Hiking with the children

We had to navigate this big river - like Lewis and Clark.

Safety Man pointing out the perfect covering in case we get stranded in this area.

Joe's hiking shoes. If he decided to like hiking we'd have to buy the poor kid some boots. As it is, I think this will be the last path these clunkers will ever see.

The kids were home from school the Friday after Thanksgiving so with a little coercion Safety Man and I convinced them to join us on our weekly hike. In an ideal world my children would be thrilled to hike with us and be happy to enjoy the fresh, crisp air and all the wilderness has to offer. Unfortunately, this is not my world. (What IS the color of the sky in that world?) Lily complained throughout - " Are we almost done?" and Joe, to his credit, stated straightaway - "I'm going to have a good attitude." and he did, for the most part. It was hardly the natural enthusiasm I was hoping for but for a 13 year old boy who'd rather be tucked away at home playing Madden football on his Wii, I was pleased with him.

Safety Man is wearing bright yellow. He'll never be mistaken for a dear.

Thanksgiving

There were a comfortable 26 ( give or take) friends and family at our house for Thanksgiving 2009. The turkey was cooked perfectly this year so there was no sudden gasp from Jeri declaring the bird raw. Thank goodness. My dear sister made the various pies, as usual, and they were fabulous, especially the chocolate one. Although the lemon meringue slice was the best day after Thanksgiving breakfast I've ever had. They were all divine as were the shrimp and crab stuffed mushroom Rockefellers that Shannon made. We were well fed.
Unfortunately, Evan, Elisa, Max, Lucy and Harvey came down with dreaded flu the day before so they stayed nestled in their home. We missed them terribly as we missed the rest of the family who are living far away from us. Kirby, Gina and Oliver were especially on our minds as they celebrated a combined Thanksgiving and Christmas in Italy before Kirby leaves for Afghanistan. Here are a few quick snapshots of our motley crew. (Oddly, I didn't take any of the young children. I'm sorry about that. They are the better looking of all of us.)
Tom and Jenn

Karen and Mom

Jeff & Jenn

John & the moms

Tim, Sammy & John

Ben

Jeri & Chris

Rob & Katie

Me & the twins

Jeff getting a hug from Kicks

The obligatory post dinner snooze.

Safety Man and hiking

From here on, I will call my husband by his well earned moniker, Safety Man. I could write volumes on why this nick name is well earned and why he accepts it in the loving and endearing way it was given to him by me and the kids, but that will have to wait for another post. For now, trust me when I say that he believes you can never be too careful and danger is lurking everywhere.
Safety Man and I have started a routine of taking Friday hikes together. It is our great fortune to have trails all around us with easy access to quiet, solitary and stunningly beautiful walks where we enjoy the tall, mossy trees, low ferns and small, remote lakes. It would take a lifetime to exhaust them all but we plan to do our best even though we're pretty old to start such a daunting task.
On our first hike, we were walking less than 10 minutes when Safety Man asks me this serious question, "Would you know what to do if you were attacked by a tiger?" Okay, I have to admit that I have a very real fear of being eaten by a wild animal. Mostly, on my mind are cougars since they are the most likely predator I'd run into in these parts. Tiger?, not so much. Anyway, I respond, "No, I wouldn't know what to do if a tiger attacked." Safety Man explained how I should ram my arm down it's throat and bite it's nose. That would definitely stop the attack, he said. So, there you go. Walks with Safety Man can be very beneficial. I'm lucky to have him. After all, I will never know when a ravenous escapee from the local zoo may be tracking me, patiently waiting for the opportunity to pounce out from the wilderness and devour me.

Scary Halloween

Gone are the good old Halloween days with my darling little Lily in her sweet, handmade (by my sister, of course) princess costume holding my hand tightly as we trick or treated.

This is Lily 1 and Lily 2 dressed up as......well... they described their costumes as a "rainbow girl" and a "blue fairy that eats other fairies". I think the impetus behind my Lily's costume was the opportunity to wear dangle earrings and some make up. I can't say what inspired the other Lily's choice.

Joe is not pictured because he and his buddy, Collin, were with JT at the theater watching Saw 6. As scary as the Lily's are to see, JT definitely got the raw end of the Halloween deal. Saw 6 - How rediculous. As if Saw 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 weren't enough.