My View of Life on the Dock
Even the rain couldn’t dampen the anticipation on T Wharf in Rockport yesterday afternoon as the crowd eagerly awaited the arrival of the one and only Santa!
It is truly a one-of-a-kind kind of day in a one-of-a-kind kind of town!
Please excuse my shoddy videography. As you can imagine, I was filming with one hand, taking photos with the other, and trying to make sure the boys didn’t do belly flops into Rockport Harbor. Intentionally or by accident.
Live blogging from T wharf. Santa is in the house!
If you have a second, come by the Rockport police station and donate blood! I was just confirming Santa’s rainy arrival, but figured I’d do it while here! They close at 2:00!!!!
Hmmm. See now, I always thought the concern was too much excess during the holidays. Maybe the saying is, too much excretion during the holidays.
After all, Everyone Poops, right?
Even the snowmen and the reindeer, I suppose.
I’ve been known to go a bit overboard during the holidays. Jingle our Elf on the Shelf has gotten into a fair share of late night mayhem, carrot peels have been scattered by reindeer with poor at best eating etiquette, Santa’s cookies have been crumbled and dipped into his mug of milk for that “eaten on the run” kind of effect, letters to Santa have been “mailed”, videos from the Portable North Pole have been delivered, and reindeer food has been sprinkled on the lawn. Special reindeer bells have even been wrapped in boxes just like those that appear in the Polar Express and placed far back under the tree for the boys to find last.
Lies, deception, and holiday fun at its best. All of that having been said, however, you won’t find me throwing around snowman or reindeer poop anytime soon….or feeding it to the kids.
“Ho! Ho! Ho! Sorry the reindeer just had to go ”
I’ll be singing this all week now.
“Dumpity, Dump, Dump,
Dumpity, Dump, Dump,
Look at Frosty go”
Pick #1
This event has already received some press here on GMG and I’ve had my eye on it for a couple of weeks.
The Beauport Princess will welcome Santa aboard on Saturday (twice)!
Reserve ASAP for the evening Santa Cruise to enjoy cocoa, cookies, a reading of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, partying with some elves, and of course schmoozing with the big guy Himself! The afternoon cruise has already sold out, so if you’re interested in sailing with Santa, book now for the 6:00-7:30 pm trip.
Pick #2
Because we call Rockport home, we’ve yet to miss Santa’s arrival into Rockport Harbor. Each year it is a big day in our household and I’m guessing that, years from now, it’ll be one of those days that our boys treasure from their book of childhood memories.
Santa is scheduled to arrive on Rockport’s T-Wharf at 3:45….by lobster boat, of course. Santa is always escorted into the harbor by the Rockport Harbor Masters, as well as, the Coast Guard. You can never be too safe when it comes to the Big Guy after all.
Once disembarking the boat and climbing the ladder up towards Motif #1, Santa will hitch a ride on one of Rockport’s Forest Fire Trucks to Dock Square for some caroling and the lighting of Rockport’s Christmas Tree. The tree lighting ceremony is scheduled to get under way at 4:00 p.m.
Dressing warmly and packing a thermos are never bad ideas 😉
Pick #3
In my humble opinion, you can NEVER go wrong with a trip to the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary….and this weekend is no exception!
Saturday’s programing includes “Gifts from Nature” for 4-12 year olds @ 10:00 a.m. and “Map and Compass Treasure Hunt” @ 2:00 p.m. for ages 7 and up!
On Sunday, from 1:30-3:00, you can join a “Sense of Wonder Walk: Nuts about Squirrels” for ages 3 and up! Come on….how can you resist that?
Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary Program Catalog
Pick #4
Get your laugh on! The Improv Asylum in Boston’s North End will be home to “No Rest for the Wicked Funny” again this year. The event is 24 straight hours of comedy to benefit Globe Santa. While 23 hours of the event is not child friendly (and, really, who would want it to be!!!), the 10:00 a.m time slot on Saturday, December 6th is!
“Family Time! Children 13 and under can improvise with The 24 hour cast for some family friendly fun. (Kids get in free)”
So, if you have a child who loves the limelight or who is outgoing and funny, this may be just the ticket to let them shine! And…it is for a great charity.
You can read more about the entire event here
Savoring the moment at Savour Wine and Cheese for Ladies’ Night! Yum!! Never miss at this place!
A quick Sunday morning game of Musical Lights ended like this….
