Happy Birthday Mom!

One thing I know for sure is that I have a cool Mom. But when I say cool, I don't mean that superficial kind of cool that comes from too much makeup, trendy clothes, and fancy cars. I mean that my Mom is that kind of person that everybody respects and likes... literally everybody.

I think I really started to understand this when my Mom was a chaperone for our school's 6th grade field trip to Sonora, CA. I don't really know what it was that motivated her to volunteer for the terrible task of babysitting a bunch of prepubescent kids for an entire week, but she did. She slept in the girls cabin with 60 or so screaming girls (for an entire week, did I mention that?), and helped us pan for gold, visit museums, tour caves, count tree rings, etc. This was truly an amazing commitment from an amazing Mom. But the thing I remember most about this field trip was that girls would come up to me and explain over and over again how much they liked my Mom. They would say "she is the coolest chaperone" or "you are so lucky" and this happened at least 10 different times over the course of a week. I realized that I agreed with them, and I've never had any reason to wish I could have somebody else's mom. She's just that cool. Happy Birthday Mom.

Football Practice

Are you ready for some football? from Jerry Thomas on Vimeo.

Aruba, Jamaica, ooh I wanna take ya- to Puerto Rico!

Answers to frequently asked questions

How did Levi do?
With some good entertainment ideas from mom and Sarah, Levi did great on the plane. He slept 1/2 of each leg, including 4 hours of our 6 hour flight on the way back. He was a good sport and took his naps in restaurants, ferries, the car, and in the backpack.

Who went with you?
It was Jerry, Levi, me, and my old roommate Jen. We visited my sister Carrie, husband Chris, and kids Lucy and Theo.

What did you do?
Ate a lot of food. Went snorkeling. Visited the tiny island of Vieques. Jumped off cliffs in the rain forest. Went to an art museum. Tourist shopped with the cruise boat people. Swam in a bio-luminescent bay at night.

Did you need a passport?
No. Puerto Rico is in a lot of ways just like another state, but without full voting rights. They vote in the primaries but not the general election. Anyone born in Puerto Rico is a US citizen. They have a non-voting representative in Congress.

Some happenings on the trip:
Carrie found a dollar on the bottom of the ocean while snorkeling.
Jen asked the waitress what 'pan de agua' was, exactly. The waitress replied, "It's a water bread." Huh.
Lucy sang the saddest, most dirgeful "I am a child of God" you will ever hear, then cleared her throat and spit on Jen.
Jerry overheard the following question by a man in a souvenir shop: "Are these prices in dollars or Mexican?"
Vivian encountered a bee swarm and had to run away flailing. She got stung twice.
Somebody's kid threw up in the car, and for once it wasn't a Gregory.
Vivian and Carrie made up a super-cool snorkeling hand signal to mean "look out for that jellyfish over there", and then we actually got to use it!
Levi introduced Theo to the concept of 'ball'.

Some stats:

Spotted while snorkeling- a ray, 5 jellyfish, a pirate treasure chest that may or may not have been purposely planted by the Tourism Board, starfish, urchins, coral, and multi-colored fish.
Baths taken per day by Levi or Theo- 6. Baths taken together-0 Cousin who was opposed to sharing personal space: Levi
On a scale of 1-10 how cool it was to swim at night in a bioluminescent bay- 10. How cool we told Chris it was (who stayed home with the ninos)- 5ish.
Average daily temperature: 85 Average daily water temperature: 78
Percentage of time Theo was wearing more than a diaper- 2%
Percentage of time Theo was wearing less than a diaper- 10%
Most people crammed in the 7 passenger rental van- 9
Silliest restaurant name: Tie between Belly Buttons and Bananas

All Hallows Eve

Some old pictures I never posted, plus some more Halloween fun.