Thanksgiving Break, First Advent

Last year in PA, Steve's mom did Advent with the boys and their cousins. It was fun to watch them together. This year she sent a box for us to do it here. Sunday was the first night. After baths we gathered at the table. I used the good white tablecloth that had been my Maw's. It was nice to make it a special time for us. Steve read the story and we acted it out with the boys nativity. After lighting a candle the boys each got to open a gift. Titus was so excited and had been talking about it all day long, how we would "read a story, light a candle and open a present." It was a nice ending to our day...to our Thanksgiving break. Titus enjoyed the entire process. I remembered back to last year when he struggled to sit still and listen to Mom-Mom.





Titus opened his gift from Mom-Mom-

And then decided he needed to open Quincy's as well-

Thanksgiving Break, Saturday

A day spent mostly at home.




Playing in the sunroom together. Quincy tends to like little spaces. He will crawl under the big desk that was my Paw's and hide. Today I watched him crawl under the kids table to watch Titus driving cars.

Thanksgiving Break, Friday

Sugar Sands Park, Boca Raton-

Thanksgiving Break, Thanksgiving Day

Although we did have some moments of missing family, missing PA and feeling so strange for it to be hot on Thanksgiving morning...and it wasn't from the fireplace...we did enjoy our Thanksgiving day. It's funny how there is an excitement in the air on a holiday. We were all just a little bit excited and more content to be at home than we might be on a "normal" day. I got up with the boys, made my coffee, opened up all the doors and windows and Titus and I waited for the parade to begin. I was a little sad that they don't show Philadelphia. Steve and I took the train into Philadelphia several years in the past to see the Thanksgiving parade. This Thanksgiving we watched the Macy's parade in New York City. I guess that will be our new tradition.

In the afternoon we drove to Boca Raton to the home of Ginny Brandecker who teachers Spanish at the school. She and her husband have a beautiful home on one of the waterways. Their children are grown and most live out of state. They invited us this year along with another couple who teaches at CCA. We had a wonderful meal, then sat outside watching Titus run around the pool, dipping his feet in and playing with their dog. We stayed until evening, sitting outside enjoying the breeze.

Enjoying the sun coming in through the front door-

Watching the parade-

After dinner at the Brandecker home-











Ginny had this pheasant on her table-

It made Titus a little uneasy. After dinner he wanted to play on the rug with his cars. When I came in to check on him he quickly told me to "be quiet so it doesn't move." He got so upset when I started laughing and he kept whispering to me "be quiet, stop laughing, it will move."

Back outside, down to his underwear after getting wet in the pool-

Thanksgiving Break, Wednesday

We made our first Thanksgiving {palm} Tree.



Can you tell whose palm is whose?

Thanksgiving Break, Tuesday

After three days of complete family time, Tuesday was the first that I was alone with the boys for a couple of hours. I really love when we're all together. When we have days in a row that we can spend every minute of the day together. We may not all always be in the same room but everywhere we are, we're together.

Tuesday Steve met his small group guys at the school and from there they went to the grocery store to shop for a family in need.

While he was out Quincy napped and Titus took over the house. I think he had every toy we own out on the living room floor. He was playing "airplane." We were on an airplane going to see the whales. That's what happens after we go to the Seaquarium, every car he plays with is going to see the whales. Today it just so happened to be the airplane we were on.

While the house was completely torn apart and I was in yoga pants and a tank top, Steve called to ask if it was ok to bring the guys back to the house to put together the basket of food.

It wasn't until the guys knocked on the door that Titus said, "They're here, we gotta clean up!"

Oh well.

Bedtime Play

Steve and I are sitting at our table. He is paying bills. I'm addressing Christmas cards. Quincy is sleeping, Titus is supposed to be also. We keep hearing him up through the open hallway. I've gone up twice, each time taking something from his room as punishment.

I heard him again and went up. He was in his room with the door open a crack. I walked in and he looks at me and says,

"I have all this work to do in my restaurant. And people are coming in and they're hungry. And I have all this work to do."

How can I yell at him and his imagination? I can't. So up there he is. Talking to himself...or maybe to his patrons. :)

Thanksgiving Break, Monday

Monday we returned to the Miami Seaquarium. We took Quincy for his first birthday and decided to get season passes. It cost so much to go once but then wasn't much more to upgrade to season tickets so we figured it was worth it. When we went for Quincy's birthday in September it was so hot. And Titus' behavior was so horrible during that birthday trip that we all struggled to enjoy ourselves. He had been upset that Quincy was opening birthday gifts and I so wanted the {perfect} pictures of Quincy on his birthday morning that the combination made for a complete disaster. By the time we even got to the Seaquarium...we were all grumpy.

This time was so much better. The weather was great. Attitudes were better. We were able to see every show...the dolphins, Flipper, the sea lions and the killer whale.

And we still have ten more months until our passes run out.


The show that splashed my camera the last time we came. Steve and I looked at each other and laughed when they announced that anyone with a nice camera should watch out because the splashing was to begin...they didn't make that announcement the last time. :) -

Quince hanging out at the dolphin show-

Touching the stingrays. Titus gets so nervous here. He doesn't like the stingrays or the birds next to them-

Quincy likes all the animals-


Showing us how the flamingo stands on one leg-

The Flipper show-





I love a close-up in black & white-

Mimicking the sea turtle's spitting out of the water-

Stopping at the playground-

The many faces of Quincy-






Spraying any intruders-







The killer whale show-







...and that was the finale of our trip.