Five homies + four light fixtures = one bird on a pole.
Gloucester’s Annual Santa Parade
Ho Ho Ho, Don’t forget to go!
Don’t forget that the Gloucester Santa parade begins today at 3:00! The route begins at the State Fish Pier and ends at Kent Circle on the boulevard for the annual tree lighting. The tree is expected be lit between 4:30-5:00. I’ve heard differing reports so I’m covering my bases.
Another successful search for the most perfect of trees is in the books. Cheers again to the Bertolon Family and Beverly Tree Farm for opening their doors, helping us to create lasting memories, and raising money for The Cabot Performing Arts Center.
You all know me well enough by now to know that I’d love to wax poetically about how much I have to be thankful for this year, but I’ll spare you that and simply wish you all the most perfect of Thanksgivings…whatever that may be to each of you.
This year my little family unit has taken to the mountains of New Hampshire. We were a bit snowed in and lost electricity, but order was restored just before the Macy’s Day Parade began..so it’s all good.
In this very moment I am thankful that my husband has shuffled the boys off to the indoor pool and that I have a moment to reflect on how good life is (while trying, challenging, and even hard at times) and to watch the parade (a giant guilty pleasure of mine…that no one else in the family appreciates), take in this gorgeous view, and drink a hot cup of coffee in its entirety before it gets cold. And, yes, Joey….there is some Baileys in that mug.
The rest of our day will consist of a nice hike in the woods, building a snowman for the wildlife to remember us by after we head home, some more time in the pool, a meal in the tavern, and then our annual Thanksgiving night viewing of The Polar Express with cocoa and popcorn. Perfect…for us.
Happy, happy Thanksgiving to you all! May this day find you all warmed by what makes you feel Thankful.
With Love From The Schraffts
Pick #1
So, I’m cheating here a bit with this post because my 1st pick is actually a few weeks from now. Originally, I was going to post about the Parent/Child Cupcake making class that is taking place at Eurostoves on Saturday 11/29, BUT it is sold out….which made me think that some things I may want to recommend in the future may need to be written about ahead of time so that interested readers don’t get shut out! I’ll try to keep that in mind.
You’re in luck, however, because the “Parent/Child Cupcake Crazy” is also being offered on December 26th. So book now….and turn it into a great little gift to put under the tree! A fantastic little date day for you and yours (or a niece, nephew, grandchild, etc) all wrapped up with a bow. Annnnd, no need for the recipient of your awesome gift to be patient, because just when the Christmas buzz is about to wear off, you get to hop in the car and keep the fun going!
Pick #2
If I’m to be honest, I haven’t been here yet, but I’ve been meaning to go and this weekend’s Annual Holiday Bazaar in the “magical shop in the forest” sounds pretty perfect to me. I love the sound of the nature-inspired gifts, but strolling through craft tables can get boring for kids, let’s be honest. The Center for Wildlife in Cape Neddick, Maine, (just over an hour away….so not too bad!) eliminates that by giving the kiddos an opportunity to meet the owl, hawk, falcon, and more who call the center home! And, this weekend’s events will also include winter book readings.
“Environmental Fairy Tales Come Alive! We will have readings of “A Christmas Owl” and “A Winter Solstice Celebration” at 1pm and 2pm. Gather under our educational pavilion, enjoy hot cocoa and cider, listen to these great tales, and meet some of the animals from the book!”
Stop for some lunch and hot cocoa in Newburyport on the way home to break up the drive and you’ve made a whole day of it!
Check out the Center for Wildlife here!
Pick #3
One of our favorite holiday traditions!! For the record, traditions are really important to my little family unit. Because I say so. Kidding. In all seriousness, creating traditions and being sure to do them each year so that our boys would hopefully learn to love and cherish them, was really important to me. So, we have several traditions that we don’t mess with….and hopefully never will. One of those is cutting down our Christmas Tree. In November of 2010, the Bertolon family opened the Beverly Tree Farm. Since then, countless families have marked their calendars to make the annual pilgrimage to their gorgeous property to find the one. The one perfect tree that speaks to them!
