Adam and the kids doing the Manchester 5 mile road race on Thanksgiving Day. Actually, all the Woodruffs did it too except for Sarena & the babies (Sarena the cripple babysat and made dinner while everyone else enjoyed a leisurely jog :)) That's the real reason I was sitting on the heating pad below - a hurt SI joint and compressed lower spine - not because my bum is generally cold. Actually, I'm cold all over here. What I need is a full-body heating pad!

Grandpa & Grandma Woody came for a short but sweet visit. Here's Grandpa wrestling with the kids.

Making gingerbread houses with our neighbors this past weekend.

Adam & Karinn after our first storm last week. Another storm hit a few days later. Tons of snow!

Karinn in our church nativity pageant. We also did a Sharp family wrap, I mean rap. It was a Reindeer Rap Song, which Aunt Heather taught us. We dressed all in black, wore huge gold necklaces, sunglasses, rings, and grills for our teeth (all bling found at the dollar store)!

Here's the 3 piano students with our teacher, Ms. Annette. She's a hoot: flamboyant and fun-loving. So, it makes piano enjoyable for all!

Trevor at his first piano recital. He did awesome - 3 perfect pieces! It was a proud parent moment, when both Makenzie and Trevor played.

Grandma Woody baking sugar cookies with the kids (with both eyes open even :))!

Pretty Makenzie was all gussied up by Aunt Alyson during Thanksgiving Holiday. She is growing up, and is asking to wear makeup periodically. Not till you are 12 missy!

Our almost finished tree-fort. (It's now finished with peep holes, etc) Its a miracle no one died finishing the roof. Although, Adam did put a drill through his finger building the walls. Ouch! Thanks for helping us finish it Todd and Nate! I call it our skyscraper!

Woodruff clan making turkey cookies for Thanksgiving.

Winter is here!

Trevor had the best 9 yr old party ever - he had a bunch of his friends over and their Dad's and we played Capture the Flag in the backyard, in the dark. It was a little cold (20 degrees) but we had a BLAST! Happy birthday Trevor!

Playing the Wii is a little different than the Atari I grew up with!

Sarena's favorite pass-time - sitting on a hot pad, reading a good long book.

Makenzie made us some fine green, red and yellow chocolates!

The kids "helped" me clear and burn some of the brush in the woods.

Karinn's 4th birthday party

The whole gang - I think there were 20 in all - not all of them made it into the picture!

Story time -

A slow speed version of duck, duck, queen! Tough to do in a dress and slippers!

I know you are only supposed to have a few people on the trampoline at a time, but this was just too adorable - plus with all the padding with the poofy dresses, I figured it would be okay....

Fall in New England

Pictures of the backyard - they just don't do it justice - the colors are incredible!

Halloween

First day of school

Trevor - a new third grader!

Makenzie - now in 5th grade!

Jared is in Kindergarten - 1/2 day and loves wearing belts!

Karinn was born ready for preschool!

The crew -

Jared is quite the soccer player - he generally scores 8 - 10 goals a game! They have to put him in as goalie so the other team can have a little fun.

New England Fall

Adam suprised me with a weekend trip to LA for my birthday, so I could attend Gaby Pullham's wedding (she was my best friend when I was preschool through 3rd grade and we stayed in touch until high school because she lived by my cousins in Pheonix). It was a quick trip, but Mom and I spent a few hours touring the "hot" spots like Rodeo Drive.

Here's Mom and I at the wedding. Incredible view of LA and coast in the background. It was freezing & windy - who knew I would need a COAT in California!

We had tons of visitors the last few months. The first was Mom and Dad Sharp, with Angie and baby Lily too. We took Mom to Holcoumb Farms where we have a share of the crop, which means we pickup produce and get to pick something every week (from flowers to raspberries, from Cilantro to Edemame beans). Its been fun and the kids have learned a ton!

I took the little kids on a hike with a friend, and followed this the next week by taking Trevor's cub scout group on the same hike to pass off some requirements as a bear scout. We also recently went to the zoo. Karinn loved the animals.

Jared is a tazmania devil on the soccer field! He scored 7 goals his first game, including a quarter as goalie and sitting the bench to give the other team a chance! He's amazing!

Karinn had a special visitor for the weekend - her cousin Makaylin! The girls had a blast playing with toys, picnics, riding horses, creating art projects, and kissing Grandpa in gratitude for this chance to play together!

Trevor's traveling soccer team recently got to have a special clinic with the UMASS soccer team. UMASS coaches and 2 players spent 1 1/2 hours with the boys for a special practice, followed by a picnic and the boys watching a UMASS game!
Here's some Woodruff cousins, Treyton, Logan, Alexis & Jayci. We love our cousins!

Trevor before his first day of 3rd grade. What a handsome boy! He's having a great year so far, and loves his teacher.

Here's all the kids waiting for the bus on their first day of school. Makenzie's in 5th grade, Trevor 3rd and Jared is in kindergarten (he's a little shy but prepared with a tight belt and tucked in shirt :)!

This is Karinn's first day of preschool! Boy is she excited and ready to rock! There is nothing shy about this girl. Grandpa says she could win American Idol with her attitude and constant singing - we agree!

Here's a visit with Mom Woodruff, Alyson and her two kids: Treyton and Jayci. This is Old Newgate Prison (the first prison in the continental US, a converted copper mine).

Here's Aunt Angie with cute baby Lily, and their adoring fan Makenzie!

Here's Grandpa Sharp with loving Karinn.

Alyson and I got to take off Saturday to NYC. What an eventful day! Good time in the morning walking around beautiful Central Park, Time Square, Rockefeller Center. Then we got a parking ticket, got kicked out of a Broadway Show (the baby woke up - of course - and started squealing), and then got lost DRIVING around for 2 hours with a screaming baby in the back. Not a good idea for NYC! Luckily, the day ended well when we had to head out for gas. We were on fumes and luckily made it past the ghettos to a safe gas station and some food - we were starving. By the end of the night we could laugh off our misfortunes and chalk it up to a good memory, because we were so deliriously tired by then.

Here's Alyson's and my kiddos at a local lake beach. When Diana, Todd and Heather came to visit, we went back to this beach on Labor Day and got caught in a lightening storm. We were drenched from the rain. Unfortunately, I can't find that picture anywhere. Sorry!

Welcome friends and family!

Because we are so far away from each of you, we'd like to share a bit of our life here in New England. We have enjoyed thawing out this summer and exploring the sites here. We'd love to hear from each of you soon!

This is old Newgate Prison with Grandma Sharp, Aunt Angie and Lily. This is the first prison in American, a converted copper mine.

In Historic Deerfield, the kids learned how to write with a quill pen, card wool, and play with toys like Puritan children of 1700s.

In Boothbay Harbor, Maine, we took a tour boat out to Seal Rock and to catch a few lobsters!

Here is the magnificent view from our cabin in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. We stayed a week.


Here's Jared braving the lobster tank with a huge grimace on his face.

On top of Bunker Hill. Yes, we each walked the 242 steps to the top of the monument too. Karinn got a popsicle for doing it all by herself!

Here we are listening to an Native American talking & showing us how they lived in the 14-1600s, after we visited the Mayflower.

This is at Plymouth Plantation.

Here's a sideways picsture of Karinn at Relay for Life, during the Hawaiin Hour. We all participated. It was wonderful!


Yes, we are still swimming. Here is Trevor taking 1st in district for his backstroke.



We walked the Freedom Trail in Boston, including a tour of the USS Constitution (in the background).