Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - November 25, 2023

 

Ethan and Ehlana:

Happy 9^th Birthday, Sebastian!

Another early update is needed today because we’re hosting a gang of girls – and tween couples – at our house tonight while Sebastian has a lot of the boys spending the night with him for his birthday and then there is another group of teens at the Carringtons.  A girls-only night was considered, but Naomi ‘won’ that non-battle; so Aiden, Aaron, and I are being allowed to stay – though we’re being drafted to do the work like keeping snacks and drinks supplied during the Christmas movie marathon and mini-makeover fun that the girls will get to after we get back from Sebastian’s birthday dinner.  We’re currently getting cleaned up and ready for our guests after getting home from the Christmas tree farm, but we also need to cover the rest of the story from yesterday; so let’s rewind and do that!

Dinner at Cassie and Michael’s was an adventure that wasn’t always fun for good reasons thanks to Zack, Eli, and the guys they got to mess around with them with games and pranks.  The youngest kids thought that they were hilarious, though, and that just goaded them on to lower-lows.  Fortunately, most of the food options weren’t seriously-messy, so we didn’t need to hose down the house during the clean-up, but we did have a lot of work; and that gave the boys time to get into more trouble upstairs while multi-tasking video gaming.  Our evening entertainment ranged from that gaming to live music to Christmas movies.  Most of the toddlers ended up getting collected by their parents or grandparents instead of staying with us all night; the teens all moved on to other homes after staying with us until fairly-late; and the kids were two to a guest room with a bit of spill-over into the family room that had Brianna, Leah, and Hailey nesting with us – the three tween couples that still went with co-ed sofa sleepovers even with the house full of kids.

Sebastian was one of the boys staying with us last night; so Cassie and Michael led the way to get his birthday off to a happy start because his parents were busy with their own house full of weekend guests.  We also still went with Tai Chi by the river that was frosty but easier to do compared to trying to do that workout with a house full of kids.  Having extra exercise buddies was great; and then all of the work on either side of our morning meal was a mix of fun and mess that we won’t add commentary for just in case you might be eating while reading this in the future and lose your appetite or worse!  Moving on from that thought, we managed to help Sebastian with a happy start to his day with a few gifts to go along with the food; the clean-up took quite a while; and then most of us needed to move on to our own homes or elsewhere for the rest of the morning while Cassie and Michael ended up cleaning their house without any help.  Yes, some of us offered, but then we had our own chores to get to for the morning; and that kept us busy through to lunchtime.  For Ehlana and I, that meal was soup and turkey sandwiches with Mom and Dad; we met up with part of the gang heading to the Christmas tree farm at the Carringtons’ home; and hit the road by twelve-thirty.

The Christmas tree farm is one of our favorite places to visit; and it was even-better today with so many people along for the adventure – including a lot of parents and families of the kids attending Sebastian’s party.  It might seem like an unusual birthday destination, but Sebastian loved getting to pick out trees with his buddies as well as his family; and all of the other activities that continue to expand every year now kept us entertained.  The special hot drinks and Christmas treats were as amazing as always; and we collectively put a visible dent in the store supplies by the time we headed for our homes with the trees and the rest of our Christmassy treasures and treats!  Aiden and I helped out with the tree deliveries that were loaded up on several trucks; that gave Ehlana more time to get cleaned up; and now we’re each changed and nearly-ready to head over to the Ayres’ home for Sebastian’s birthday dinner – once we finish getting the lounge set-up for the guests we’ll be bringing home with us.  Before we move on, we should mention that the weather was decent today but cold with another near-freezing high.  That worked for giving us the right feel for our Christmas tree farm adventure without bad weather to mess with it; so we’re very happy even though we would have loved another warm-weather blast too.  We should also mention that pretty much all of our collective families went with us today, and that was great, but we didn’t get to spend a lot of time with most of them – including Cassie and Michael.  For them, that was because they were also taking care of Sierra, Stuart, and Luke; so they spent more time with the young parents, their kids, and some of their own friends that came along for the fun.  Ehlana and I mostly hung out with our favorite tweens, some of the teens, and a parent or ten.  We had to deal with some Zack and Eli ‘fun’ along the way too, but didn’t get put on kid-control because there was more than enough adult support thanks to Sebastian’s birthday plans.

That hardly covers everything we’ve done since our last update, but we need to get going soon; so that’s all for today.  We still have one more day to go for this holiday weekend – along with the rest of the adventures for tonight, so stayed tuned for those stories; and we’ll get back to living them!

Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - November 24, 2023

 

Ethan and Ehlana:

We’re getting ready to head over to Cassie and Michael’s house for the rest of the day – and help them out with a kid night with a small gang of younger cousins and friends; so we need to make this quick and get back to the fun again.

