Josh Turns Twelve

Believe it or not, Josh is twelve-years-old. He's definitely growing up quick, although sometimes he doesn't think it is quick enough. 

Josh invited five friends to celebrate his birthday with him. We went to a local bowling alley for laser tag and arcade games. Afterwards there was a sleepover. Six boys plus Carley. It was a very crowded house and a long night but Josh had a really great time. 

This photo was taken and printed by the staff at LazerX.

No cake. Josh picked peanut butter chip and chocolate brownies.

Weekend Getaway: Fort Bragg

Wendy and Chris got married last year at a lighthouse near Fort Bragg, CA. This year they rented the light keeper's house again and offered to share. Since it was the first weekend of Spring Break, the kids and I made a quick trip (48 hours) over to Fort Bragg for some coastal fun.






Saturday was so windy.


The sun broke through sometimes but it seemed like in an instant it could tuck behind rain clouds that would open up.






The weather was a bit unpredictable.


While at Glass Beach, the skies darkened. Thunder and lightening started out off the coast so we slowly started meandering toward the cars.


And then BAM, hail storm. There was nowhere to hide and the hail hurt! It was short lived but followed by a downpour. By the time we all got back to the car, our coats, sweatshirts, and jeans were soaked through. It was actually a bit humorous.


Sunday was April 1st. You know, April Fool's Day. I have been pulling food pranks on the kids every April Fool's Day for years now. Usually it's something delicious that looks like a different food than they expect. This year, since we were out of town, it was easier to pull the gross prank. For breakfast they got pancakes made with bitters and covered in corn starch and baking powder. Carley didn't notice at first and was prepped for another bite when Josh got a mouthfull. 


After a good laugh, the kids got to eat real pancakes with real powdered sugar. 


After the stormy weather on Saturday, the ocean was really big, beautiful but violent on Sunday. We had planned on a Sunday afternoon whale watching boat trip but the company cancelled the trip due to the waves.





Sunday was beautifully sunny and we enjoyed it anyway. 



The kids and I went back down to Glass Beach and successfully found decent-sized pieces of sea glass without being chased out by hail and a downpour. 


Then we made a quick trip to MacKerricher State Park (we camped there in 2010) to walk the boardwalk trail and check out sea lions before our 4-hour drive home.

Easter

Can you believe it? Two posts in three days time. And a post about Easter the day after Easter. Whoa.

Plus this post marks 301 posts on Thiel Family Happenings. 301! Whoa.

We spent Easter morning with my aunt, Janeice, family and friends at a nearby school. There was an egg hunt, egg bowling and lots of hanging out. Walt joined us for an hour before he headed home to go to bed.

The afternoon was spent at Sarah's house. More family, friends and more Easter fun.The kids had a blast with all the games Sarah planned for them.

We had a wonderful Easter day just having fun with the people we love.

Graduation Dinner in San Francisco

Walt turned out from his apprenticeship last May but his union only holds graduation dinner once a year in March. Walt and I sent the kids to our friends' house and spent that Saturday night at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco to attend the dinner and celebrate his graduation.



Photo by Lori Paladino



I didn't take my camera with me because I didn't want to drag it around the semi-formal dinner so we relied on our cell phones to capture the night. Please forgive the poor quality.



Walt's brother, Chuck, and his girlfriend, Shannon, spent the evening celebrating with us.



This is Walt's chief, Willy. Even though Walt doesn't like to be the center of attention or have people go out of their way for him, it was nice to have several people attending his graduation just for him.



We all had a great night.

Congratulations Walt.