november 24th - Lucy’s 1st 🌲

The kids gave us a little extra time this morning before all three of them invaded our bed. It was nice to not have anything to do and nowhere to be...except to get our Christmas tree. As usual, Mommy picked out a giant 10-footer. We had three kids help us cut, bag, and tie our tree...whose collective ages were less that 18....pretty cute. Lucy’s first tree...not so excited because she is feeling under the weather. 

november 23rd - still stuffed

Post-thanksgiving morning and the carb withdrawal started early. Daddy was on stuffing sandwiches before breakfast was even over. Lots of cousin time and playing at our house. The kids were really excited that Santa was coming to the tree lighting in Princeton tonight so we got them out for a walk to burn off some energy. It was a brisk year, but once we got into Palmer Square with some hot chocolate things were a-okay. Lots of smiles and amazement. We had a nice pasta dinner at our house when we made it back. Lucy is now on a mostly solid food diet, so she now needs to be vacuumed. 

november 22nd - thankful

Thanksgiving day. 18°. 8:30am. Trinity Turkey Trot. 5K. Benefits the Homeless. Good Intent. Bad Idea. 

It really wasn’t that cold out there once you got moving...and your whole body was numb. Mommy did a great job and we ended up running around a 9 minute pace. Not bad for having frozen limbs. Daddy is very proud of Mommy’s performance. Next stop, Broad Street...or any run that is warm. 

We got home in time to watch the NYC parade on TV with the kids. Alex loved the balloons and Gemma loved the Rockettes. We had a great morning listening to music, making christmas ornaments, and bringing our body temperatures back up. Beeps and Grandpa hosted a Thanksgiving invasion of lots of Burgers and the Stone crew from the Isle of Rhode. Lots of cousin love, conversation, booze, polar express, and a wrestling match with Daddy.  Lots to be thankful for and the celebration ended with a couple few nightcaps at 277.  

november 21st - turkey eve

It’s the day before Thanksgiving and there is excitement for a 4-day weekend in the air. Mommy and Daddy got out for an adult lunch with a hint of booze, so Alex got picked up early for a fun run to Target before we broke out Gemma and Lucy. Uncle Frank and Aunt Amy came by for some nighttime celebratory beverages. Alex and Gemma got to play all night with Jack, which they loved. 

november 20th - cp celebration

Mommy got to go in and help with Alex’s school celebration today and the whole class was very appreciative of the crafts she organized. Likely all of them with exception of Mommy’s child nemesis, Princess. Gemma took toll and organized all of our food donations to be dropped off “for the people.”  She was very meticulous and made sure each bag had an equal distribution. 

november 19th - monday

Starting out a short week makes Monday more tolerable. Alex has continued to teach Gemma chess, which is really cool to watch. Lucy is getting more and more into playing and building things. They don’t last long, but she builds. 

november 18th - the aftermath

Pumpkin pie for breakfast, cold stuffing for lunch, and cleaning every damn corner of our house. Daddy probably vacuumed up enough food particles to feed a homeless family. Alex and Gemma helped Daddy put the basement back together...with some short breaks for fun. 

november 17th - friendsgiving

Best Friendsgiving yet!!!  Lucy got to experience her first thanksgiving with all of our friends and she is a lover of the waffles. We had 16 adults and 22 kids this year. Everyone invited was able to make it...full house.  The weather was nice, so we had a pretty good bonfire going for anyone who needed a break from the noise. Mommy did an awesome job pulling it all together. The kids had a blast and took advantage of the opportunity to get in some late night dessert. 

november 16th - dental milestone

Our little buddy lost his first tooth tonight while at dinner. He will always remember the first tooth falling out while at Nomad (his favorite) and eating a cannoli. All of a sudden he says, “oh my god, my tooth.”  He got a little emotional because he was sure about the long term implications. However, he got over it quickly when the tooth fairy left him twenty bucks. 

november 15th - on the verge of death

Daddy stepped in for Mommy as chaperone for Alex’s school trip today to Pennsbury Manor. It was the home of William Penn and a cool place for the kids to go and learn what life was like in the 1600s....with small exception of the blizzard. Unexpected snow volumes sent us back to Princeton early, but not quickly. Daddy was standing in the stairwell of the school bus and wiping down the windshield every two minutes using the bus driver’s scarf...who was repeating “ay Dios mio” over and over. Fifteen minute ride there. One hour and 40 minutes back.  Daddy was not optimistic we were going to survive. 

Daddy had to go to a meeting when we returned. It took 90 minutes to drive 6 miles. Mommy went to pick up all the kids which turned out to be a 3 hour round trip. Ay Dios mio is a goddamn understatement.  

november 14th - oh crap

Lucy’s wingspan is growing by the day and we had to break out instruction manuals to figure out how to lock things down so she doesn’t burn our house down. 

november 13th - say cheese

These kids.....guess who is the favorite in Lucy’s class...

november 12th - back to the grind

Officially back to reality today and all are in good spirits.  Lucy is waving bye to vacation mode and amped up for more time off over the holidays, which will be here before we know it. 

november 11th - home cold home

Two days ago we were on a beach and today we are wearing hats and gloves to rake leaves. The kids were big helpers, but purely morivated by the opportunity to jump in big piles of leaves. Fun night being back at home and watching Gemma rediscover her toys...and dress up materials:)

november 10th - back to the mats

Back in Princeton and back to the activities. Alex’s soccer was canceled at the last minute, so Daddy relieved Mommy so she could go grocery shopping. Daddy got to watch the end of Gemma’s workout, which is getting quite impressive. 

november 9th - adios por ahora

Wrapping up our final hours at Azul Beach with some breakfast and a last swing on the floating beds. The airport was surprisingly empty and we got through security in no time, which left us with a lot of time to kill. Especially since our flight was delayed. We got home to a cold and rainy Philadelphia after circling the airport for 30 minutes. Made it home in time to catch the end of the sixers game and take advantage of our stocked fridge. David must have gone shopping.