A "Witch" Way Did They Go?

To Salem, of course! 

We learned about witches and the history of Salem.  The we had lunch and headed back home.  What a fun day we had with our cousins.

Thanksgiving 2019

One more critical post before 2019 comes to a close:  Thanksgiving.  This was a record-breaking year:  three tables of family and friends (27 people in all, for those who are counting). 

What did it take to pull this off?

• 3 three sets of china, with many thanks to MLG for schlepping MLGG's set all the way from NY
• two turkeys on 1 pellet smoker
• 12 carnival squash
• 6 bags of dried bread (for stuffing)
• enough butter to make a cardiologist faint
• the right crowd to make it all worth the effort

Here are some fun photos from the meal:

Special thanks to MLD, Nicole and everyone who pitched in to make this evening a success!

"Unwrapping"

Thanks to today's technologies, it's possible to ship a gift overnight.  While that's wonderful for the gift receiver, the gift giver misses out on the excitement. 

With the help of a smartphone and this blog, problem solved (although a wee bit late):

Gift #1:

And then Gift #2

Thank you!!!!

Catch Up?

Is it even possible to catch up from the last few months?  We'll give it our best shot. 

Speaking of best shots, here's Adam giving it his all during his first attempt at pitching during a game.  He lasted the whole inning. 

The same could not be said for MLM's smartphone battery.

Year Four

My goal before the end of 2019?  Post photos from Tate's birthday.  With this post, goal is accomplished!

We jumped on in with our friends and had a blast!

Yes, this is an upside down photo, but that's where I had to stand to capture the birthday boy when we sang to him...

Sleeping Beauties

I never tire of watching these two sleep.

I mean, sure, I'd like to be sleeping too, but....  there are photos to be snapped!

Trip up North

We hopped in the car one late fall afternoon with our au pair, Nicole, to visit a street festival in Gloucester.

Our pirate fell asleep on the way there:

Once we got there, everyone had a fantastic time learning about knots, sailing, and all sorts of fun stuff:

First Day of School

Yes, loyal readers, it's been a busy fall.  So busy that you're still waiting to see photos from the first day of school.  Happy to announce that your wait is over!

Diana's Baths

On our trip to NH, we stopped at Diana's Baths, a waterfall in North Conway.  It was a short hike to a spectacular set of falls that the kids romped around in for quite a few hours.  Next time we'll bring a picnic and make a full day of it.

Midway through the short hike, we had a small problem:  Tate's shorts.  They kept falling down.

No problem!  MLD to the rescue!  He whipped out some twine and his knife (because doesn't everyone everyone carry this for emergencies?) and voila!  Fixed.

Repair in process

Detail of the finished product

Summer Travels, Part 2

Yes, school has already started and you're anxiously awaiting the "first day of school" photos.  Well, you're going to have to wait a bit longer because I'm not finished sharing the summer's excitement.

We also had long vacation to New Hampshire!  It seems that no New Englander escapes childhood without visiting North Conway at least once to visit: Storyland!

Sometimes it was hard to tell who was having more fun:  Daddy or the kids?

What a fun day it was for everyone!

8 Years Old!

Can you believe it?  Another birthday?  These two are growing like weeds!