Hope everyone enjoyed their Turkey Day (even if you ate something else!)

We were in New Hampshire at the Cottage of Joy with 18 for dinner. Aunt Peggy Ayer, Tim, Sarah and Alison traveled from Connecticut, as well as John and Silvia Ayer and Marge and Bob Davidson. Amy Ayer and friend Frank came from Massachusetts, but we missed Heidi, Jared and Caelin. Caelin has been recovering from a bad bout with an oncoming car and all that riding wouldn’t have been the greatest.

Scott and I, Deb and Max, along with Amanda, Chris and Micaela came from Maine. Jean Bean was able to join us from Durham, our only New Hampshirite. Oh, and we mustn’t forget the four-legged ones: Daisy the Chihuahua, Patch the Silkie and Rusty the mix, all weighing in the vicinity of 8 pounds. Our family’s big job was splitting and piling the cord of wood from our downed oak in the front yard, what a crew. Micaela was a big help, too.

Niki Patterson sent this exciting family news: “Sarah and Alex got engaged November 2. Creative guy that he is, he created a crossword puzzle, which they did together, that spelled out "Will You Marry Me" horizontally across the center. (She has posted a photo of her beautiful blue topaz and white gold ring across the crossword puzzle on Facebook.) They plan a wedding sometime in 2015. His sister and a number of their friends have booked up 2014.

“Andrew leaves tomorrow for Philly to spend a long weekend with Sarah and Alex. Andrew and Sarah will be running the Philadelphia Marathon on Sunday. This will be Sarah's first marathon (she's run two half marathons) and Andrew's third. His running times have earned him an "elite" number, #75. So his starting position will be near the front of the huge pack.

“It's a 7 a.m. start, but I'm sure it will be much warmer there at that time of morning than here. Unfortunately it is not covered on TV, but I plan to do an Internet search to see if I can find a live feed. Neil and I watched the NYC marathon that way the year Andrew ran, and actually saw him cross the finish line.

“Neil and I are busy with his stove pipe business. As with most things, people don't order until they need something (the weather gets cold) and then everyone wants their order tomorrow. Since he downsized the business two years ago, Neil doesn't have much space for inventory, so much is made to order. Being the "go between" I get to deal with customers' patience, or not.”

I found this somewhat ancient tidbit from Susan Reece: “As for news, Rob and I joined Betsy and Brad for a golf day in Bethel (Sunday River) last week. Betsy and I did a quick hike while the guys played golf. The foliage, by the way, was beautiful. We had dinner at 22 Broad St. Tuesday afternoon, and who should be our waitstaff, but Emma Janeczko! Small world! She also works at the Sunday River Ski Resort.” Islanders find themselves together in many places.

Molly Bogart sent me this: “I posted this online earlier today: The purpose of the blog is to keep in touch, and with the holidays fast approaching, it seems like a great time to reconnect with Islanders spread across the world! If you have photos (and/or stories) from any of your family holiday celebrations that you'd be willing to share with Islanders, feel free to send them to mollybogart@gmail.com, and I'll post them in small batches as they arrive. Additionally, after the New Year, my intention is to start posting small clips of old home movies and old photos (from Jane Eustis' collection) throughout the winter and spring. I'd gladly add any other movies or photos into the mix, just send them along! Here's hoping everyone has a healthy and happy Thanksgiving (or Thanksgivukkah), Christmas and New Year!”

Deb Stoddard is hoping: “If anyone is around on December 15, I'll be singing with the Nashua (New Hampshire) Symphony Chorus & Orchestra for our December Holiday Concert. We're singing Baroque pieces as well as select choruses from the Messiah. Tickets are available at symphonynh.org. Hope to see you in the audience!”

Enjoy the season!