Neighborly Love

We've been busy getting ready for the holidays and attending festive events like Christmas Parties. It's been nice to get to know more people from church and at work. We've also had the opportunity to get to know our neighbors better. They are really cool.

Cuyler (Pronounced like Skyler, but without the S):
From the Great White North, this fun loving Canadian runs a business out of the apartment below us. He was a youth minister for a long time and has recently transitioned his energy into his business, 'Inherit The Mirth'. He is a Christian Cartoonist and 'Inherit The Mirth' is the name of the strip he publishes. You can see more of his work at his website. If you are a facebook users you can see updates and participate in the 'Caption Contests' through the facebook page. I hope he doesn't mind that I've posted one on the blog. We get along pretty well and have had a range of good conversations from health and diet to religion to pop culture and movies, like 'Strange Brew'.

James & Justine:
They live in the unit behind us. We don't really know them too well yet. James from what I know is a professional actor. He has been in some Off-Broadway productions in New York City and was a 'minor' role (I don't really know what that means) in a recent TV series on NBC called Kings (It's was taken off the air after one year, but can be seen on hulu). Justine is in school, I think she is a math major. They are both a part of a local theatre, the 'Sherman Playhouse'. We went to see "A Child's Christmas in Wales" on Friday. I've never heard of the play before, but it was a whimsical production where you feel like you are observing all the Christmas rituals and fun of a Welsh family from the perspective of a little boy. It was fun to get away from the traditional 'Nutcracker' and 'Christmas Carol'. (James in the front left of this picture)

We wish you all a Merry Christmas.

Anthony, Sharon, & Ira

Life is Beautiful

Hey Everyone!
We’ve had a busy couple of weeks.

Adventures in Babysitting

We spent a week babysitting for a couple in the ward.  They have 5 kids but fortunately took the baby twins with them to Utah.  In the end I’d say the week was a success and was actually kind of fun.  With that being said, I’m glad it’s over.  And I’m glad Heavenly Father generally sends babies to families one at a time.
I guess the word is out that we’re available because yesterday we got a call asking us to babysit for a single sister in the ward who just barely got a job and needs help watching her 2 ½ year old, from 5:30-11:30 p.m.   We’re old fogies and try to head to bed closer to 9:30, but we survived.  When it got late, this cute little girl (who is tall enough to be 5 or 6) would give me a pillow, put the blanket over me and kiss me goodnight, and Ira managed to sleep through most of our more raucous games.   Not bad considering today we heard that she usually bites someone or breaks something.

Dave

One of Anthony’s best friends, Dave stayed with us for a few days as he came back East for loads of interviews for his residency.  We think it would be fun for him to end up out here, although we definitely won’t blame him if he chooses the West.  He even joined us for the last day of babysitting, and probably scared him out of ever wanting to have that many kids.

Trains, Planes, and Automobiles

…or really just Automobiles.  I couldn’t resist keeping the movie themed subtitles.  We did it.  We finally got a new old car.  Our little Pearl (93 civic) is nearing the end of her road.  It was getting a little pricey to keep her up, and having two doors isn’t loads of fun with a car seat, so we’ve been thinking about it for a while.  And then when we were driving about 60 mph up to Boston, the hood flew up and put a foot long crack in the windshield.  Anthony did a great job getting us over to the shoulder safely, and even got the now warped hood to shut somehow.  But we’re not really sure if we’ll ever get it open again, and since then it started to make a kind of funny gurgly noise.  Anyway, that brings us to yesterday’s events.  We found a 2001 Honda Civic for a little less than half the estimated value.  It has a little wear and a few scratches, but it has 4 doors, has only had one owner, and seems like it’s in great condition.  Now we can drive down to Georgia for Christmas without wondering if we need to wrap the car up in duct tape to make sure it stays together.

Baby

Ira is a little sniffley, which I’m hoping means a tooth is coming in.  I think he’s going through a growth spurt because all of a sudden I can’t snap his onesies.  He is the biggest flirt.   Every time I take him out he makes everyone melt around him, not by really smiling at people, just by staring at them.  It’s nice to have an excuse to start conversations with strangers.

That’s pretty much it.  Hope everyone’s doing well, and that Christmas preparations are enjoyably not stressful. 

Plymouth Pilgrimage

Stuffed with turkey we headed to Plymouth, MA and the Plimouth Plantation where they have a big Plymouth recreation, similar to Jamestown and Willamsburg, complete with role-players of all the people who originally came across on the Mayflower.

The Quinn Family Pilgrims

 The Village

 One of the role players, Mr. Samuel Fuller. He was the ancestor of one of the people we were with.

 Another role player, I don't remember her character name, and no one was related to her. We did get to talk to one of Sharon's ancestors, John Billington, Jr. I didn't get a picture of him though. He had some good stories and explanation as to why no one really like his father, John Billington, Sr. who was apparently the first colonists to be hanged. The role players were role playing as if it was 7 years after the landing of the Mayflower and the hanging hadn't happened yet so the son was quite taken aback by the questioning of his father being hanged.

 Sharon and Amber in the village.

 The girls sight land on after months aboard the Mayflower (II recreation)

 Ira being cute.

 Plymoth Rock, supposedly engraved when they landed, but no one mentioned it until 120 yrs later. It wasn't even in the first governors notes and he had some pretty detailed notes about what happened.