Starting from yesterday, Ehlana and I had fun with the brunch at home that Cassie and Michael joined us – and Mom and Dad – for; and that we kept light so that we’d all be ready for major dinners by mid-afternoon.  We all split up after that – though we helped with taking loads of food to Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s along the way to Naomi’s house for me and Aiden’s place for Ehlana.  We still spent some time together because Naomi and I took her cousins to the park to play at around noon; Aiden and Ehlana did the same – though in their case; the cousins were all local; and half of them were older.  Cassie and Michael were there too, but we only had cameo moments with them; since they were busy with next-gen kids and some of their parents.

Naomi and I were kept busy with her cousins for the Thanksgiving dinner after we got home; had a blast; and the food was awesome too!  I won’t pretend that the clean-up wasn’t a lot of work, but we had fun too; and then it was back to entertaining the kids in the house – and some of the adults too; since Naomi and I were drafted for some musical entertainment.  Naomi’s family stayed together until late in the evening; we eventually tired out the kids in the house; and then I ended up staying for the night because we actually fell asleep on a sofa in the family room without doing that on purpose for a change! ;^)

Ehlana’s Thanksgiving was a bit different, but that was mostly because Aiden’s parents needed to have an early night ahead of the Black Friday shopping day at the bakery.  Their dinner was bigger with both the Draper and Reynolds clans in the house, but they had more help for the clean-up too; and then their evening was quieter because their guests headed out by early-evening.  Ehlana still stayed for the night; and they definitely didn’t have an accidental sofa sleepover!

Since Aiden’s parents were at work early this morning, Ehlana didn’t have any trouble talking him – and Hailey – into going to the breakfast buffet at the Inn ahead of the shopping adventure.  Naomi’s parents did the same with everyone in their house too before my future mother-in-law needed to get to the salon; and that was a popular choice for the hometown Proctors and most of the Johnson clan – though they didn’t all get to the Inn at the same time.  I should mention that Naomi and I met up with Ehlana and Aiden for Tai Chi by the river that was sub-freezing and frosty; so we really enjoyed the hot food options for breakfast.

The shopping took all morning, and while the girls had a lot more fun; even the guys have more fun now that we have the Galleria and added food options for snack breaks.  We ended up with a small gang of cousins and friends while making our way around town, and while we split up now and then when the girls didn’t need us along for some of the stops; some highlights included all of the Galleria stores; we found out that our Christmas album sales are number one today for local artists at Spinners and the studio; and we even managed a bit of Christmas-gift shopping along with the personal purchases that were mostly to take advantage of the sales and discounts.

The parents didn’t try to keep everyone together for lunch.  Naomi’s Dad decided to go with Pizzeria pizza for the gang he needed to feed at home; and that’s entirely why he had added kid and tween guests that included Ehlana, Aiden, and Zack.  We won’t scare you with that story; so just be glad that you weren’t there – if that could have been an option for anyone reading this journal in the future!  Aiden and I helped with the pizza pick-up and delivery; all tweens were on-duty for kid control during the meal; and we only failed in that we had a bigger clean-up to deal with after Zack and Eli were finished with their food games.  After that blast of work and mess, it was time to go out and play for a couple of hours.  It didn’t warm up much today – and basically stayed near-freezing for the wind-chill, but that didn’t keep us from bundling up and heading to the park again for some fresh air.  Some of the gang wanted to bike and we helped to make that happen, but we stayed on-foot today; mostly hung out at the playground or at the football field; and the one difference from previous years is that Aiden and I were among the football players for one of the scrimmages.  No, we were not up against Lee and Kyle Landry – they played in a different game with adults and teens, but I did get teased about how far I’ve come since back when Michael, Tim, and Kyle would carry me around for ‘special plays’ when I was a toddler!  There was a bit of that with a couple of the next-gen kids today, but I wasn’t in on any of that; and will only add that the team that Aiden and I were put on won our scrimmage.

That pretty much brings us up to now.  We’ve split up to pack and get ready for our night at Cassie and Michael’s house; and now we need to get over there to help with making dinner for the gang that might include some teens that won’t also be staying the night – depending on how many of the youngest kids want to stay instead of going back to their parents for the night.  We’ll have all of those stories for you with the next report, and we really do need to go now; so we’re out of here!

Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - November 23, 2023

 

Ethan and Ehlana:

Happy Thanksgiving!

This update is very early because we’re going to be busy – and split up – for the rest of the day; and might not be able to offer a report later today or tonight.

It was chilly this morning – around freezing again, but we went outside for Tai Chi anyway; and then we only had hot drinks and a snack because we’re going to have brunch with Cassie and Michael soon before splitting up for various holiday celebrations at a handful of houses.  Ehlana and I will be with Aiden or Naomi respectively, but we’ll spend some time together too; and expect to hang out with some cousins and friends when we can too.  The forecast is for a high of around fifty, so outdoor play time is likely, but we’ll let you know how that goes for us with our next update.

