Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving we spent our day/s in Los Angeles with Martha and Will and Fallon and Richard and Rachel and Jeff and Hayden and Tyler and Jayce. It was a cumulative holiday. People kept adding in.

We started off Wednesday with Will and Fallon, then added Richard, then Martha. Thursday was the big turkey feast. Rachel and family joined us Friday. [Jess and family were recuperating from the affects of having a new baby ++ some kind of flu bug! Not terribly pleasant for them. Sorry for you guys!]

Wednesday Richard and I did a park trip with Fallon while Dad and Will took care of some legal business. Martha came home from work and the piemaking began!!! Dad can whip out pie crusts like nobody's business. I am still amazed--every year--even after all this time.

Thursday we had a mix of parade and football and cooking going on ending in a truly scrumptious Thanksgiving Turkey Dinner. Miracle on 34th Street in black and white was the background for our festivities, along with post dinner naps, more football, and coloring with Fallon.

Friday Martha and Dad had a nice 4 mile walk delivering some paperwork to a client of Dad's, and Richard and I went out to reload supplies for lunch, etc. Eagerly anticipating the Montgomery arrival, we waited, snacking on leftovers and chilling. Once they arrived we piled into cars and headed to Venice Beach "to watch the crazies" as Dad said probably 4 or more times....one of his favorite things to do.

The kids heard the word beach and it translated into play in the ocean. I don't believe I've ever played in the ocean at Venice Beach before. We usually stroll along watching Bronze sprayed statutes come to life, and loud talking exhibitionists jumping into glass, or wearing signs saying "World's Biggest Wino" or watching the athletes at the Muscle Beach section of the boardwalk. But not this time. This time we watched skaters [skateboarders] and we watched our children/gchildren tear off their shoes and head for the ocean without a minute's hesitation. Fallon was the happiest running in and out and chasing the waves gleefully. Naturally Fallon had wet jeans before you could say boo--and she finished her water play in a shirt, a sweater, and a diaper. Hayden rolled up his pants and followed suit and Tyler dug designs with a stick in the wet sand. Luckily the weather was reasonably warm-- in the 60s -- though you couldn't have talked me into a swim in November, even in CA. Kids just must have ice in their veins.

We left before the sun went down. Will bought a giant bag of kettle corn, thank goodness, because everyone had their hand out and in it. It didn't last long. Back home we ordered pizza and watched Miracle on 34th Street [again] though this time we watched it in color! The newer one. Is it overkill? Do we argue about which one we like best? Do we have favorite actors, and scenes in each version? You bet!

The kids revved up their energy for the last 30 minutes of the movie...I think they haven't entered the enamoration phase [of the movie] yet and chased each other perilously around the furniture and through the bedrooms, jumping over sippy cups and crayons, and Jayce --who has just begun walking. It was the Howe madness. Rachel and Jeff wrapped their charges up and departed. Will and Fallon left to have a sleepover with friends. Richard headed for his home and bed. Suddenly there was just Martha and I and Dad.

Martha and I sat down to play....PERQUACKEY. Dad joined in for a couple of rounds, until we decided to change up the game. I called our newest version a consortium. [Consortia, Consortium a partnership; a union; a fellowship. Examples: consortium of local authorities [to undertake some project jointly between them]; a housing consortium; a consortium of university libraries.
We--Martha and I, the local authorities--undertook to play Perquackey jointly....each successively forming words with the same throw, exhausting the word possibilities and joining our points..until we reached 5000. What was interesting about this play was the absence of the competitive feel, and the joy of the hunt for every last possible word formation. And... a rare step out of the box.

Afterwards the 3 of us laid down on the couches and watched "Did you hear about the Morgans?" and laughed ourselves silly.

This Thanksgiving was a kaleidoscope of sights, sounds, people, food, activities, and fun. I'm grateful we could lengthen it from one day into 3! Maybe we should consider doing that with all of our holidays! I think in one day you are only just getting started! Just think what we could do with Christmas!!!!