We have gone every year since. I’m not going to lie, the trees could easily be considered expensive. However, you’re not just paying for a tree. You’re paying for hot cider, cocoa, homemade Christmas cookies, a roaring fire, and an incredibly kind and friendly family run business. You’re paying for holiday memories in the making. When they first opened it was possible to tag the tree of your dreams and then go back and get it later. When that was an option, we got two times the tradition for the price of one! We would go, find our tree, decorate it at the farm, have some holiday yummies, sit by the fire, and then head home….Christmas carols blaring! Then, we’d head back the following week, search for our masterpiece, and cut her down. We’d eat some more yummies, sit by the fire for a bit longer, strap it onto the car….and head home once again.
Tagging it for later pick-up is no longer an option. One of the reasons for that is that the tree farm is so phenomenal that they now sell out of trees in just two short weekends. They open the day after Thanksgiving and stay open just this weekend and next weekend. That’s it. Still, even without the tagging, it is totally worth it.
A very important fact to know is that the Bertolon family uses proceeds to cover operating costs and then gives every other penny to charity. A couple of years ago a large recipient was Hospice of the North Shore….last year, they were able to give $25,000 to Direct Relief to assist Philippine victims recovering from Super Typhoon Haiyan. In all, over the past few years, they have given an incredibly $85,000 to selected charities. This year’s charity is The Cabot….as in The Cabot Performing Arts Center in Beverly.
So, be sure to check out the Beverly Tree Farm here!
Construction underway on the Bearskin Neck Breakwater.
I attended my 25th High School Reunion on Saturday night.
I graduated from Hamilton-Wenham back in 1989, and while I attended college in Virginia and have been fortunate enough to travel a good bit, I haven’t roamed far in regards to my permanent address. From Hamilton, to Gloucester, to Rockport. And, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
So, I get together with High School friends periodically and bump into plenty while out and about, but I haven’t had a good, long night of skipping down Memory Lane and laughing (and laughing and laughing) in far too long.
It’s funny how you don’t realize how much you miss a time in your life and the people you shared it with until you have the opportunity to be in their light again. I had such an amazing time on Saturday and left with such warm fuzzies for how lucky we all were to be such a force in each other’s lives for a number of years. It was so perfect to pick up conversations right where they left off 10, or 15, or 20…or even 25 years ago.
Lots of what we did was giggle, and blush, and piece together fragmented memories of stories that took several of us to unravel. Who did what? Where? No! Oh, that’s right! Was I there? Were you there? And so on. But then, another thing we did, was share our grown-up selves with each other. We swapped parenting stories. Talked about education. We offered advice. We shared our losses….our illnesses. Our highs and lows. I laughed with old friends….while reveling in my admiration for the grown ups they’ve become.
I get corny that way, for sure.
And tonight I’m finding myself missing them the same way I did that September morning back in 1989 as I left Hamilton to head off and away to college.
With the maiden name of Wadsworth, I’m a bit biased to the poetry of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, but I thought of this poem when I woke up this morning.
The Arrow and the Song
I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
Could not follow it in its flight.
I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For who has sight so keen and strong,
That it can follow the flight of song?
Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, from beginning to end,
I found again in the heart of a friend.
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Crosby, Stills, and Nash concerts at Great Woods will always be some of my favorite high school memories….this song always takes me right back to a really phenomenal group of friends.
How great does this event sound!?
Free and Open to the public!
Anthony Amore, Director of Security of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum as well as their chief investigator of the 1990 art theft of priceless art pieces AND co-author of “Stealing Rembrandts”, will discuss “untold stories of notorious art heists” at the Harborlight-Stoneridge Montessori School.
243 Essex Street, Beverly
Friday, December 5th from 4:30-5:30.
Please RSVP to dlord@h-sms.org if you are planning to attend
Since I’ve started contributing to GMG there’s been a particular hot topic that seems to come up every so often…so today, I took that topic to the streets.
Actually, not so much to the streets, as to the classroom.
Joey has referred to it as “The Pussification of Sports”….I chose to not use that term in the classroom today. But, I was very interested in what my students would have to say.
The hot topic in question has centered around the belief that some parents have that all kids should be praised, rewarded, celebrated, and applauded equally no matter how they play or contribute (or don’t contribute) to the team’s success. Don’t go all nutty here about the word “success” and how it should be measured. I realize that a team’s success could just as easily be measured by the number of laughs the kids had or the great team morale…or even because of an injury free season. But, for the sake of playing devil’s advocate, let’s say that just for a second, we’re measuring the success of a season by the “Win vs. Loss” column. Is it OK to single out players who excelled? Is it OK to acknowledge those who gave 110% all season long? Is it OK to determine that one kid’s talents and abilities are clearly above the rest? Is it OK to give awards for things like MVP? Or Most Improved? Or by naming one kid the Captain?
