we are ready

we are ready
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

we have been cooking for a few days, the set table snakes its way throught the house and we are finally ready for passover.

eric,tobi and dad

eric,tobi and dad
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

eric, the master horseradish preparer.

sarah and the horseradish contest

sarah and the horseradish contest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

several years ago the older boys established a traditional horseradish eating contest at passover. the goal is to see who can take the requisite large quantity on a piece of matzoh, eat and swallow and come out unscathed. eric prepares the horseradish from scratch and it can be quite potent. will and bob are, at least in this arena, the over achievers. sarah tries to keep up, but as can be seen, still needs a bit of practice.

wendy and the horseradish contest

wendy and the horseradish contest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

wendy doesn't take a full dose, but is beginning to regret entering into this insanity.

john and the horeseradish contest

john and the horeseradish contest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

i think john is too old to indulge in this ritual.

rainforest

rainforest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

tom, mike, samuel and marianna went exploring in the back yards yesterday and went to a favorite place, bamboo woods. they discovered a storm had blown over lots of bamboo stalks, so they decided to put them to good use and created a rainforest out of the swing set, complete with beanie baby inhabitants. they were busy ALL day with this whole set-up- making me a happy mom!

tom in the rainforest

tom in the rainforest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

tom in the rainforest hut with the monkey and other asst. animal friends

birds of the rainforest

birds of the rainforest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

here is a closer look at the bird roosting in the raiinforest.

playing on hammock before the snow

playing on hammock before the snow
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

marianna, tom, mike and shadow enjoying the afternoon. the daffodils are blooming, totally unaware of the impending sleet and snow.

Forest

Forest
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

Robin sent us wonderful news of Forest (formerly Rufus). Robin and her family raise sheepdogs in New Orleans and together they all survived Katrina. It makes us ao happy to see Forest thriving thanks to the wonderful love and care Robin and her family have lavished on him!

nothing like a big brother

nothing like a big brother
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

will stopped by for a quick surprise visit after bowling in the area with friends. nothing makes mike and tom happier than a visit from will. will definately appreciates, might i say encourages, their antics.
this is my first picture with my new camera!

Cozmo 8 months 002

Cozmo 8 months 002
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

Duffy's puppies no longer look like pups. Linda sent us this wonderful picture of handsome Cozmo at 8 months. He has Duffy's black coloring. Very handsome!!

snowymorning

snowymorning
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

it has been a month since i last posted- must be the full time job i started.
but this beautiful snowy morning has slowed everything down and i have a few minutes to take pictures and post them.
12" of wonderful snow!
the boys were up at 6 am,, excited and ready to sled. i convinced them to watch the deer chomping on my azaleas and that bought us about 20 minutes of sleep.
the girls (sarah is home from college for the weekend- seems the partying is getting out of hand- even for her) probably won't wake up until after the snow melts. the joys of teenage daughters.

layerbylayer

layerbylayer
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

tom readies for sledding as he puts on layer by layer. i am just so happy that they are old enough to remember to use the bathroom before getting dressed for the snow. a huge advancement!

readytosled

readytosled
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

the boys are ready to go- layered up and waiting for dad.

comeondad

comeondad
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

john, mr."what, me rush?" is holding up the sledding show. slowly, but surely. note the knitted teddy bear that madeline knit, in the background. this knitting thing has to be a casey trait- because she certainly did not get it from me.

guyswithsleds

guyswithsleds
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

and they are off to sled at the local sledding hotspot. all the neighborhood kids are here- from the teenagers with their snowboards to the preschoolers with their "pull-me" sleds. a great hill where the kids build jumps etc. and the parents pray that a trip to the emergency room is not in store.

mom's helpers

mom's helpers
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

it is nice to have our kids grow up. will and madeline are cooking dinner tonight. of course, there are arguments about important questions like whether to put cucumber in the salad and how to rip the lettuce etc..but all in all, they are a help.

sisterhood

sisterhood
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

madeline, just home from swim practice, works on her cosmetology skills, straightening sarah's hair. those wonderful bonds of sisterhood.

winston and duffy

winston and duffy
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

amy and joe brought winston by. what a difference since we last saw him. he is HUGE and incredibly handsome.

knex from santa

knex from santa
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

mike and tom spent the last two days working on this really cool gift from santa. under the ever watchful eye of madeline, they built this water park slide fron knex. kept them very, very busy- a good thing, even if it has over 500 tiny pieces that will eventually end up scattered throughout the house, breaking the vaccum. merry christmas!

sarah's new slippers

sarah's new slippers
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

madeline picked out these slippers for sarah's hanukah present. the girl has taste. the flamingo slippers are actually coming in handy, since we maintain the house temp. at 60 degrees. sarah informs us hourly that home is at least 30 degrees colder than the dorm temp. and completely unsuitable for human inhabitants. we do our best to encourage their independence.

