A harrowing ferry ride and a peek into history

We left our long-term home in Duncannon yesterday and boarded a ferry for France, where we proceeded to endure possibly the roughest sea passage in history. It was kind of like trying to eat and sleep and do other normal things on a seemingly endless carnival ride. As always, the brunt of the seasickness fell on me, but Max and Ruth were slightly green, as well. Frankly, my head is still spinning. But, we survived and disembarked around 1:00 this afternoon. We then had an opportunity to visit a fascinating D-Day museum at Utah Beach, before making the long drive to our home for the night. Our rough night on the ferry gave us some perspective about how many of those soldiers probably felt when they reached the shore, which made us respect them all the more.

Tanks are always a big hit with my boys

The war plane of David Dewhurst Sr. 

Guess who was excited to see all the statues?! 

Utah Beach D-Day Museum

Irish Thanksgiving

Yesterday was a big day. It was Weston's birthday AND Thanksgiving, so we partied all day and consumed almost more calories than the human body can handle. The challenge of trying to prepare a typically American meal in a foreign country is thrilling. It's even more thrilling when your kitchen is equipped only with basic food prep items and lacks things like electric mixers, measuring spoons/cups, and an abundance of baking dishes and mixing bowls. We had so much fun hunting for ingredients and coming up with creative solutions to some of our meal preparation conundrums. The last time we prepared Thanksgiving dinner in a foreign country was in 2008, in Brazil. This time, it was considerably easier, though still interesting. We managed to put together a decent feast that tasted mostly the way Thanksgiving dinner should taste. We had turkey, ham, green bean casserole, dressing, sweet potato casserole, pink salad, fruit salad, and pumpkin pie. And, we were so very thankful that we have a dishwasher in this house, to make cleaning up much simpler. We did miss getting to spend the day with our extended family and getting to nap to the sound of football on the T.V. after the meal (though we were able to get a game later in the day, which made the day complete, particularly for our football lover birthday boy). But, otherwise, it was Thanksgiving as usual. We are blessed beyond belief and have so much to be thankful for, on this day and every day.

It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie!
(Pumpkin was one of the most difficult ingredients to find.)

Thanksgiving Feast
(And, the all-important dishwasher!)

Thankful and Blessed

Thanksgiving Sunset

A reason to smile

When I was 8 or 10, my friend and I were playing around in a golf cart. We were seeing how fast we could go around corners, and for some stupid reason (possibly the same stupid reason that had me participating in this activity in the first place), I was waving my hands in the air like I just didn't care instead of holding on. But, as I slid across the gravel road on my face, I began to care very much. Once we got the bleeding stopped, it became clear that half of my front tooth was missing. Our family dentist was able to repair it with a crown, and that was that. Or so I thought.

About two years ago, I started having intermittent intense pain and random swelling in my face. A year after that, I finally found out what was causing it: The root of the injured tooth was seriously infected and beyond repair. So my dentist and I decided it would have to come out and an implant would have to be placed and a new permanent crown installed. Without going into too many of the gory physical and emotional details, I can tell you that the final step of the process happened today. I got my new tooth, just in time for Thanksgiving. It feels ridiculously odd in my mouth right now, and I am still in some pain from the procedure, but I am so thankful to have it finally and firmly in place. I am also thankful for the two dentists (one in Marble Falls, Texas and one in Dublin, Ireland) that worked hard to accommodate my crazy travel schedule in order to get it done. I truly have many reasons to smile.

Bring on the turkey! 

My sweet family presented me with flowers and chocolate
to celebrate my new tooth. Another reason (or five) to smile!

Winterval in Waterford

This afternoon, we took the short ferry ride over to Waterford (as in Waterford Crystal), to take in the sights and fun of their winter festival (that's winter + festival = "Winterval," see?), where we ate junk food, rode carnival rides, and found a little Christmas cheer.  Our first stop was a night club/bar that has given itself a day job during the holidays. They have free showings of the movie "Elf" throughout the day while Winterval is going on. If popcorn, hot chocolate, and a giant elf named Buddy can't put you in the Christmas spirit, then nothing really can. From there, we headed over to the Helter Skelter slide--a twisty slide two stories high, which the kids descend on a mat, to maximize velocity. I couldn't even look at it without thinking of one of my favorite scenes in "A Christmas Story."

"Ho. Ho. Ho."