 Proof we were there.

 Mayflower II at sunset.

We even had time to swing by a light house near Cape Cod. We are already planning our return to see more of them.

Boston Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is the best time of year. It's a time of

 Playing Games, Ira playing his favorite new game with mom.

Being with friends and family. Amber,thanks for a great Thanksgiving.

Giving thanks; I'm so Thankful for a beautiful family.

I'm thankful for an adventurous son who love to explore.

A time for feasting on, and giving thanks for, ...

Casseroles,

Vegetables,

Turkey and Potatoes, 

and all other steaming and delicious food. 

Happy Thanksgiving, Eat Responsibly.

November

Hey Everyone,
 Here’s the update on life as Quinns in Connecticut.
   

Ira:  He is the light of our lives….and lots of work.  The past couple of days he’s learned all sorts of new tricks.  Climbing, yesterday he got out a mixing bowl and stood on top of it. He also climbed on top of Anthony to get to the long yearned for door knob.

                                                          Let the climbing phase begin!  
He’s also just figured out that he doesn’t have to swallow food.  If he doesn’t like it, he can spit it out.  But if I’m quick enough, I’ll catch it with the spoon and re-feed it to him.  So appetizing.   He’s also really loved turning pages of books lately. 

Sharon:  For those of you who don’t know, my birthday present was an oil painting class that was held once a week for two months.  Now that it’s over, I’m trying to keep in the habit of painting and getting a little social contact.  So, I found a friend to paint with…which will work as long as her toddler doesn’t scratch out Ira’s eyes.  I’m thinking "pack and play" protective cage next time.   I’ve been busy baking and sewing, reading and painting, playing with Ira and preparing Sunday school lessons.  Our primary presentation was Sunday, which is a relief to have over.  I’m looking forward to not being the reverence task force any more. A few weeks ago, I spent a lot of my time playing Hide and Seek with Ira.  Here's some clips.  I wanted to add a song so you couldn't hear my annoying voice, but you'd miss the cute pitter patter of Ira crawling around.  

Anthony:  Is such a cute dad.  Often, I’m feeding Ira when he gets home.  As soon as Ira hears the door, he turns around waiting for Ant to make his way up the stairs, and then kind of jumps up and down in his seat when Ant makes his entrance.   Work is going well.  It’s nice that he can work from home when he needs to.  He got a stomach bug last Sunday and was able to work from home the next day without any problem.

So, that’s pretty much life.  We’re getting excited and ready for our trip to Boston to visit an old room-mate.  We’ll cook and eat, visit Plymouth, and explore Cape Cod.   I can’t wait!  Love you guys.  You’re in our thoughts and prayers as always.  Mom and Dad, your Christmas card makes me smile every time I look at it...which is often.
                Lots of Love,

  Sharon

Birthday Fun

My work observed Veterns Day today so I felt like I had a real birthday for the first time in a long time. I appreciate the birthday wishes from everyone, thanks.

I got a new camera lens and thought I would share some of the photos I took of Ira as I was adjusting to it.

It was a beautiful day today so we headed to the park to play with the new camera lens and the new Aussie Football (Footy) I got from Sharon. Footy is another variation of football that resembles a mix of Rugby, Gaelic Football, Soccer, and American Football. I won't bore you with all the details, but if you're interested you should check out some videos on youtube. I discovered it doing some research this summer on all the different kinds of football with the World Cup happening. I stumbled on it as the season was starting in Australia and kind of got into it. Anyway, I've been wanting to play, or try at least, and Sharon was nice enough to do some research and find a place to buy a ball.

Ira really liked the ball. Sharon and I had been playing for a bit and he started to get fussy so we went to give him some attention and play with him, but when we got there all he really wanted was the ball. It was cute.

I've got some work to do, but now I have a ball all I need to do is round up some people to play with.

We went out to dinner at a little Brazilian Cafe, Minas Carne, we've been wanting to check out. It's always nice to get some beans and rice Brazilian style, not to mention some meat fresh out of the Churrasco. Ira apparently really like it and the Brazilian guy working the counter really liked Ira back.

Happy Halloween

 Halloween is such a scary time of year! and a fun time. This year was full of fun activities. We went to our church Halloween Party where Sharon's youth class hosted an awesome 'Blind Man's Cave' that all the kids enjoyed.

 We decided to try out a fancy pumpkin carving kit this year. I have to say they turned out pretty good compared to past years.

And what is Halloween with out a fun, cute, and delicious costume for the little one.

I was surprised Ira didn't mind the hat. He seems to be a hat kind of kid.

Family Fall Visit

Grandma and Grandpa Quinn came and visited a few weeks ago. We had a lot of fun showing them around the area, especially with the fall colors starting to emerge.

Kent Falls with the family

 While I was working on Friday Sharon took the family apple picking. Yum.

 We made a random last minute stop at this old machinery museum. Kind of random, but they had a lot of old trucks. My grandpa's would have loved this place.

 The fall colors have been wonderful this year, especially when the sun comes out.

 Ira loved seeing Grandma and Grandpa

Ira's starting to figure out he's dad is kind of crazy.

We did a bunch of hiking and Ira spent a lot of time in the backpack chill'n. He was a good sport about it.

Child Plumber

I'm happy to help you out mom, let me get in here and take a look.