September 17, 2011: Okay, a lot to get through! Let's get started…

A full day today.  Let the pictures tell the story…

Some of you have asked how all the dogs are getting along.  Well, I'm happy to report: "Great!".  We adopted a go-slow approach, introducing members of my gang one at a time, starting best behaved to worst…

Maximus is by far the gentlest and easiest-going of the pack. He'll sniff a greeting, give a wag of his tail, and then be on his way - that's about as excited as he gets. He'll keep his cool in the face of even the barkingest of big dogs.

Lulu may be tough, but she's actually very sweet. Sure, she's interested in meeting other dogs, but her priority is sucking up to people in order to garner maximum attention. Good with other dogs but, surprisingly, prefers to stick with those she knows (ie. Bubba).

Jelly is the alpha female of the pack and likes to set the ground rules. She can be a bit bossy and likes to order the bigger dogs around, but shown proper deference, she is incredibly friendly.

The crazy one! When on leash, he'll put on the tough guy act, barking and howling at any dog in sight. Off-leash, he's a bit of a chicken - and fairly well-behaved if he sees that the rest of the pack are cool with the situation.

Anyway, yes, my dogs get along well with mom's dogs and cat.  That being said, I don't think Felix and Caramel are that enthusiastic about having guests.  They're like the long-time members of a country club that's opened its doors to riff-raff out-of-towners.  They prefer to spend much of their days upstairs on mom's bed, leaving my gang the run of the downstairs.  And Baby cat.

Last night, Akemi stayed up late to assist mom in making pie and pasta…

Mom rolls out the dough.

She cuts up the dough into individual squares.

The dough squares are put through the pasta machine - stretched and flattened.

Twice!

The sheets are used for the lasagna. Mom then shifts her focus to rolling her handmade orechiette.

And voila!

The finished dish!

Today was a family reunion of sorts as I got together with my cousins Paul and Marco (and uncle Vic) who I haven't seen in almost seven years!

Cousins Paul and Marco. Both single, ladies.

Uncle Vic. Shades of a young Uncle Junior!

Paul mans the grill.

Friends visiting from Italy.

Marco and Akemi. BTW - Marco = HUGE Stargate fan. He was NOT very happy with SyFy's decision to cancel the show.

Me and the kids (Jake, Erica, and Logan - apparently named after a certain Uncanny team member).

We were so stuffed that Sis ended up canceling our dinner reservations.

Sis

Akemi gets a present from Sis.

And check out what Sis got me. Early birthday cufflinks. And not just any cufflnks. From left to right: Iron Man, Wolverine, Spiderman, and the Hulk.

Okay, equally big day tomorrow.  Off to get some sleep.  But first…

Today's entry is dedicated to birthday gals Debra and Penny, and Daryl and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter who will be tasting bitter defeat at the claws of my fearsome Snow Monkeys tomorrow (and Monday night).