When Clay and Max had finished on the slide (of their own volition, and not because Santa kicked them down with the two of his boot), we all took a ride on a vintage Ferris wheel, which was a huge hit with all the kids. After that, we allowed ourselves a quick peek in the Waterford Crystal showroom...from the outside, because contrary to how I sometimes feel or act, I have not quite lost my everloving mind. Our last stop was the tiny carousel, that just happened to be sitting in front of the churro stand, which we felt obliged to patronize. It was such a fun outing and just almost more fun (and junk food!) than we could stand!

Little Clay with a big Buddy

Winterval Fun

Zooming down the slide

Ferris Wheel Riders

These two goofs deliberately refused to look at the camera.

 My Ferris wheel partner and I, getting ready for lift off

Look, but don't touch!

Riding High

Silly Clay on the carousel

Churros!

Warming up with hot chocolate in a very odd seat

This sign at the ferry landing made us laugh.
Fortunately, we made it onto the boat, without driving into the water.

A Walk on the Beach

We love having the beach to ourselves!

Duncannon Fort

Brothers and Best Friends

On the rocks

The Beach View Townhouses
(Ours is right in the middle.)

Our beautiful Waterford Harbor

Duncannon's First Ever Texas Appreciation Day

The other day, Jeff and Weston went to the tiny grocery store in our little bitty town. The man behind the counter had on a UT shirt, and so a conversation ensued. This man has traveled to Texas several times and loves the state like a native. He insisted that we have a party to celebrate our collective Texasness. His brother runs the pub (where we went for Jeff's birthday lunch), across the street from the store, so we all met up there this evening to eat chili, BBQ, chips, guacamole, and queso. Our new friend, John, proclaimed it Duncannon's "First Ever Texas Appreciation Day."

Texas Appreciation Day at The Strand

JFK Arboretum

It has been raining here all week, and the wind has been blowing between 35 and 45 miles per hour constantly. So, needless to say, we haven't gotten our quota of outside time in, though we have tried to brave the elements a few times. My boys have literally been bouncing off the walls, and I've been ready to pull my hair out. We were all so thankful that today dawned clear and bright and that we were able to get out of the house and do some exploring. Apparently, JFK's ancestors are from this region, so there are a couple of memorials honoring he and his family nearby. We decided to go to the JFK Arboretum, where we found a fantastic playground, lots of lovely trails to explore, and plenty of fresh air and wide open space. I think we are all better equipped to face tomorrow now!

The Keeper of the Trees

Bunny Buddies

A walk in the woods is good for the soul.

There were trees of all kinds in the park, but the maples put on the best fall colors.

A beautiful day in a beautiful place

It's a jungle gym. It's a merry-go-round.
It's more fun than you can stand!
(And, not the least bit unsafe, I'm sure!)

These two were so excited to find a hedge house to play in.
It quickly became a fort, with a stockpile of stick weapons.

The immature hedge maze was pretty easy to navigate,
but these two "hunters" did it over and over!

Throwing lessons

Tossing the ball around is one of this kid's love languages!

Play Time

The forecast for today was rain. And, it did rain all morning. But, by lunch time, the sun had come out, and it turned into a gorgeous day. So, we went for a walk on the beach and then played at the awesome Duncannon playground for a couple of hours.

Zippity Do Da

Possibly the best slide ever

Playing Pirate

Round and round and round they go

Working in a little workout

Full stride

We won't be able to watch the Aggie game,
but we're hoping the maroon rocks on the beach are a good omen.

The half matters

Today is Clay's half-birthday, and in our family that usually means a half-celebration, because the half matters--but not quite as much as the whole. Clay requested "a pineapple cake, that is also chocolate, and has a bow and arrow on it. And sprinkles." So, using basically just imagination (because, while our our rental house has everything for basic meal preparation, it certainly doesn't contain most of the tools necessary to turn out a brilliantly decorated cake), I threw something together for him that pleased him immensely. We also got him a little crossbow toy, because we feel it is important to invest in our kids' futures. What an amazing 4 1/2 years with this little guy! He makes us happy in so many ways, and we are so thankful for his precious presence in our family.

Not the prettiest cake I've ever made, but it made a little boy's day

My favorite 4 1/2 boy!

Clay couldn't yet tell what the fancy wrapping held,
but he exclaimed, "It's a toy!"

Practicing with the crossbow