For now, we need to go and help Mom and Dad with making brunch and then spending time with Cassie and Michael before they’ll be busy with the Bassett clan for a lot of the afternoon.  That seems funny to us because Sophia and Aaron will be at that dinner too – though maybe that should feel strange for Ehlana; since Aaron and I will be sharing Thanksgiving dinner with our girlfriends and their families while she’s the exception and spending the day with her boyfriend and his family instead! ;^)

Moving along, there really isn’t anything else to write about for our day-so-far; so we’re out of here and back to our ‘real-world’ adventures!

Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - November 22, 2023

 

Ethan and Ehlana:

Happy 1^st Birthday, Aaron Spencer!

We didn’t have any involvement in Aaron’s special day, but Cassie and Michael dropped off a gift for him and visited with Reid and Lily while out doing some running around that was mostly for Mom and Aunt Leanne to pick up groceries and other supplies for the holiday weekend.

This update needs to start with the rest of our story from yesterday; so let’s get to it.

Dinner with Cassie, Michael, and our four favorite tweens was great; we all pitched in for the clean-up; and then our evening entertainment included a practice for Naomi and the Holiday Harmonies that Cassie and Michael joined in on for a few songs; a Christmas movie; and then Jacuzzi time for the girls while the boys played video games.  After that, we stayed up too-late with some quality cuddle and chat time that Cassie and Michael stayed with us for; and then the co-ed sofa or floor-nest sleepover was more of a nap than a good night of sleep.  Tai Chi by the river for eight was chilly and fun; the hot breakfast that Michael cooked for us was great; and then the girls had more hair and make-up play time while the guys cleaned up that also took long-enough that Cassie needed to give us a ride to school to get us there on time.

Our academic adventures can’t really be called that; since we basically just played and cleaned up a bit so that the school can transition to Christmas themes starting next week.  We did have fun, though, and then we were set free for the four-day break.  We didn’t get to talk to Jeremy before he left, but saw Jaimie and Micah pick him up from school and head out to Granite Park.  The Everetts are there tonight too; while Violet, Dillon, and their kids are in Woodvale for the weekend.  We obviously never need to travel on holidays, but we did have fun with Naomi and Aiden after school; Grandma, Grandpa, Cassie, and Michael were all with us for dinner; and then we all went visiting after the clean-up.  We checked in with the Ayres’ clan first and their incoming weekend guests.  About half of Aunt Deborah’s family were there before we moved on to the Carringtons’ home; and the same was true for the gang that Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne will have at their place this weekend.  One of the highlights for that visit was getting to see Jonathan and his family.  Georgia is a year old now; Brianna wants to keep her – and send Zack home with Jonathan and Savannah; and Ehlana and Naomi spent a lot of time with the girls while Aiden and I tried to keep Zack out of trouble with some video gaming.

Naomi needed to go home when her aunt, uncle, and cousins arrived; so I went along to visit with them too while Ehlana and Aiden stayed with Mom and Dad for another hour or so before Aiden needed to be home too.  While Naomi hasn’t had as-close a relationship with her York cousins, I think that is going to change starting this weekend.  Gerald is nine, and might be scaring Naomi with how well he was getting along with Eli tonight.  Yvonne is eight now, and while nearly-five years between them is still a lot; Yvonne was happy to hang out with Naomi; and that is a change compared to her previous need to stay close to her Mom or Aunt Liz.  We’re going to see about getting Yvonne to spend more time with Brianna this weekend too; since Naomi really does want to do as asked and help her cousins to have a happy hometown holiday!

I got home about a half-hour after Mom, Dad, and Ehlana – and no, that wasn’t entirely because of my goodnight kisses with Naomi!  Maybe that would have been true if not for Eli and Gerald, but they entertained themselves and Naomi’s family by making sure that we didn’t get a chance for a ‘real’ goodnight embrace; and we eventually gave up and conceded defeat.  Since getting home, Ehlana and I had a chat and snack break with Mom and Dad; bath or Jacuzzi time was next on the list; and now we’re winding down toward nap time with the usual computing and twin chat time.  We’ve had a really good day and we’re ready to get some sleep to be ready for Thanksgiving; so that’s all for this report!

Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - November 21, 2023

 

Ethan and Ehlana:

We’re going to Cassie and Michael’s house now; so this is a micro-update.  Tai Chi by the river was cold, but we’re still enjoying the outdoor time and then a hot breakfast with Mom and Dad before school.  Our academic adventures included more music fun with the younger kids; and we’re mostly just wrapping up lesson modules this week – which is easy for us; since we’re basically done all of the work already.  Band practice after school was fun; we’ll be ready for the Christmas parades and concerts; and that’s pretty much all we have for our day-so-far.  The fun will really get started now; adding Sophia and Aaron to our little group is especially-great when we get to spend time with Cassie and Michael; and that is partly-because Michael and Sophia get to have more cousins-time than they’ve had in years.

Okay, we really need to go, since we are just transitioning to our night out; need to share hugs and kisses with Mom and Dad on our way out; and don’t want to be late for dinner!  Stay tuned or flip the digital page in the future and read on; since we’ll have the rest of our story for today with our next report.

Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!