Some parents will say that hurts feelings. Some parents will say, “There’s no I in Team” and each player is equally important. Singling out the “better” players is wrong…and not fair. Other parents will say that in the college or professional sports we have things like captains, MVPs, Golden Glove Award winners, Heisman Trophy awards, Cy Young Awards, the coveted Master’s Green Jacket, or the Tour de France yellow jersey. And what about Gold Medals? Parents from the other side would clearly retort, “But our kids aren’t playing professional sports….these are just little kids.” Fair enough.
FYI…the same conversation has been happening in academics. Who remembers this story from last year? It isn’t fair to give Awards of Academic Excellence to just some students! It will hurt other kids’ feelings. Oooh, Oooh, Oooh……OooooR, I have an idea….it just might motivate them to work harder. Or to put energy into something that they excel at or have a passion for. Maybe they’ll never be top of their class, but maybe they become motivated to paint more, or write more poetry, or practice more piano, or donate time to a worthy cause, or think outside the box. Because, really, being top of the class isn’t everything, but those kids do deserve their academic merit awards…and hopefully other children will find their own way to shine…or at least feel good about themselves! Just Saying. (Darn..I wasn’t going to offer my own opinion…but it got away from me for a minute).
The sports question came up mid October in the Boston Globe when Globe Columnist Thomas Farragher wrote, “Put Our Kids In, Coach”. And then Sports Columnist, Bill Speros (Obnoxious Boston Fan), countered with “There’s a Reason Why Your Kids Aren’t Playing – They’re Not Good Enough” on Boston.com.
So, when, if your child has decided to become part of a sports team, should you expect that the Direct Goal is a winning season and the Indirect Goals (added bonus) would be that all the kids have fun, learn about team work, get some exercise, learn a bit of stick-to-it-ness, and maybe gain some discipline. I ask that seriously. What is the “correct” age for the transition. I mean clearly Professional Sports are concerned about THE WIN. Safe to say College Sports are too. I’d even dare say, High School sports would rather win than lose…even if that means some players didn’t get a chance to touch the ball. So, when should a child be prepared for less playing time or smaller (or no!) trophies unless they’re the high scorer, most valuable, etc.?
Well, those questions may have been too abstract for my 3rd grade students today. So, with the help of Time For Kids Magazine, we explored this question instead.
“Should everyone get a prize or is it OK to acknowledge just the “best” players?”
My students had some pretty interesting and wise things to say. At first the majority quickly thought, “Yes, everyone should get a trophy for being part of the team” but then we started discussing it a bit. Some interesting “what ifs” came up. I won’t try to wax poetically about our whole debate, but some of the key points became:
What if one player plays well, but has really poor sportsmanship?
What if one player plays well, but never shows up to practice, doesn’t try much until its a game situation, and doesn’t act like a part of the team?
What if a player isn’t so great, but supports all of his/her teammates, tries really hard, takes advice, works on skills, never gives up?
After some back and forth, my students decided that all members of a team (up until High School) should receive acknowledgement and, ideally, a really cute little trophy…or at least a ribbon and a certificate 🙂 BUT…then, in addition, the “best” or “hardest working” or “most helpful teammate” players could all get bigger and more special awards. Their words, not mine. Aren’t they cute!?
So, I’ll ask you too.
Ok, peeps. I’m giving you one Schrafft family faithful field trip in case you’re not up for anything big, but my other two picks involve going over the bridge. Not just that bridge….but, also the big bridge. We’re talking The Tobin Bridge, people.
So, Pick #1
If you’ve never gone, you should. Wolf Hollow.
If you or your kids aren’t up for learning, this isn’t for you. I didn’t mean that in a snarky way…I meant it for real. Wolf Hollow is no zoo. Your children should be of an age where they’ll feel like sitting and listening to a fabulous and informative talk about the wolves while watching them romp and play in their large enclosure. For a couple more weekends they are open for Saturday and Sunday presentations, but starting in December they only do Sundays. Ticket sales begin at 1:00 and shows are at 1:30. My boys “adopted” Bear and Angus and they’ve become a part of the family.
