overdue Thanksgiving pics

As I'm about to load in our Christmas pics, I figured I'd best get the Tgvg ones in! We enjoyed dinner at my mom's w/about half of the Norment gang present. We missed aunty Peg again this year--she's totally a snowbird these days, heading to Fla in Oct, well before freezing weather strikes.
Mom, Lucy, Tom and Pam
Peter and Rick--getting into the usual heavy (but fun) political discussions and appetizers!
Our newest Norment, Eliot, w/his momma, Christy, Megan and Bryan
Bill and Will set up a train for Sam
Bryan and the 2 young-uns--Sam enjoyed Eliot very much, as did we all.

Sam and one of his furry friends, Beau

Off to the Yuletide Ride--PATCO's free train ride into the city, complete w/Santa, elves and musicians to entertain while riding. Once in town, we went to see the light show and Dickens wax-figure production at old Wannamaker Bldg, and walked around a bit before coming home.

Sam (a month later) still talks about riding the choo-choo.

Truly, Christmas updates on the way. Happy New Year to all and ttfn, Mb for WeThree

a fast post

(This pic is totally unrelated--just shot from a park nrby of Sam looking contemplative.)
So Sam just woke up from a nap and there are about 8 boys in our combined backyds ranging from 11-16, I think. They're playing backyd baseball and of course, Sam wants to go out there. But I always feel for the older boys having their game interrupted by a little almost 2 yr old.

Daddy, however, isn't afraid of those boys and their feelings and he thinks he can keep Sam out of their way, so he takes him outside. And amidst all the Brian Regan quotes I'm hearing from these nice boys (never hear Brian Regan's stuff? Ck him out--this is the schtick(?) one of the boys is quoting from:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXLUncbZKbs )..back to the backyd boys-- my next door neighbor, Stephen, 11 yrs old w/all his best buds in the yard, exclaims, "Sammy! Hey Sammy! You're on our team!" That's just kindness on every level and totally warms this mom's heart. Thanks, Stephen. :- )

Hope you enjoy the clip. We love Brian Regan.

ttfn, mb for WeThree

Family photos and our friends

A rainy Sunday and we decided who cares, let's go for a family walk. I brought my camera. These boots were hand-me-downs -- cute, eh? Sam loves wearing "boooots" and requests them every time he sees them.

This was a playdate w/Madeline and Zachary-- I got a little band going. These 3 love to play music of any kind. Who knows? Maybe they're the next youth worship band in the making!

I'll have to get a video of Sam playing drums or piano--it's so funny 'cuz he rolls his head around like a real professional. Have no idea where he learned that.

We have so few photos of all 3 of us together, and it's impossible to get Sam to smile at cameras lately. Mostly, he wants to see the pics, be in back of the camera not in front. :- ) We asked our friend Julie to take these family photos.

Bryan and I got to enjoy an overnite together in the Poconos in Oct (celebrating my bday). Sam went w/the K family and had a great time being part of a big family for 24 hrs. We hiked some waterfall trails and it was beautiful but chilly.

Bryan likes taking shots of me looking like I'm pondering important stuff--probably because he so rarely sees it. ha!

Stayed in an interesting B&B. A summer home owned and renovated by Fred Waring, the chorus leader. Bryan shot some pool on a table where Jackie Gleason and Dwight D. Eisenhower had played!

This last photo was taken by the proprietor-- this was the Great Room where we had breakfast. Pretty place, eh? Wish we'd had time to hang out there longer but I was also eager to see Sam again.

Thassall for now, Mb for WeThree (GoPhillies!)

just for fun

I dunno, I just think they're so cute-- this is just the boys, Sam and his bud, Zachary, having a good time in the backyard one of the 1st fall days we had. Sam looks like such an old man in those sweats (a yard sale find)--they cracked me up that day, those boys. They're best buds. All day long Sam calls Zachary's name (Rock-a-REEEE!), but then if we arrange a little playtime for them together, he squeals and runs right by him--go figure.

Hope they're always best of friends. Today Sam ate Z's football--he tore chunks out of it w/his teeth, like a puppy would. Demolished it. It was Z's bday gift but he was very forgiving, and so was his momma, thank goodness... someday I'm sure I won't have to tell Sam "no chewing on the [insert here--table legs, windowsills, baseball bats ("Sam, do you see Ryan Howard or Shane Victorino eating their bats?!", books, footballs, trash cans...]. :- )

Isn't he too cute? We are so grateful the Lord has placed us in this neighborhood w/these friends. Feeling very blessed, mb for WeThree

Sam the ___man?

The other day, Sam helped me by carrying the empty garbage can up from the curb--nice, eh? So then we were playing in the back yard and he was fiddling w/his bike and trike upside down and it gave me the idea of photos to ask the question--what kind of vocation will Sam choose? A mechanic? "Waste manager?" Landscaper? Maintenance man? We don't much care what his career will be, we just hope he loves the Lord!

(The vacuum pic isn't that great--he got the little vac from his MD grandmom and would not put it down for the first week, I'd say... it was difficult to get him to stop moving long enough to photograph him!)

More to come--we had an impromptu playdate w/"Rok-a-reee" the other day. I got a few photos.

Oh and here's a video of Sam repeating what he learned from daddy when they were at Home Depot today (daddy and our friend Gary are putting in a new garbage disposal for us--woohoo!).

Apparently, Sam was cracking people up all over the Depot w/this comment:

Williamsburg vacay!

By popular demand, here's Sam in a tri-corner hat!

We went to Wmsburg w/friends, Tom, Melanie, Madeline and Zachary for a week--they graciously shared their 3 bedroom timeshare w/us or we wdn't have had a vacation at all this yr. We got passes for both Busch Gardens and Water Country and we got our money's worth, even tho the boys needed naps in the afternoon.

Sam didn't mind the kiddie rides but wasn't loving them. He liked the one w/mommy best b/c there's a button to push that beeps a horn. :- ) We were in a dragon but it was like those helicopter rides at local carnivals. He liked it when I bounced us up and down.

Two tired puppies after their bedtime in Busch Gardens...

Water country!

Sam loved the little slides, even braved one with a little tunnel cover.

Our last full day in the area, we ventured into Colonial Williamsburg-- Sam got his 3 corner hat (aunts Pam and Lucy said we must get one for him) and Madeline got her Holly Hobbie hat, as I called it.

Loves to drum, our boy.... as I noted when we bought coffee in town, these are not Colonial prices, so we didn't get him the drum--he has 2 at home anyway.

The sequence of photos of Madeline and Sam cracks us up--Sam is jumping and doing circles around a calm, serene Madeline. We actually caught him mid-jump on film! Quite a feat, no pun intended. hee hee

The British are coming, the British are coming!

Zachary--the boys cdn't always figure out which way the hat went. :- )

The 7 of us together--a lovely time was had by all. Tks so much to Tom and Melanie for a great vacation!

I'm gonna see if I can insert a little video clip of Sam at the water park in here. Ck back later!

ttfn, Mb for WeThree