Annual Thanksgiving Hike

the kids watching a hawk and waiting for us to catch up

my men


somehow bunny ears always end up in the picture

a spectacular view over Middletown Valley- we could almost see the house we want to move to.


This year we went up to South Mountain, hiked and talked about the civil war history that took place here. Sarah, having gone to bed at 4am, didn't awaken in time to join us- but we had a great hike- although I think the kids spent a fair amount of time waiting for us old folks to catch up.

Thanksgiving '06

another fabulous holiday feast with our friends, lisa and paul farhi and tobi and eric starin. our dinners are getting larger as the kids come home with friends and significant others. as parents, nothing makes us happier!
dan and peter were nowhere to be found, but the others actually gave me 15 seconds to take this photo:
rich, arden, will, bob, maurice in back
jessica, sarah, helena, danielle, madeline, liz in the middle
and mike and tom in front.

Thanksgiving Football

William's shoes, after the annual thanksgiving football game. and they would have been muddier, except that they stopped the game after half an hour to take nabil and chad to the emergency room to get stitched up- it seems they were both a bit too determined to catch the same pass. good news was they were fine in the end and actually had a good time bonding with all the other guys in the er who were there with injuries from their thanksgiving football games.

Raising Atheists

This was a conversation I overheard between Mike and Tom, our twin 9 year-old boys:
Mike: When I grow up, I will have a library in my house and I am going to put the Bible in the mythology section.
Tom: But what if some of those really religious people come over and see it there. They can get really crazy mad, you know.
Mike: Well, they're just going to have to learn that the Bible really is mythology.

Looks like we are 5/5 on the atheist front.

Listen Up, George!

There was not a whole lot of gray in the results of last night, so King George should probably be able to understand what the American public had to say yesterday at the polls!
I am so happy that finally, after 6 very long years, people have come to see the current administration for what it is, a group of good ol' boys look out for themselves, thier cronies and their collective wealth. Folks who make no attempt understand the complexities of human nature, let alone the interactions between individuals or groups.
For George, in his mind, not much had changed since his Skull and Bones days at Yale, when he could swagger around campus, intimidating others with his wealth and postion- only his campus had become larger over the years.
But now there is hope that his fearmongering,simplistic,self absorbed ways will be stopped.
Thank you, America!

wrestling fun

tom declares victory
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

the monkey house at the zoo looks significantly more civilized than our home.
tom declares victory in the boys vs. sarah wrestling match.

big brother fun

big brother fun
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

what could be better than a 23 year old brother who acts nine?

where have the years gone?

happy birthday will and sarah
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

23 and 19, it doesn't seem possible.
it seems like only a few years ago that i was swinging will to the moon on that swing john hung so high up in the huge backyard oak tree. i turned around and now he has a real job as an economist with the bureau of labor statistics, lives in his own apartment and " looks forward to coming home....at least until i get here and remember how insane it all is".
and sarah.... i can still see the look of wonder and joy on her face as she first learned to string steps together, walking across the whole dining room at the rusty scupper in philadelphia. so fiercely independent from birth, she seems to be tempering it a bit in her old age- enjoying her time at home- a respite from dorm life.

jack-o-lanterns galore

jack-o-lantern galore
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

our front walkway on halloween night.

kid heaven

kid heaven
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

admiring the loot post trick-or-treating.
one thoughtful fellow gave them a toothbrush.
looks like we will be needing that.

sometimes they can be so sweet!

sometimes they can be so sweet!
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

i hadn't heard any jumping, screaming, banging or maniacal laughter
for over an hour... and here is what i found. mike and tom, good as gold, reading "bud, not buddy" and "redwall" on the hammock.
maybe they are growing up.