Thanksgiving stuff

Ariel and Chris arrived Thanksgiving day, after their connection in Houston was cancelled. They stayed overnight there, provided by the airline, but I think they were rerouted the next morning, hopping over New Mexico to Phoenix before getting to Albuquerque. Anyway, we managed to see them Friday, after they did a trail run in the foothills. We had lunch and a birthday cake for Ariel. We drove to Santa Fe, where we met Janey and Nikki, who took the train, and mostly wandered about the plaza. I tried to get reservations earlier at The Shed but the reserved block was booked through the weekend and we tried the walk-in route. The wait time seemed very foreboding but worked out well in the end. We managed to get a couple of tables in the bar area, and about the time we were into our second round of Margaritas and chips and salsa, they said they could serve us dinner there. (They made an exception, it seemed, because there was a snafu with another large party.) It worked out well and any doubts we had about the chilly day disappeared with the tequilla and food. On our way out, we walked through the plaza, which was bright with strings of lights throughout the trees.

Oh, we did stop as usual at J Crew, where both Cyndi and Ariel found some deals, while Chris and I took the boys to the toy store. Jackson found a $5 magnetic toy (Jack knew my limit, especially before Christmas) and Ry found a new play figure. Looked like the Riders of the Apocalypse, the horse and the rider sold separately. Combined, they were well above the limit. So Ry suggested just getting the horse, and getting the rider next time we are in Santa Fe. That was great. Chris was taking notes on possible Christmas gifts.  We also stopped for hot chocolate in the shop in the La Fonda, visited Cyndi's favorite shoe store, and sat in the basilica for a spell. Ariel and Chris found some New Mexico food gifts to take back.

Thanksgiving Day was pretty good. The weather was good. Ry and I got up about 5:30 to put the turkey in the oven. Cyndi had already pretty much taken care of everything else. So when it was time to take the turkey out of the oven, I first poured out the juice in one jar, the stock from the giblets into another jar, put the turkey in the back of the truck to rest, and we drove with Janey joining us. We played some travel bingo on the way, while the radio was already playing Christmas songs. This was Janey's second time playing with us.

I couldn't keep track of what the boys did. Jack was mildly disgruntled because we said no computer or other electronics on this trip. But I saw him having fun on a scooter later. Rylee loved  the turkey. It was one of the better family holiday meals. Good food, well organized and orchestrated by Cyndi. Everyone in good spirits. Ursula broke her wrist again from a fall, and Cyndi was quite concerned. In fact, she went back on Saturday to take care of her mother.

Ariel and Chris went to Ojo Caliente on Saturday and we saw them for a brief time on Sunday to get some coffee (and hot chocolates and scones for the boys) and take them to the airport, with a quick stop to buy a bag of whole red chiles.

They are planning to travel to Argentina (and Patagonia) for the Christmas holidays through New Year's.

Ry got a haircut the other day. It's very short. People comment on it all the time, but he loves it. Jackson seems very happy these days. While he knows my administrative password on the computer, he wanted to try his hand at hacking it anyway. It almost was a disaster, but we managed to repair the damage. The boys have been playing more indoors lately, lots of rambunctious running around and jumping on furniture. They came up with their own secret handshake.