Virginia Beach With F and D Families

I have to admit — I was pretty worried about this trip from the start. It honestly felt a bit doomed before it even began. Jamie had invited us to join her family, along with a few others, down in Virginia Beach to use some of their timeshare points. It sounded fun in theory, but everything leading up to it was pure chaos.

One family was in the middle of selling their home and had a last-minute early morning showing — of course, her husband was out of town — so she juggled cleaning the house, wrangling her three little kids, and getting everyone out before the showing started. Another family’s daughter got sick and ended up hospitalized for three nights. Then Jamie’s husband had to leave unexpectedly for work because of a plane crash he was investigating. To top it all off, Jamie lost her keys at church and had to drive all the way home for a spare set.

And then… the weather turned. It was supposed to be in the 70s on Sunday, drop to the 40s on Monday, and hit a freeze warning by Tuesday. At that point, I was mostly just wondering what our family’s disaster contribution would be.

But now that we’re home, I can happily say — it all turned out great.

We started by going to church and then headed straight down to Virginia Beach. Since we were ahead of everyone else (Jamie had to go home for her keys, and Kylie’s crew was stuck at a McDonald’s), we stopped at Sam’s Club to grab some lunch and stock up on food for the weekend. Perfect timing — all four cars ended up pulling into the resort within five minutes of each other.

Our rooms weren’t ready yet, so we headed straight to the beach — just steps from the hotel. The kids had an absolute blast playing on the playground, digging in the sand, and even braving the cold waves (go Christopher, Zack, and Millie!). Afterward, everyone was freezing, so we warmed up at the hotel pool and spent the rest of the evening there.

We capped off the night with delicious pizza, board games, and lots of laughter. For a trip that started off feeling cursed, it turned out to be exactly what we all needed.

 

Andrew's First Spiderman Party

 

When Andrew Became Spider-Man 🕷️

So, plot twist: Andrew was Spider-Man.

No, really. Not in a dream. Not at Comic-Con. At an actual kids’ birthday party.

Here’s how it happened — one of Andrew’s friends has this gig dressing up as characters for little kids’ parties (you know, Spider-Man, Batman, Elsa, probably Baby Shark if the money’s right). When his friend couldn’t make it to a party, he asked Andrew to step in.

Andrew, being the legend he is, said yes immediately.

Fast forward to party day — there’s Andrew, fully suited up as Spider-Man, flipping around like he just swung in from Queens. He even practiced his “superhero moves” in the backyard beforehand (the neighbors were very confused).

Not only did he nail the look, he owned the performance. There were balloon animals, cool tricks, heroic poses, and — most impressively — zero injuries. Andrew’s a total natural with kids — thanks to years of training from his own tiny mentors, Nick and Xander, who’ve shown him exactly how unpredictable small humans can be.

The funniest part? Andrew was genuinely surprised that none of the kids tried to pull off his mask or gang up on him. His words:

“Honestly, I totally would’ve done that as a kid!”

He did get ambushed by a group wielding balloon swords he’d made them (rookie mistake, Spider-Man), but of course, he handled it like a true superhero.

Moral of the story: with great power comes great responsibility… and apparently, a lot of balloon sword fights.

MBES Trunk or Treat

We absolutely love the MBES Trunk-or-Treat! It’s one of our favorite traditions — and definitely Christopher’s favorite event of the whole year. 🎃

It’s always such a popular night that we’ve learned to arrive at least 15 minutes early to avoid being stuck in a super long line. This year was no exception — the parking lot was packed, the trunks were decked out, and the excitement was contagious.

Nick and Xander had both decided (very confidently) that they were sticking with their original costumes — Spiderman and a ninja — until about ten minutes before we had to leave. Classic! We dug through our Halloween bin and managed to pull together two costumes that had all the pieces and still fit. Parenting win!

The boys had an absolute blast and ended up with so much candy that we had to help hold their treat bags by the end of the night. It was another fun, sugar-filled, memory-making Halloween event in the books!

After the Trunk-or-Treat, I headed over to work the concession stand for the high school volleyball tournament. And yes — I went as a referee! I didn’t exactly think through where I was going after Trunk-or-Treat, so I got plenty of laughs (and a few confused questions) from people wondering if I was actually there to officiate the game. 😂 It ended up being a lot of fun, and honestly, I’d totally do it again!

 

Pumpkin Days with Xander

 I was so lucky to be able to volunteer at Xander’s school for Pumpkin Days this year! He was so excited — every morning he’d ask, “Is today pumpkin patch day?” and it just melted my heart.

I was assigned to the “Magic Pumpkin” station, where we made bubbles fizz and foam with baking soda and vinegar. It was messy, chaotic, and so much fun! But my favorite moment, hands down, was when Xander’s class walked in. He scanned the room looking for me, and when he finally spotted me, his whole face lit up. That smile made my heart absolutely soar.

I might have abandoned my station partner a bit so I could join Xander at each activity… but how could I not? I wasn’t about to miss a minute with my sweet boy.

When it came time to pick out pumpkins, Xander proudly chose the biggest one he could find. As soon as we got home, he ran inside to show Christopher his prize. Christopher joked, “Should we cook it?” — and the look on Xander’s face was priceless! He was not on board with that idea. From that moment on, he was extra protective of his pumpkin — even bringing it along to the bus stop to show Nick when he got home.

It was such a fun, joy-filled day, and I’m so grateful I got to experience it with him. These are the moments I never want to forget. 🎃❤️

Halloween

We had such a great Halloween this year! It was a full day — and a wonderful one from start to finish! Once all the kids got home from school, we had dinner and then headed over to the Deans’ for our annual trick-or-treat night with friends from our ward. Their neighborhood is perfect for trick-or-treating… and they even have sidewalks!

After hitting so many houses that the little ones could barely fit any more candy in their bags, we headed back to the Deans’ to trade candy and catch up with the adults. We were having such a great time that we didn’t leave until well after midnight!

Andrew went to a party with some band friends, while Zack was trick-or-treating in the same neighborhood with “the boys.” Kallie surprised us all by starting a family group chat, so we got to talk with her and Ben throughout the night! Ben and his lab team had the best costume idea — they all dressed up as their boss — and it was absolutely hilarious.

What a fun, memorable day. I just love Halloween! 🎃