Tis' the Season

It has been an incredibly momentous year and we are reminded now more than ever how truly fortunate and blessed we are. Celebrating the holidays with our kids has been memorable. This year we watched them both experience the magic of Christmas. It has been so satisfying sharing our childhood traditions with them and also starting our own. Some of the highlights include: getting our Christmas tree in Whitehall, the Hollidazzle parade, writing letters/pictures to Santa, meeting Santa, sprinkling reindeer food on Christmas Eve, baking and decorating cookies, learning and singing lots of Christmas carols and peeling back the days on the Advent calendar. And this December, we really did have to wish for a white Christmas!

Halloween Weekend

We hosted our annual pumpkin party last weekend. What fun! We all piled in the truck and Jorg drove to the end of the road so the kids could pick their own pumpkins. All afternoon we sipped cider, ate chili, cupcakes, apple crisp, and hot dogs. By the end of the day we had perfected the chili dog. We capped off the day with a nighttime walk through the woods carrying only one lantern. It was dead quiet, very peaceful and eerie at the same time. It is always so wonderful to spend the day with our neighbors, dear friends and family at our beloved farm.

It was quite a contrast from the previous weekend when we all visited Lele in NYC (Brooklyn). We get a different kind of soul filling when we visit this amazing city. We did not bring our camera because we had enough to carry and keep track of, but the good ol' IPhone captured some of the highlights. (sitting on Lele's patio, playing with Pablo, Roberta's, the High Line, and Central Park, of course). More photos to come....

A day before we left, I woke up with two huge cold sores from all of my anxiety. (That tells you how stressed I was!) I was so worried the kids would not sleep well, and then we would all be exhausted. NYC is plently exhausting without kids, and the thought of coping with a tired two and four-year old was beyond me. Not to mention, Elliot and I were a little under the weather. All that worry for nothing! The kids were amazing. Coco cuddled next to Lele and they fell asleep holding hands. Elliot slept so hard, better than he does at home. Go figure. I'll never forget the trip and how happy we were to share NYC with them. They may not remember any of it, but we will. We have another trip under our belt!














Strawberry Shortcake and the "Purpa Dagon"

"Trick or Treaters " - Little & Big :)

The Big Apple

26.2

I ran my first marathon this weekend! Wait, I still can't believe it happend! It was a gorgeous morning, not to mention I had oodles of support from family and friends which made my marathon experience unforgettable. Thank you!


My lovely chocolate surprise after the race! Thank you, May family!

Saucy Summer

I have vivid memories of canning stewed tomatoes with my grandma. I'm no pro like her, but I enjoy it and it's especially great when we can pick the vegetables right out of our garden. Unlike last year, we have loads of apples in the orchard and have big plans to make apple butter, apple pie filling and dried apples in the coming weeks. For now, our pantry shelf is filled with canned italian tomato sauce and spicy apple sauce.

*Elliot's version of naptime (happens every time!)










I put Owen to work!


Spitting out the seeds is the best part! Also, picked from our garden.