucky too. Even though we are the far away cousins we feel that love everyday from both the Dobbins and the Hanaikes.
Here's to 2016! Big changes are coming........we have high hopes!
1 comment:
Love this perfect little family!
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