Pick #2
Saturday afternoon check out the “Free Day of Holiday Fun For the Whole Family” at the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston from 11-2. Cookie decorating, face painting, photos with Globe Santa, lots of arts and crafts, Legoland Discovery Center activities, a live holiday performance, and more!
A great event to kick off your holiday season!
Pick #3
AND talk about kick starting the holidays!!!! The annual lighting of the Christmas Tree in Faneuil Hall also takes place on Saturday! As a huge bonus, if you’ve ever wondered what 350,000 LED lights look like, you’ll be in luck, because it’s also the first night of BLINK “A light and sound Extravaganza” featuring music of the Holiday Pops!
Stroll through Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall, get a bit to eat, drink some hot cocoa, listen to the music, and be amazed by the lights… and then count down as the huge Christmas Tree gets lit for the new holiday season. Does it get any more festive?
Schedule of Events for the Tree Lighting Ceremony
I had myself a little reality check over the weekend and quite honestly it has rattled me quite a bit.
The reality of the fact that really bad things can happen in literally a second caught up with me and I learned a lesson the hard way.
One of my boys had an accident that, while really bad, could have been much, much worse and any kind of parental pedestal that I might have felt worthy of standing on has been knocked out from beneath me.
I was right there….chatting in the open foyer with another mom who was about to host a play date between her boys and mine. The boys, over the moon excited to see each other, had already run outside to play with neighborhood kids and announced that they were going to “throw the football around.” We finished up chatting and I headed out to say “good-bye” to my boys only to see Thatcher running up the hill that collapses down to the end of their very quiet street. Thatcher was pretty close to hysterical saying, “Finn is really hurt…and it is really, really bad.”
And then…there was Finn…with more blood than I ever care to see again…and crying harder than I’ve ever had to endure. The helpless, sickening feeling that hits you in the moment you realize that you dropped the ball…that you let your child escape your watchful eye just long enough for a horrible accident to happen, is nothing short of debilitating.
“Throwing the football”….just like that…had turned into Finn hopping on a scooter and underestimating the size of a pretty big hill. While I didn’t witness it, I can only imagine the speed that he reached, prior to falling and hitting the ground. The gash in his forehead…just between his eyes…paints a picture that I’ll never forget.
You can imagine how the rest of the story unfolds. There was ice, towels, blood, more blood, grabbing of necessary items, a scary ride to the hospital, tears, more tears, the check-in, guilt, more guilt, and finally stitches. Finn was an utter pillar of amazingness. I’ve never seen a braver child…and for that I am eternally grateful.
A fews hours later, we were back in our car….and then, just like that, the story, amazingly, got a little bit funny.
Finn, while slurping his fudgsicle, said nonchalantly to Thatcher, “Hey. I think that doctor, the one who stitched my head, was on Naked and Afraid.”
For those of you who may not know…. Naked and Afraid is a “reality” TV show, on the Discovery Channel, in which they drop a man and a woman (strangers) off in a very remote location and they need to survive…naked…and evidently afraid….for 21 days. Let the record state, that they blur out any “private parts” and my boys enjoy watching the show with my husband because of the nature and survival aspects of the experience. While I type those words, I do realize that is sounds similar to “reading Playboy for the articles” but, I really do mean it. Each episode follows two different survivalists. Sometimes one bails, sometimes they both quit, and sometimes both endure the challenges, and make it to the end. The next episode then chronicles the experiences of two totally different daring participants. Meaning, there are no reoccurring characters on the show.
So….when Finn announced that his doctor had been on the show…I of course assumed he was wrong. This was the same kid who, after all, had thought it wise to take his first ride ever on a scooter down a large hill…just hours before.
Back home in Rockport…dazed, exhausted, and overwhelmed…Finn’s stitches began to bleed. Drained, I picked up the phone and called the hospital to seek advice. They talked me through what to do….and then for kicks…I had to ask. Because, upon thinking about it, his doctor was wearing hiking boots.
“My 5 year old son seems to think his doctor appeared on a TV show called Naked and Afraid.”
“Well then, your son is very observant, because she sure did.”
So, good on you, Finn. In the aftermath of a horrendous spill, your little 5 year-old self, managed to recognize someone from a 60-minute episode of a show, that aired on July 27th, who was naked, dirty, and exhausted as the same woman who was now dressed, in a hospital, calming your mother, and tending to your very bad wound. You never fail to amaze me!
From Reality television show, to my reality check.
Meet Finn’s doctor.
