Rhi & Benner

Remember Thanksgiving? It feels like a million days ago already. We're almost a month late posting to our blog about it, but better late than never, right?

So, as the title of this post suggests, we made it back to Philly for Thanksgiving. The circumstances, as we've mentioned previously, were not ideal or necessarily enjoyable. But we took the unexpected trip home as an opportunity to see as many friends and family as possible, and boy did we ever do that.

The easiest way to break this down is day by day, I suppose.

Tuesday, November 25
We landed around 5pm on Tuesday night. Our friend Matt Lozano picked us up and took us to our other friends--and their brother/brother-in-law/next-door neighbor--Phil and Rachel's house, where we were staying. (Jenn, Matt's wife, and the bevy of Lozano children were there as well.) After a hearty dinner, we split the scene for my Grandmother's house, where we chatted up my family for a few hours. Then it was back to Phil and Rachel's, where I stayed up worrying about the eulogy I had to give the next day. Eventually, I fell asleep.

Wednesday, November 26
This was the day of my Grandpop's funeral. It was a sad affair, one which I may not care to relive word-for-word here. But, it was a great ceremony for a great man, one loved by many, and many did show up to show their respect. It was especially cool to see people he played baseball with when he was ten-years-old show up. He will be missed, and by many I didn't even know he had an impact on.

Later that night, I hung out with many of my oldest friends while Rhianwen caught up with her best friend from high school Christine. It was a great blessing to see our friends, even if we had to cram them in one what was one of our only free nights.

Thursday, November 27
THANKSGIVING WOOT WOOT! We kicked the day off by visiting with Chuck and Gwenyth (Rhianwen's parents). It was a pleasant time, and let me tell you, Chuck was in rare form. I knew this man loved puns, but he was whippin' 'em out left and right this day. He cracked himself up so much that Rhianwen did not recognize him for a moment.

From there, we went to my Aunt Beth and Uncle Russell's house in Narberth for Dinner Part I. Many of the Benners were there, but unfortunately not all of them could make it. It was a good time regardless, as we all went around the table and said what we were thankful for, ate a lot of delicious food, and then most of the men retired to the front porch to play hacky sack. That last part was a strange, new tradition, but it was fun nonetheless.

Then, it was Dinner Part II, at my Aunt Janet and Uncle Vince's house in Belmont Hills. Though the absence of my Grandpop definitely changed the tone of the holiday, it was an enjoyable night with terrific food. We ate and drank and were even a bit merry at times, particularly when Rhianwen and I handed out our Christmas gifts to everyone (we figured we would save on shipping by packing them for our trip). And then there was Matthew, baby Matthew, my awesome and cute little cousin who I am like 24 years older than. Here he is in action:


After that, we went to McShea's in Narberth. It has been a semi-tradition (at least since turning 21) for all my friends to meet there on Thanksgiving night and pour a few beers on top of the turkey. It was a good showing this year, and we all had a great time. I am thankful for such a large group of friends that I have known for over two decades in some cases, and who feel like brothers to me.

But I must admit, despite all the great food and wonderful family and hilarious friends, getting back to Phil and Rachel's and collapsing into bed was perhaps the best part of the day.

Friday, November 28
As chance would have it, the Chandlers were in town as well! We made last minute plans to meet up for coffee, catch each other up on our lives, etc. etc. So that's what we did! We loved getting to spend even the briefest of moments with Tim and Jenny, and it was amazing to see how grown-up Emme and Zander are. Unfortunately, this seems to be one of the only surviving good photos of the gathering, featuring Rhi and Jenny in a Starbucks.

And it was good to know that there were other people who were shocked about how cold Philly can get too (the Chandlers moved from Philly to St. Augustine, Florida about five years ago). We miss them!

After that, we went to visit with Rhianwen's best friend/college roommate Jen, her husband Rob and adorable son Aiden in Phoenixville. We hung out around their super-nice house, while Rhianwen walked around videotaping everything for later inspiration. (Jen, it turns out, is the svengali of home decoration.) We had lunch and played with the baby, and talked about life and just relaxed. That, I think, is the best part about Jen and Rob: hanging out with them is always just a relaxing time with enjoyable conversation. Rob also was showing off his new prized possession: the cork from the champagne bottle he popped after the Phillies won the World Series. Aiden will inherit that cork someday, I'm sure.

From Phoenixville, it was on to the Shah residence in Newtown Square. The Shahs--Adeel, Seher, Coco and the newest addition Esfandyar--you'll remember, are the family that Rhianwen once part-time nannied. I was just seeing Esfandyar for the first time, and he is one handsome little guy. As for Coco... well, she's a little shy around me. So I chatted with Adeel and Seher while Rhianwen hung out with her in the other room, and Esfandyar napped upstairs. On the one hand, I am terribly saddened because I adore Coco. On the other hand, I understand because I'm just some weird guy in her house she's only met a few times, and she's only three. Good thing Seher and Adeel are such wonderful, enjoyable people, and talking to them was quite fun. And Rhianwen is extremely thankful, because she loves the Shahs and shares a special connection with Coco.

But alas, from thence we departed for the Lozano compound in Havertown, where Jen and Matt were hosting a dinner of steak and salad and pure deliciousness. Three-fourths of an entire Lozano generation were represented, as we ate too much of everything, sipped Pinot Noir and talked and laughed about many things for many hours. I don't think we took any photos of it, because we don't have any, but here is a photo from another night of Joe and Steven (who were there) and cousin Michael (far left, but he wasn't there that night):

Eventually the night tapered off to an end, and we crawled into bed for a much needed rest.

Saturday, November 29
This day, we took SEPTA to Center City with Phil, Rachel and their kids Jamie and Jude. Here is Rhianwen and I with the kids, waiting for the R5, looking like we have a little family of our own.

Our destination: The Comcast Center, which was (and currently still is) hosting a Holiday video show in its lobby. The giant front wall in the atrium, you see, is a humongous LCD screen onto which many things are projected. The building is amazing, the technology is mind-blowing, and the show is a bit underwhelming if you're over the age of ten. Call me crazy, but I think if I'm going to watch a saccharine-coated holiday spectacle, I might choose the Wanamaker's light show for all its cheesiness. Jamie and Jude seemed to like it though.

Afterwards, we had lunch in the building's cafeteria and took a walk over to City Hall. As unseemly as Philadelphia can sometimes feel--and it often feels that way to me, though I say that with utmost love--I think there are few municipal buildings as powerful as City Hall. Coincidentally, here is Phil and I looking like a gay couple with an adopted child, walking through Dilworth Plaza at City Hall.

From there we caught the R5 back to Havertown. Rhianwen and Rachel decided to go for a walk, and I grabbed a cup of coffee with my dad, swung by and visited my Mom and Grandmom and then back to Phil and Rachel's to get ready for the night ahead.

After some freshening up, we went to visit with Grandmom Benner and the Schmidts since they couldn't make it to Thanksgiving. It was great to spend time with them and hear about all the activities that keep the Schmidt kids busy. We were especially impressed to hear that Madison, our cousin who is not even in high school yet, is being recruited by Johns Hopkins University for one of their programs. She's only thirteen and already she's smarter and going to a better university than me. And of course, our other cousins Regan and Steven were there, but were a bit busy making an elaborate cupcake tableau. Unfortunately, said tableau was not completed and we did not get to eat any of it. As for Uncle Steve and Aunt Janet, they shared tales from their recent trip to Europe. Having written all of that out, I think Rhianwen and I realize the Schmidts lead very exciting lives. We're glad we got to be with them, even for just a short time.

From there, it was on to the annual Papa Thanksgiving party. You see, we did not tell Kathy or Gary that we would be coming home for Thanksgiving. In fact, we told them we were really sorry but couldn't make it. Technically, when we told them that, it was true; my Grandpop hadn't passed away yet and we were planning on spending the holiday out here in LA. But when we found out that we were going to be in town, we decided to make our presence a surprise.

And boy were they surprised. It was one of those moments where you wish you were filming. Gary was wailing, Kathy was screaming, and we were glad we worked so hard to keep the secret.

And from there, Dinner Part III commenced. The Papas do not skimp, my friends, and they had a spread that could clog an artery just by looking at it. We got to spend time with Sonia and Larry, and Kevin and the super-pregnant Penny (who has since had a baby girl, Rory Michele!!!), and two of our favorite guys Nathaniel and Tucker Papa.

From left, Nathaniel, Nathaniel's guitar, Tucker, Rhi and Some Guy on Piano. We love the Papas dearly, and we're so happy we got to surprise them by crashing their party.

And then, since we hadn't gotten a chance to see him during our entire trip, we stopped off and visited with Greg--my best man--at like midnight. We had a beer, chatted about life, how HE AND TRISH ARE HAVING A BABY!!!, and other stuff. Rhianwen bonded with Lucy the dog, we all complained about how Saturday Night Live isn't very good, and then Rhianwen took this weird picture, somehow:

Not quite sure what is going on here, so let's move on.

Sunday, November 30
Our last day in town. We woke up and had coffee, spent our last moments with Jamie and Jude, Phil and Rachel, packed our things and said goodbye. Chuck and Gwenyth were driving us to the airport, but we had a nice time chatting for a while because we were far too early for our flight. But eventually, they had to leave us...

...and we reentered Philadelphia International Airport en route to Los Angeles, where it is warm and sunny, and jeez we can't believe we used to live in weather like that. But, we miss the place regardless. We love you, Philly and all whom dwell within your general region!