I'm trying really hard not to gloat...

but after a winter in Warsaw I figure I've earned the right

The weather here in Monterey on November 26 is sunny with a high of 72.

The park is crowded

And yes, these people are playing volleyball with their shirts OFF during Thanksgiving weekend.

It sure beats this...

although I'm sure when the June fog rolls in, I'll be missing the beautiful Warsaw summer.

For now I'm completely content with where I am.

While I was out in KS I got a little history lesson from Nancy about Ben's Grandpa Shaha (you know how I love history). You see, Grandpa Shaha is the patriarch of the clan and all the grandchildren adore and dote on him. But when I married into the family over five years ago, Grandpa Shaha had recently had a stroke, which has rendered him unable to speak and so I feel a little cheated, like I never got to know the Grandpa Shaha that everybody loves.

The Grandpa Shaha that everybody loves

So, here are a few interesting tidbits Nancy shared with me about Grandpa Shaha that I never knew (and please, feel free to correct and revise anything I may have screwed up):

He played the French Horn

His father served in WWI, and he himself served in Korea and Vietnam (that part I did know)

He had two brothers, one who as a young father was hit and killed by a drunk driver

His parents were the typical "Okies" who left the dust bowl region of the US and emigrated west to California during the Great Depression (from KS I believe?)

He attended a military academy in CA where his mom was a cook and his dad was a janitor

He always wanted to be a soldier

He attended Stanford University

He married an uptown girl from Beverly Hills

He was a battalion commander in Vietnam and miraculously saved the life of a co-pilot whose right arm was hit by shrapnel in a Little Bird helicopter. He did this by leaning out the back of the helicopter to hold the co-pilots right arm in place to stop the bleeding while the person sitting next to him held onto his belt loop. Yes, true story.

Upon meeting missionaries, he had a miraculous conversion to the LDS church and gave up his vices of smoking and drinking in no time (that part I knew too).

Anyone else want to share something about Grandpa Shaha that I've missed?

Grandma and Grandpa Shaha with their five children. They take their military heritage very seriously

Grandpa Shaha's posterity

Early Thanksgiving

We had an early Turkey Day with Ben's family, but first I must mention Benny Boy's b-day on November 7. He doesn't look a day older than 25, does he?

Then it was off to Kansas to see Ben's family.

He really has a remarkable family.... all four sons are serving in the military. Joe just got back from a year tour in Iraq (while his wife and two young ones were here on their own) and Steve came home a few months ago from Afghanistan. Between the boys, they have seven deployments... four to Iraq, two to Afghanistan, and one to Bosnia.

All the Shaha clan including seven grandchildren ages 3 and younger stayed under one roof. It actually worked out quite well, not as crazy as I was anticipating. They are all quite attached to their Grandpa Shaha.

Good turkey and good company
Ben making a dorky face
C stuck to her typical Cheerios... she has no idea what she's missing out on in life (that was a crazy string of prepositions).
Lots of video games and rocking out on guitar and drums (failed to get a picture of that, but a staple at any Shaha gathering).
Lots of bonding time for the grandkids
We also had a family photo shoot... this is just a teaser. Isn't it funny that such a male dominated family who is all about the army, football, rock 'n roll, and action movies have six granddaughters and only one grandson? I just love that.
Trying new hairstyles on C
Decorating sugar cookies was a hit with the girls.


And the lone grandson Jack sports his Grandma's old wig from the college years. Ha!
All the Shaha kids except for Dave and Wendy who had to leave early. Do you like the ushanka hat I'm sporting? Ben got that for me in Moscow. Super cool to wear in Poland but not so super cool to wear in California.
And all good things must come to an end. Ben had to fly back early for school so I flew back on my own with the girls... quite the feat, but we made it thanks in large part to this cute little pull along Grandma gave as an early Christmas present to Em. It was a hit! Thanks Pat and Nancy for all the great food and accommodations! We had a super fun time.

Halloween

As you can see, Em really got into character this year. Can't you tell how enthused she is about dressing up?

I couldn't get them to smile for the life of me... but they did spot a plane.
There it is!
And there it goes!

Soooo excited to go trick-or-treating, can't you tell?
Finally, a smile. She spotted a little girl dressed as Cookie Monster.
This is what they were looking at... our neighborhood was jumpin' on Halloween night.
Ben got really into pumpkin carving. Typical Ben. No hearts or kitten faces for his pumpkin.
Polish versionOur neighborhood had some quite grisly displays. This one was awesome.

And some houses really got into it

It took the girls about ten minutes to get from one house to another. They were painfully slow.
C would just want to eat each piece of candy as it was given to her

More creative yards


And back at home, you can see how sugar affects these two girls differently.