Thanksgiving in the Berkshires

We're in the Berkshires with Susan's family for Thanksgiving and are having a fine time. There were 22 of us for dinner yesterday (21 are in the first two pics -- sorry Aunt Shelly!).

We went bowling yesterday and today -- the girls' favorite new sport. I've promised them more tomorrow plus swimming and McDonald's.

Emily's beautiful card is in the lower right.

I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving as well! 

Fun at Chelsea Piers

The girls' soccer seasons finished this weekend. Alison's team finished an undefeated season with a 2-2 tie, which Emily scored her usual 5-10 goals (we don't keep track anymore) in the mud -- you can see how dirty they all are in the first picture.

Then, all three girls went with the 3 Kumbles to a 90-minute gymnastics and rock climbing class at Chelsea Piers. Below are some pics of the girls jumping on a trampoline and swinging on a rope -- ending in both cases with a fun tumble into a pit of spongy blocks. 

Emily and Me at Trapeze School

Emily and I went with some friends to a trapeze school this morning and had a ball! Both of us got to go a bunch of times.

To see a video of Emily climbing up and doing two swings, you can go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wVfJLDLHCQ

To see me swinging and being caught by one of the instructors, you can go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXuyFegyM2k 

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Alison's drama class performed The Wonderful Wizard of Oz today. Alison was the Cowardly Lion and (in my totally unbiased opinion) was great! I've posted the videos I took of the show, so you can judge for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XqrSq7k0EY (part 1) and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de8SzTiyeWo (part 2)

The last five pictures are random ones from the past week... 

More Pictures from My Parents' Visit

My parents are leaving in an hour after a wonderful 10-day visit. Here are some pics from the week.

The first few are from Alison's soccer game last weekend, in which Emily got to play because there weren't enough players. She scored two goals, almost scored another and had a beautiful pass that should have been another goal -- I caught it all on video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Bnkxf5VQcw. Look at how TINY she is relative to the other girls! Alison played goalie in the first half and midfield in the 2nd half and played great as well -- the team won 4-0.

Emily then played her usual game the next day, toying with the 7-year-olds -- here's a short video of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf8FJb1zA9U (I'm having fun with my new video camera -- a gift from my partner, Glenn!)

The bottom 8 pics are from yesterday, when Alison and Emily went rock climbing and then we played basketball outside. 

My 40th Birthday Party

I turned 40 on November 1st, so I’m now officially old! To celebrate, Susan organized a big party last Saturday night, which was a blast! Check out www.tilsonfunds.com/Personal/40thbirthday for some pictures and links to the toasts that were given. Bill’s and Fred’s were especially hilarious! 

My Family's Visit

To fully appreciate the unique and odd brand of Tilson humor, you have to watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdJSjMPbtes

In it, Alison and Emily play the piano while the rest of us dance, and then the girls try to pull Dana's pants down and end up wrestling on the floor (they get that kind of behaviour from their MOTHER, for sure!).

In this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJCymopvTJI and in the two pics below, Katharine spells her name. 

Halloween Pics

Katharine and I took Alison and Emily to school today and went to visit Emily in her classroom (first two pics). Some friends came over last night and we went trick-or-treating in our building, which goes all out, with a haunted house in the basement, etc. On Monday night, we went to a pre-Halloween party at the Ackmans, which was lots of fun as well!