Thanksgiving 2019

The day before we were lining up to eat Turkey, we were enjoying the First Grade play about "Bert the Turkey".

Nana, Bop-bop and Carolyn joined our crew for the performance, followed by a trip to the Enchanted Village.

On Thanksgiving morning, we cheered on the Quincy High school cheerleaders.

And then spent the rest of the day, painting sun catchers:

Snuggling babies:

Making Gingerbread Turkeys:

And eating lots of food:

 At the end of the day, we officially declared it the season of Christmas, and Sophia handed out our first card:

The next day was the Quincy Center Christmas Tree Lighting:

And Saturday morning it was time to decorate the Church for Advent beginning the next day:

We closed out Thanksgiving week with the Quincy Christmas Parade on Sunday afternoon:

No Knowing

There was no way of knowing that this fall would include two additional babies in the pumpkin patch.

Or that the baby brought to the pumpkin patch last year would be fishing for candy with us this fall.

This Thanksgiving, I am grateful for the extra chairs that will be at our table. 

There is no way of knowing how many will be at my table or yours next year. 

What I do know is that the value of relationships is not determined by the measurement of  length, but rather the depth of love. 

Colorado 2019

We had celebrated Thanksgivings and Christmases together, but this was our first Halloween.

 It got off to a later than expected start due to a Denver snowstorm.

4:30 am east coast time and these two were still awake when we arrived in Colorado Springs.

The delay was well worth the sweet cousin time.

Including the introduction of two new ones.

The colder weather meant lots of indoor fun,

and some outdoor adventure too.

I had the privilege of being driven by our oldest niece,

to facilitate a girls shopping outing.

Sophia and I got to visit Anna's elementary school during lunch.

And my cousin Kathleen and her kids stopped by for a special visit.

Halloween festivities included pumpkin carving,

trick or treating,

by all ages,

and candy sorting.

Before heading back home, we got to visit my graduate school roommate Desi, and 

ride the airport train with Godmother Carolyn who along with her friend Leighann made our adult to child ratio 1:1!

Sometimes all it takes is shaving cream

Believe it or not, this was one of our finer moments. 

That's right, naked children covered in shaving cream is where we excel. 

The moments leading up to it were a struggle.

A discordant symphony of whining and crying about something which was quickly forgotten by all. 

They needed a sensory mess to decompress and I needed the ability for it to be washed away once they were done.

When someone is your best friend but also takes your parent's attention and sometimes your candy, it can be hard. When this person inexplicably delights in annoying you it can be frustrating. And when you have only been on the planet for 4 or 6 years, coping strategies are still very much under development. 

We all have those moments when we annoy or frustrate one another. I am thankful for shaving cream, and that they have each other. 

New Hampshire 2019

In the past several months, we had many New Hampshire adventures.

Most recently, we celebrated cousin Blake's 17th birthday. 

A month earlier it was Jason's 4th birthday with his Pepe, Grammie, Grandpa, Uncle Mark, Aunt Becca and Cousins: Blake, Ethan, Aaron and Madison.

Sophia wanted to give him presents, so she went "shopping" in our basement and one of the items she selected was a Music box my Dad had given to me.

We also made a day trip to Canobie Lake Amusement Park:

Our August adventure was our third annual trip to Family Camp, including a day at Grammie and Grandpa's house: