Thanksgiving weekend ends, diet starts tomorrow (or Tuesday, or...)

SACRAMENTO, California, USA - The wonderfully long Thanksgiving weekend is almost over. Adm. Fox and I just finished a dinner of leftovers with Dr. Pam and Steve. And tomorrow night, we might actually have to cook a complete, fresh meal.

Son Dylan helps with T-day dessert

It was fun time, with children and friends coming and going in and out of the house faster than characters in a Harold Pinter play. At times, it seemed like it was a Harold Pinter play.

Thanksgiving Day itself, we went to Steve's sister's house in Loomis where we joined with probably 40 members of the extended family for a big dinner that included pasta with a meat sauce (and venison in the pasta).

Friday, the house and yard were taken over by Christmas decorating - serious Christmas decorating. Like a general commanding her troops, Dr. Pam had various children, nephews, other relatives and friends all setting up Christmas items on the front lawn.

The pre-teenage boys especially liked hanging out of second story windows - and climbing on the roof.

Dad and Jason

By Friday afternoon, the house was decorated with the finishing touches. Electric lights went on today (Sunday).

It turned out also to be an all-family weekend for the Fox-Fitzgeralds, too. Son Dylan arrived Tuesday to help with the baking of many pies for the festivities.

Wednesday, son Jason arrived to have breakfast and fill us in on his adventures as a coach in Michigan - with snowboarding adventures to start next week in Vail, Colorado.

Sami, Grandpa Michael and Kami

And today we were able to catch up with daughter Anne at her Rancho Cordova house with husband Steve and granddaughters Sami and Kami. Sami is now slightly taller than her mother - and probably two inches taller than Adm. Fox.

At one point, three-year-old Kami asked me to read her a third book, and when I said I was too tired, she grabbed the bag of Doritos we were munching together and said, 'No reading, no chips, Grandpa.'

She probably has a future as a hostage negotiator.

Below are three photos of the Lovotti house - one sans decor, the other with.  And at the bottomw, a photo of the house all lit up. (Like a Christmas tree?)

At the top - the house at 10 a.m. then at 2 p.m and below - all lit up

Several days of All Family - All the Time in Sacramento

SACRAMENTO, Calif., USA - The first hint of what was about to happen was when son Dustin Fox called from Puerto Vallarta and said he and spouse Cami and daughter Sasha had decided to come to the U.S. for a 10-day vacation, to visit us - and to escape the insufferable heat of coastal Mexico this time of the year.

Then, because they were coming, son Jason Fitzgerald, (temporarily ensconced in nearby Chico, Calif.), decided to drive south to Sacramento for a visit, too.

And rounding out the family reunion was daughter Anne Fitzgerald Allen and her daughter Kami who live in nearby Rancho Cordova.

All we were missing was son Dylan Fox (who lives in the Berkeley, Calif. area) and Anne's other daughter, Samantha (who was always at softball practice when we were having get togethers) and Anne' husband Steve. We will try to remedy that next week and get everyone together for a farewell soiree before the Mexico Fox family heads back to Puerto Vallarta.


Jason, Michael, and Dustin


Jason, Michael and Sasha

It was a great couple of days, getting the Mexico contingent hooked up with cousins and brothers and sisters and... We almost needed a flow chart to figure it all out.

And one upshot is that after two days of hearing tales of Mexico (and surfing, most likely), son Jason is planning a foray south this winter, either for a short vacation, or for the whole season.

Beach volleyball in La Manzanilla will never be the same. I don't know anyone else who carries around professional volleyball gear everywhere he goes.


Sasha Fox and Kami Allen, the cousins

Below is a short movie of one family dinner in Sacramento - at a Mexican restaurant of course - followed a by short clip of Jason with one of his two much-beloved dogs who travel with him everywhere.