had a turkey; did some stuff

The SJ-based Jacobs went to Seattle for the week of Thanksgiving to visit the AZ-based and SEA-based Jacobs. We were greeted with perfect weather, no drops of rain. A lot was packed into the few days we were there.

The first evening, we went to dinner and met my sister's boyfriend. I have only ever met two of my sister's boyfriends and they both were poop. (No offense, Barrie.) Jonah is the latest and has been for some time. He should be given a medal for being able to handle my sister for so long. Seriously, he seems like a good chap.

On Wednesday, we went to a winery that offered nothing worth finishing and then followed that with trip to the Red Hook brewery. "Best $1 EVER SPENT!" Who says the dollar isn't worth shit. We got drunk off decent beer for a dollar while listening to an annoying guide.

That evening, we went to an Italian restaurant, which was decent, and had Captain Jack Sparrow as our waiter. He must have been on something because I couldn't help but feel sea sick every time he came to the table. He constantly moved back and forth and dipped in and out. In the end, he offered me some Grappie or something. This is a very potent drink and I had to enlist the help of another soldier (Jonah) to make sure we left no wounded.

Thanksgiving was nice. We ate food that fits the holiday and everyone helped out to make it, even Gracelyn. Unfortunately, after this, I had to watch Private Practice with more than Amanda. I hate this show. But, it is more bearable than watching Grey's Anatomy with 3 chicks. I HATE this show!

Friday, we went down to Pike's Place, the giant Seattle Farmers market and watched the fish fly and admired the the gorgeous food. We tried some chocolate linguini which was clever. We even jumped into a maritime museum where Gracelyn loved the water exhibit with the boats.

Saturday was another day in downtown Seattle. We spent most of the day near the Space Needle and went to the Children's Museum. This was a very good museum, better than the one in SJ. It had too many things to do for Gracelyn. (We simply couldn't get to them all.)

Then, the highlight of the trip. I got some sort of food poisoning right before our plane. I visited more public restrooms in the span of 4 hours than I care to admit. And, while all of this was happening, Gracelyn puked in the security line and then again on the airplane. Holy shit. I was glad to take a shower and go to bed.

Some random photos from the week...

Latest addition to the Costco team...

Making some fushe...

Prepping for terrible television...

Unloading the fish from the deadliest catch...(Maritime Museum)

Don't say Picasso, say Gracelyn...(Children's Museum)

halloween fun

Hooray for Halloween! The day before "All Hallows Eve", Gracelyn and I went to a pumpkin patch, where we picked out a few pumpkins for our decorations (see the post entitled "sorry...again..." for a picture of the pumpkin family we chose...baby pumpkin, mommie pumpkin and daddie pumpkin!). Here are some pictures of Gracelyn having a grand old time at the pumpkin patch!

On Halloween, we went trick-or-treating with the Williams/ Cooper/ Allen/ Low/ Clark/ Moore Family. The babies (Gracelyn, Max, and Molly) were dressed in a safari theme; Gracelyn was a giraffe, Max and Molly were monkeys. The big kids (Kelyn, Will, and Marina) decided to go for the scarier costumes - a dead bride-monster, a dead ballerina, and an evil viking. All the kids had a great time! Afterwards, we went back to the Williams' house for some of Lou's delicious spaghetti. Halloween is so much fun when you are with friends!

Max, Molly and Gracelyn

Gracelyn and Kelyn

Trick-or-Treat!!!

This little giraffe is passed out!

weekend in paradise...er, i mean, groveland

The weekend before Halloween, we packed up the car and drove up to Groveland for some much-needed rest and relaxation. For those of you unfamiliar with California geography, Groveland is a teeny, tiny town about 45 minutes outside of Yosemite. My mom and dad, Billy, Megan, Judd, Gracelyn and I enjoyed a wonderful weekend up there. A friend of the family recently remodeled his cabin in Groveland, and he was generous enough to let us stay there for the weekend. (Note: I use the term "cabin" here very loosely, since it was in actuality closer to a dream home than a cabin! With a bedroom on the main floor, three more upstairs, another huge one down below, four spacious bathrooms, hardwood floors and granite countertops everywhere, this place was amazing!!) The house is set back in this cozy residential area, with a backyard that opens onto a private lake. Yes, we found ourselves in paradise, and no, we weren't ready to leave when the weekend ended.

Saturday morning, we drove into Yosemite where we feasted at the Ahwahnee Hotel (we missed the breakfast, but arrived just as they were opening back up for lunch). Then we drove/ walked around a bit, looking at the beautiful scenery that Yosemite is famous for. We saw Half Dome from several different angles (thanks, Dad, for that one! That bus ride was awesome! hehe...), hiked for a bit on the trail near the Falls, and even took a picture of all of us sitting on a fallen redwood tree beside the trail. The drive back home was very quiet, since almost everyone passed out from the combination of full tummies, mountain air, and walking.

The next day, we had breakfast in the cabin, relaxed on the deck, went out on the lake in the canoe, and got ready to leave. :-( It was an amazing weekend, but next time, we're going to make sure we can stay for a week, at least! Two days in paradise just isn't enough!

The view from one of the cabin decks

My dad and Gracelyn in Yosemite (Half Dome is in background...you can't see it)

Billy and Gracelyn washing up after dinner

The private lake (Billy, Judd, Gracelyn and I are in the canoe)

sorry...again...

So, October came and went...without a single new blog post from the Jacobs Family! We suck. We know. Get ready, though, cuz I'm about to release a few new posts in a row. These are long overdue. Our deepest apologies for our neglect of the site.