gingerbread house construction crew

gingerbread house construction crew
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

mike,sarah,matthew,tom and madeline keep busy christmas day.

madeline post practice

madeline post practice
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

madeline spent the entire ride to philadelphia conked out on the back seat- i guess her coach decided that christmas was no reason to go easy on them in morning practice.

santa's helper

santa's helper
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

we are, as always, down to the last minute. thanks to our santa's helper, we may actually get things done on time.

christmas tree '05

christmas tree '05
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

the tree has been decorated, the angel placed on top and now santa has only to brave rockville pike this week.

holiday picture

holiday picture
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

finally, a picture where everyone's face is visible. madeline thinks her shoulders look like she plays tackle football, but alas, i think we are done.

holiday outtakes

holiday outtakes
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

it's always so much fun to try and take our holiday picture when the kids are so cooperative- william is always happy to tackle the gang...

holiday outtake 2

holiday outtake 2
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

and again,

holiday outtake 3

holiday outtake 3
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

and again

tom dolan invitational

tom dolan invitational
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

audrey, madeline and allie were so excited to make the cut off times for the tom dolan invitational meet- we couldn't let an ice storm get in the way- so i stayed overnight with the girls in a hotel close to the meet. it was just so enlightening to watch " the oc " and 'reunion" with them. yikes!

first taste of snow this season

first taste of snow
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

our little devils making snow angels on the deck.

sarah's dorm room for christmas

sarah's dorm room for christmas
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

well, sarah and ashley went to target and decked the halls. they are ready for the holidays, complete with elf costumes- note ashley's garb. i can only hope they are as ready for finals.

rokenbok

rokenbok
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

john set up a table in the basement last week and mike and tom have been spending all their free time following the 50 step instructions to set up a rokenbok system. the boys finished the last step today, inserted batteries, and voila- a functioning system. mike and tom were very proud of themselves and their resourcefulness.

john and tom

john and tom
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

today we went to a farm to find our christmas tree. it is cold enough to feel like winter, but there is no ice or snow yet- maybe tomorrrow. here,john and tom looking through row after row of trees, for just the right one.

found the one

found the one
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

after traipsing over the two acres, the kids have agreed on a beautiful tree and madeline begins cutting it down.

taking it home

taking it home
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

john and madeline tie the tree to the top of the van for the ride home.

billy goat trail

billy goat trail
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

mike and tom spent sunday doing their favorite activity (besides annoying madeline)- rockscrambling. john took them scrambling along the potomac river and they actually came back exhausted- making us all quite happy!

sarah sighting

sarah sighting
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

sarah has been home for 5 days, but this is a rare sighting, for those of us not awake between midnight and 5 am. note the sporty new haircut.

testosterone central

testosterone central
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

looking out the kitchen window, i see this scene of male bonding. conferring about wood chopping and football . very sweet, until i start thinking that in three years, when madeline goes off to college, i will be the only female in the house ( not counting dogs). yikes!

learning the tricks of the trade

learning the tricks of the trade
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

tom is proud to split his first log (with a little help from dad).

doing the carving

doing the carving
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

john has the honor of carving the turkeys-one roasted, one deep fried- for our thanksgiving feast. i think tom had the funniest thankful thought, "i am just thankful that this is the last term that george bush can be president" .

grandmom and grandpop

grandmom and grandpop
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

mike and tom explain their wampanoag project to grandmom mary and grandpop ben. having never seen this project, i am really surprised by how much they know about this native american tribe.

will's room

will's room
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

hey will, you'll be happy to see your room put to good use as mike and tom have commenced construction of the beanie baby house on your floor. note the colorful rug for the beanie babies, handwoven by mike.

john splitting wood

john splitting wood
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

john is working on fulfillling my little vermont farmhouse fantasy.

getting ready for the cold weather

getting ready for the cold weather
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

splitting the wood from a tree chopped down last spring. our stockpile of wood is growing in anticipation of the cold weather and the high price of oil.

bedtime stories

bedtime stories
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

tonight is our first frost. all the deck plants have been dragged inside and we lit our first fire of the season. tonight's bedtime story, harry potter, is read by the fireside. it is almost 11:00 and they are still spellbound while john reads. hot cocoa is finished and i think it is time for bed.

fall evening on the court

fall evening on the court
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

mike, abishek,tom, lauren, samantha and samuel
spend hours playing in the leaves now that fall is really here.

william's birthday dinner

william's birthday dinner
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

william and sarah come home to celebrate will's
22nd birthday. clare and bob stop by for dinner too- grilled steak, homemade mashed potatoes and salad- the big kids eat heartily, excited to get a real homemade meal. sarah notes that she thinks the dining room has shrunk in size since she moved out. i guess we will have to expand when they start coming home with significant others. it will give john something to do with his nights and weekends.

happy birthday will!

happy birthday will!
Originally uploaded by funnkds5.

william blows out the candles on the supersized cake.
it is a good feeling to have all the kids together for a few hours. certainly lively!