November Fun

We loved having Elizabeth's family here with us for a week. Nathan especially enjoyed spending time with his aunt Anne and uncle Erik as well as Oma and Opa. One treat we all enjoyed was Dad playing the piano and Nathan loved to join in (check out the video at the bottom of this post).

We had a wonderful early-Thanksgiving dinner with the Jacksons complete with turkey and all the fixings. Nathan enjoyed the mashed potatoes the most ... or the pie - who could disagree?

It was great for Nathan to have family here visiting. He has been talking about them all week since they have left and gone home. We are excited about the Christmas holidays and the chance to be with family again then. Nathan again enjoyed preparing food - the picture shows him and his Aunt Anne licking the beaters after mixing up some chocolate brownies.

One day Liz and Nathan took everyone up to Palmyra to see the Church historic sites and they had an enjoyable time there. It has been really neat for Nathan and for us too to live so close to Palmyra and get to see the sites there relatively often.

INTRAMURAL CHAMPIONS!

LDSSA TAKES HOME INTRAMURAL CHAMPIONSHIP

The Latter-day Saint Student Association (LDSSA) flag football took home the Cornell Intramural Championship last Thursday night. Our team dominated all season long and eventually took the championship 25-0 in front of an estimated 30 people under the lights at Cornell's Schoelkopf Stadium.

Our team's stingy defense only allowed 18 points all season long (just over 2 points allowed per game) leading to way to a 5-0 regular season and an undefeated march through the championship tournament with 3 straight victories. Ryan and Gary, while physically they may be the antithesis of the stereotypical defensive lineman, provided numerous sacks and hurries that took other team out of rhythm and gave opportunities for everyone else to get interceptions and defensive stops.

While the defense was tough, Josh Price, QB (check out the video at the end of the post), led the team offensively to multiple touchdown victories in nearly every game. He had plenty of weapons and was able to spread the wealth around and give everyone a chance to contribute. I think everyone was able to score points on offense during the year.
All in all it was a lot of fun and the LDSSA took home their 3rd Intramural Championship of the year (Basketball, Softball, and now Flag Football '07).

Video:

QB Josh Price avoids the rush and hits Adam Treadwell, who then heads upfield.

Halloween 2007

We had a very fun Halloween here in Groton. Nathan was a teletubbie this year and loved being in his costume. We commented that he seemed to have the right body shape at this stage to be a perfect teletubbie!

When Scott got home from school we got ready and went down to Main Street in Groton where the businesses where passing out candy to trick-or-treaters (see video at the end of this post). Also, the fire station opened up their doors and of course Nathan loved going there and getting to see the fire engine that was parked just outside. On our way back home Scott took Nathan and trick-or-treated to the houses on our street. Nathan did pretty well saying "trick-or-treat" but at times when Scott prompted him he said "please" or "thank you" (before he got the treat). He had a great time carrying his classic plastic pumpkin bucket around and he definitely knew he was getting candy! The candy had really come in handy the past couple of days as we are starting potty training (note: he is doing well and we've had some early successes!).

On Monday night our activity was pumpkin carving. When asked what he wanted on his pumpkin Nathan picked off a jack-o-latern sticker from the window and said he wanted one like that. That was Nathan's pumpkin, Liz carved a kitty and Scott did a grizzly bear this year. It has become a fun tradition to carve our pumpkins and be creative. Liz's pumpkin designs are more spontaneous and Scott is more meticulous and usually uses a pattern to get things just right. All in all it was a great time and we are already getting excited about the upcoming holiday season!