Farewell Holiday Festivities!

Yesterday was the official ending of the holiday season for us. We returned from our trip to Florida in the afternoon. Our boys raced indoors to play with the Christmas gifts they'd left behind. And we attacked the dirty dishes and general clutter that resulted in packing for a 9 day trip in an hour, the day after Christmas! There is still much to do, not the least of which is taking down the decorations. But, I am happy to be home. I've missed my friends, my home, and weekly routine.

Enjoy scrolling through some of the highlights of our past two weeks . . . .

The Christmas Eve table at our house where we had 22 people!

The Grown-Up Table

The "Big Kids" Table

L-R: Dylan, Michail, Benjamin and Orion

The "Little Kids" Table

L-R: Reese, Rosalie, Ripley (Aunt Shay), and Ian

Grown-ups: Michelle, Carl, Scott, Tanya, Spencer and David

Alex, Bill, Joan, Sandy and Victor

Christmas Day seven miles away at Scott and Tanya's new house in Rehoboth

The joy of watching someone open a gift

Reese (foreground), Spencer, Dad and Mom

Rosalie, Benjamin, Spencer, Scott, Bill, Reese

Dad and Mom

The day after Christmas, we packed up and flew to Florida. Victor's family was also visiting the sunny state, so they all came over for a day to visit and have some fun.

l-r: Victor's sisters Michelle and Maria, and me (Sandy) on board Dad's boat "Tut"

Cousins: Reese and Ripley

Sisters Maria and Michelle

Siblings: Michelle, Victor and Maria

Four cousins in a boat (and one uncle / dad)

My nephew Spencer at the beach

My nephew Reese, photogenic as always

A competitive game of foozeball

One of Grandmama's Christmas gifts was a trip to the tea room in Naples. Although Ripley's expression looks less than impressed, on our ride to the airport heading home he chose TEA as one of his favorite events. Why? Because he could eat all that he wanted. The boy drank an entire pot of strawberry tea!

l-r: Reese, Ripley and Rosalie

Spencer, Benjamin and me (Sandy)

All of us, at Tea.

Benjamin receiving a sailing lesson from Gramp.

Lastly, the ladies favorite afternoon past time:

Playing 'Take Two', however, typically this would include a glass of wine, but we were being particularly 'good' on this occasion.

l-r: Me (Sandy), Mom, Tanya and Rosalie (who was feeling like a photo)

Grandmama and Rosalie snuggling after a full day of fun.

Blessings to all and a happy and healthy 2010!!

Sandcastle Contest

Every year where my parents live down in Florida they hold a sandcastle building contest.

It is a family event, but when it comes down to details, the 'grown-ups' are the ones who get it done.

In the end, I think it's the adults who have the most fun.

We chose a pirate theme ... with skull and cross bones ...

and treasure chest.

Good clean fun.

Eggs with Kale and Garlic

My favorite way to eat the fresh eggs from our eight hens is a Kale Scramble. Love it! Love it! Love it!

Make your basic recipe for scrambled eggs: Eggs, Salt, Pepper and a splash of Milk. Set aside.

Meanwhile, drizzle olive oil in a skillet and heat over medium low. Add in chopped garlic and heat until soft. Then add in salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and chopped kale (fresh from the garden, even in winter months).

Toss until the kale is bright green and tender.

Pour in your scrambled egg mixture and gently fold in the eggs as they firm up on the bottom of the pan. Don't over stir. YUMOLA!

Life Goes On

Where have I been?! Well, typically I get up at 5:30 in the morning to have my steaming hot cup of coffee in peace before the whole house wakes up. During the last school year I had until 7 a.m. to pound away on my computer but THIS YEAR ... my Benjamin, now in middle school, has to wake up at 6:00. Gone are my relaxing mornings and . . . my blogging. I know, I need a new routine -- that doesn't include waking up at 4:30 a.m.! But meanwhile, life has gone on . . .

Here is a sampling of what we have been up to:

My garden is winding down, but the bok choy, arugula, parsley and celery is still going strong.

The bees are put to bed for the winter, and we are hoarding our small honey harvest to try and make it until next summer.

The hens are now all laying. We get 1-5 eggs a day. Helloooooooo Quiche!

My nephew Spencer learned how to walk . . .

The grandkids enjoyed a last northern romp on Gramp's boat (a motorkat) before it headed south for the winter . . .

We saw our last unmarried 'Seinfelder' (long story) tie the knot . . .

(In the photo: The entire Seinfeld Clan L-R: Lori, Jeff, Annie, H.O.G. aka: Bob, Sue, Steven, Tanya, Scott, Victor and me (the photographer) minus 3 -- the two newlyweds, and 'Hand' aka: Jeff Fink, the hand surgeon.)

The Original Seinfelders ... The 'Core Four' minus 'Hand'

We went to a Harvest Party with the classic sack races . . .

and doughnut on a string eating contests . . .

Note to self: avoid the powdered sugar doughnuts-on-a-string . . .

Ripley turned 5, and we threw a party . . .

on Halloween, so it was a costume party!

Later that day, we celebrated Halloween . . . it had been a full day for the chicken . . .

Here is a picture of the chicken in better spirits . . .

Ripley learned how to Rollerblade . . . it took him all of 5 minutes to be on his own . . .

Ripley completed his first Soccer Season, words cannot express how this kid can excel at sport. It's borderline embarrassing. But as his parent, it's also thrilling.

And we've enjoyed quieter moments like listening to Daddy reading a book at the end of the day . . .

Be well, and I'll do a better job keeping in touch.

Hostile Takeover

I was only able to catch one hen on this swing set on my camera, but there had been five! This shot is from a few weeks ago. Since then I've tried to cut their wings three times, as they'd even gotten into my fenced in garden! Still, every afternoon, I find a few of them roaming around outside of their fencing. So, today I have a neighbor who also has hens and has just successfully trimmed his hens wings, coming over to help me. My hens are out of control. The little whipper-snappers.

However, they have started to give me some good gifts . . .

I don't think my Barred Rocks are laying yet, but my New Hampshire and Rhode Island Reds are just starting. My champion layer so far is my New Hampshire Red, Pearl. Named for her pearlized colored legs -- they are supposed to be yellow at this young age.