Because John was on sabbatical for the fall semester, this Thanksgiving was just a little bit different than previous ones. First of all, he took Callie and Reese up to Connecticut a full week before Turkey Day. And truth be told, this adventure mainly happened so that John could drop the girls off with Sport and Nana Banana and treat himself to a couple of early 40th birthday presents. It was a win-win situation for all involved. John got me time, grandparents got Callie and Reese time, and Sarah got to work as much as she wanted without feeling guilty. (And some quality girlfriend time as well, including musicals, wine, shopping, and martinis.) We all made the most of it.
The centerpiece of John's birthday present was going to see The Who in Boston with his friend Mike. As you can see by the picture to the left, both his friendship with Mike and his love for The Who go back a ways and have withstood a few decades or so. Ironically enough, the picture to the left was taken back when both were in high school and preparing to go on a youth group trip to Kentucky. In any case, the concert was fantastic and the very next day the boys joined an old roommate Jon Otting to watch the Yale-Harvard football game. The only thing that could have made it the perfect weekend was a Yale victory. Alas, it was not to be. We'll have to try it again in a couple of years if The Who are able to make it out on tour again. All in all, it was a great time, and John was back in Connecticut by Saturday night to take on the family until Sarah arrived on Wednesday.
We can't recall if John forgot to bring the camera or just didn't use it, but in any case the pictures didn't begin in earnest until Sarah arrived. Let's start with the grandkids. We tried to get one of all five, but Zoey is still trying to highlight who is boss and is very careful about when and how she is photographed.
So for starters, we just have the four oldest kids. And if you thought Callie and Reese were looking older these days, just check out their cousins. Mike is now a sophomore in high school and Brendan is in seventh grade. It is crazy to compare pictures like this to ones taken just a couple of years ago. Wow.
After a while, Zoey warmed up to the camera and wanted to show off her smile and Rocky Mountain charm. She certainly is a happy baby and is on the move. The entire week Brian and/or Suzy were in the famous hunched over, fingers out, back-breaking position helping Zoey walk around. We can only imagine what a year from now will look like once she has no need for that kind of assistance. We envision lots of running...
....and it's highly likely that Reese will be running right alongside and suggesting all sorts of ways the two of them can get in trouble. It's a good thing that Callie is such a rule follower and is more than willing to provide a full description of what happened and who did it, if necessary. You can see in this picture that Reese wanted to make sure that Zoey wasn't the only one who got a solo shot or two.
Reese wasn't the only one willing to give Zoey a lot of attention. In typical fashion, Callie wanted to help take care of Zoey, even as she knew enough not to take the same kind of in your face approach as her sister. She always knew what Zoey was doing and tried to figure out what she needed. And if she could help out in any way she was ready to jump in to do so. We were very proud of her. Now that being said, Callie also very much enjoyed the oodles of attention she received from her aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents throughout the ten days she was in town. She didn't really want to leave when the visit was done.
Amazingly enough, in all the times we have been back in Madison we had not made a family excursion down to Hammonasset State Beach. Sarah has stated this will now be a requirement on every visit. It was a chilly late afternoon, but it was beautiful.
This is one of many great pictures we took while we were there. The sun was setting over the Long Island Sound and it was a perfect autumn day at the beach.
On the Saturday after Thanksgiving we took Nana Banana and Sport to the Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven. We had a great time looking at dinosaur fossils and seeing the various exhibits ranging from food to ant colonies.
But the best part of the day was just hanging out with Nana Banana and Sport. Callie and Reese really got to spend some quality time with their grandparents on this trip, and the four of them definitely enjoyed being together.
No matter where and when we travel, one of our biggest challenges is fitting in as many visits with friends as possible. Luckily we have some really great friends who are willing to do whatever it takes to get together. This time it was Neil, Karen, and their little boy Alon who made the drive out from Nyack, New York to spend a couple of hours with us. It was great seeing them and catching up on all their activities over the past couple of years. We miss having them here in Kentucky, but it is clear that things are going really well for them in New York. Hopefully it won't be as long a gap between visits as it was this time. The very next day we caught a plane back to Kentucky, took a deep breath, and tried to figure out what we were supposed to do next.
