Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

....and that is what it did on Sunday the 26th. When the snow finally ended the next morning, there was more than a foot of snow on the ground. That didn't stop us from heading to Atlantic City for the 3rd Annual post-Christmas gambling trip with Erika, Richie, Jasmine, Michael, Grandma and Papa. It was quite a drive down on the Garden State, a ride that Jay said made him think of planet Hoth from Empire Strikes Back. There were cars abandoned all over the highway and I suspect some of them will be buried for quite some time.

While the adults were in A.C., Ryan and Dylan stayed with Omi and Poppy and while Dylan kept saying "yucky" about the snow, Ryan had fun playing around in the fort Jay made for him before we left.

Jay, the kids and I finally came back to the city on Tuesday night and it was a mess. The streets were hardly plowed and Jay basically had to parallel park in between snow banks. There was so much snow that we could only get the driver door opened and all had to climb out that way. By the time we got upstairs, the kids were asleep and when they woke up Wednesday morning, they discovered that Santa came to our house too and spent a few hours opening more Christmas presents and playing with their toys. Jay got a new Jets snow tube and we couldn't wait to try it out so we all headed outside to play. It is such a task getting the kids ready to go out but as soon as we got outside, it was worth it - Ryan was so happy to see a friend of his from school and both boys dove right in to the snow. Ryan spent most of the time sledding with his friend and having snowball fights.

Dylan went down the hill a few times but seemed to prefer laying face-down in the snow trying to eat as much snow as he could.

We stayed outside for a few hours and the kids had a great time - we had to drag them inside. I am sure they will be out there again tomorrow!!!

Rita

We were invited back to Amy's house the day after the wedding so the boys could ride Aunt Teri's horse, Rita.

Ryan was so excited about it and wanted to run right down to the stables when we got there. After we spent a little time helping clean up in the tent from the night before (Dylan decided to collect the pumpkins again and Ryan wanted to make a "candle tower" with all of the centerpieces), we ran some races and checked out the horses while Rita got cleaned up and saddled.

When Rita was already, Ryan put on a helmet, got a lesson on how to hold the reins, and got on the horse.

He smiled and laughed the whole time he was on Rita, but it seemed like he really didn't want to touch her - when he was finished walking around the first loop, Aunt Teri said "you can give her a pat and say 'Good job' " and Ryan said "No Thank you" lol.

The fun was short lived though because Ryan got distracted when he saw Dylan playing with the dogs and said he was ready to get off, he rode the horse enough. When Ryan got off, it was Dylan's turn. Jay brought him over to Rita and Dylan immediately started petting her but wanted no part of sitting on the horse. I got on and before Rita took a step, Dylan started screaming and squirming to get off. Oh well.

Not long after, it was time to head home. Everyone agreed though that riding Rita was a fun way to end the weekend.

Sara and Leif's Wedding

From October 2nd

This past weekend, we took our first road trip in our new car to go to Jay's cousin Sara's wedding in Maryland. Sara and Leif got married at Amy's house and it was a perfect day - an absolutely beautiful location, fantastic weather and a very fun reception.

Amy and Fred's property is huge and beautiful. The ceremony occurred in their side yard overlooking their farm and after the ceremony, we all moved to the front of the house for cocktail hour. The kids had a blast running around, eating and playing with their toys.

When the music started at the reception, Ryan said that he wanted to dance but at first he was shy and said I needed to go too. It only took a few minutes before Ryan started tearing up the dance floor and was surrounded by a circle of girls. At one point, I told him he needed to come sit down and eat and he told me that he couldn't, he needed to dance with his friends.

As Ryan stood in the middle of a group of girls and Jay and I watched, I realized all of the guys at the wedding were standing at the bar behind us. One of them tapped me on the shoulder and said "Your son is making us look bad - with moves like his, I don't think I can compete" lol

Dylan even danced for a bit....

...but it didn't take long before he realized there were many other more interesting things to do like playing with the hanging lanterns and collecting all of the pumpkin decor in the yard.

The boys got to stay up way past their bedtime and were pretty excited that we got to ride back to the hotel in a party limo. This was the first wedding Dylan went to and the second for Ryan and overall, I think the boys were great. They were quiet and well behaved during the ceremony (thanks to some pez and the fact that the ceremony was pretty short), they looked absolutely adorable in their suits, and they were polite and friendly to everyone. It was great to be able to attend Sara and Leif's wedding - they are a great couple and we wish them a lifetime of love and happiness!

The Thanksgiving Experiment

I hardly took pictures on Thanksgiving - very unlike me but I think I was preoccupied thinking about the Jets game Thanksgiving night and Black Friday shopping. Other than the Jets beating the Bengals Thanksgiving night, the most memorable thing about this Thanksgiving was Michael's first attempt and making a deep-fried turkey.

So as not to burn down the house, Michael stocked up on fire extinguishers (which luckily, we did not need), got his protective gear on, and found a location that seemed safe - Ryan told Erika later "Uncle Michael made the turkey outside on the dirt where the bugs are" Doesn't that sound like a good place to cook?

First step was to boil the oil, specifically peanut oil or as Ryan has told everyone "peanut butter oil". While Michael got the pot ready, Papa seasoned the turkey. Once the oil reached 350 degrees, it was time for step 2 (took about 30 minutes for 6 gallons of oil!).

Step 2: put in the turkey. As soon as the turkey touched the oil, the oil started boiling and bubbling like crazy - until the turkey went in, the oil was still - no bubbles at all. You are supposed to cook the turkey for about 3 minutes per pound, and true to that, the turkey took about 25 minutes.

When the time was up, it was time to see how the turkey came out. The moment of truth:

It was delicious!! The white meat was super juicy and the skin was terrific. Great job Michael! Will you be cooking again next Thanksgiving?