We took the girls to see Santa at a horse stable just outside the City. Lauren was NOT thrilled about the horses. You’ll notice the very worried look on her face… she knew there was one right behind her. Not cool, Santa. Not cool.
Santa
Decorating the Christmas Tree
The weekend after Thanksgiving we got our Christmas tree and Dave’s parents and Zoe came over to help us decorate it.
Lauren helped pick out the ornaments…
And Zoe and Sophie decided where they went on the tree (the lower branches were definitely well decorated)
The princess in front of the final product
Thanksgiving 2013
We headed down to Virginia again this year for Thanksgiving. We had a big crew at my parent’s house. Dave cooked the entire dinner for 15 (well… I made a cake and Doug was the one who actually did the turkey frying). It was a great few days, filled with leaf luging, hiking, visits with friends and of course lots and lots of eating.
Our friends Carl, Amanda and their daughter Gianna came up from North Carolina. Sophie was in heaven hanging out with Gianna. Here they are getting ready to luge down the hill in front of the house. Who needs snow when you have leaves!
Doug brought the deep fryer and did the turkey in the driveway. It was cooked to perfection, of course.
The men and the grill.
The whole crew (almost) at the Thanksgiving table. It was a feast!
Early Celebrity
A few weeks ago we went to a party at the Philadelphia Museum of Art with another Greene Towne Family. They had a step and repeat where the girls had their picture taken when we first walked in, and then throughout the night they ran a slide show of the pictures. Here’s Sophie on the big screen in the main hall with her friend Rachel, and Rachel’s older Leah. Celebs already….
Swimming
Sophie has been in and out of swimming lessons over the last two years, and she’s finally starting to get the hang of it. This is the first session where’s she’s in the water without a parent with her. She isn’t a huge fan of it, but once she gets going she does okay. Here she is with the noodle.
Lauren Gets Baptized
At the beginning of November we headed down to Va. to get Lauren baptized at St. Paul’s Episcopal, the same church where we got married and Sophie was baptized. Lauren was great. She cried for just a few seconds when the minister put water on her head, but then quieted down for the rest of the ceremony. She even let the minister walk with her up and down the isle.
The whole Coughlin-Sharp crew
Lauren in her gown and bonnet, the same one Becky and I wore, as well as Sophie.
Happy Halloween!
We had a beautiful Halloween in Philly. Nice and warm and lots and lots of kids. Sophie of course went trick or treating with Claire, who was Ariel. They made out like bandits… now we just need to discreetly lose most of the candy.
The infamous duo
On Sunday there was a Halloween parade in the neighborhood. The kids paraded up a few of the streets, where neighbors went all out with cupcakes, candy and ice cream. It was a sugar free-for-all.
Claire (Ariel), Liora (a flapper), Sophie (purple princess), Ilan (clown), Emma (crab)
And Lauren went as a Cabbage Patch kid. She didn’t love the wig, but tolerated it long enough to get a few good pictures.
Trip to Boston
Last weekend Aleen and I went up to Boston to visit Sallie, Andy and their new baby Langston (who is 4 months now, so I guess not that new). We spent a few days just catching up and hanging out. It was excellent.
Sallie, me and Aleen
And I also got to see Sallie when we were down in Virginia (what a treat!). Here are us with the kiddos.
Pumpkin Picking
When we were down in Virginia did some pumpkin picking and carving. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, hot even. We went to a picturesque pumpkin patch in Crozet, where we had our pick of the pumpkins.
The girls cheesing it up
Sophie’s pick
Lauren and Brittany
Mom, the expert pumpkin gutter
And the final products.
Remembering Grandma Coughlin
On Friday, October 4th my grandma died. Her health had been in decline for a several months, and one morning she just stopped living, sitting at the breakfast table. We went down to Virginia for the weekend to spend time with family and have a service. Although an emotional weekend, we got to see family that we hadn’t seen for a long time. My cousin Lisa and her family came in from Illinois, and my cousins Brittany and Brandon came down from NY.
The first cousins: Lisa, Becky, Brandon, me, Brittany
The Coughlin Crew: Stephen, Lisa, Becky, Brandon, me, Lauren Dad, Brittany, Jessica, Sophie
I’m thankful Grandma got to meet Lauren before her memory was really lost. Here she is with them at the beginning of the summer.
Grandma and me, June 2013