Summer Wrap

With Father John in Dayton













At the Kalisz sacred ground













With Tom after the paddle to Lake Michigan from his home in Rockford














Our little walker taking a break on the trail.

The Trip Pics (at long last)

Ok, so here they finally are. Here's a waterfall just east of Portland, easy access and pretty cool. Maeve seemed more interested in the other people than the actual waterfall, though.

Matt and Ahna took us clamming in Newport, showing off their professional prowess and expertise. I was amazed at how hard it is to walk in the mud flats, especially when the tide is rumbling behind you, and your husband has gone in to shore already with your daughter, and your brother is football fields away, and you find yourself stuck knee-deep in the mud, water filling up your boots, and nobody noticing. Luckily, I made it.

Maeve loved Newport, and mostly the ocean. It was freezing! But she acted like it was just a big bathtub, gradually submerging more and more of her clothed body, until she just plain laid down in the water and let a wave wash over her. Here she is following Uncle Matt to the water.

And here's mom trying to explain that it's cold and we need to get out.

Meanwhile, dad thought it was funny. We had a terrific time on Agate beach. It's so majestic with the cliffs plunging into the ocean. Wow.

See what we mean?

Just to really make us look like Midwesterners, Uncle Matt reached behind a rock and pulled out a starfish of all things! We oohed and ahhhed, and got some great pictures of Maeve as future marine biologist.

She also showed off some new sharing skills, albeit with Okra the dog.

At the end of the day in Newport, we were exhausted and full with great food and lots of sun. Thanks Matt and Ahna for all the fun that week.

Another highlight of our trip home was stopping to see Aunt Beth and Uncle Pete and the cousins in Colorado. Unfortunately, the camera died, so we only have these two pictures. First, the irony of Maeve getting out of the car to sit in the Cozy Coupe. A true road trip girl.

And second, the awesome Colorado summer on the porch with Uncle Pete and Elizabeth. The good news is, we hear they have a lot of great pictures of our time there, and we can't wait to see them. Until then, we'll have to go by memory.

Westward 'ho!

Well, we made it!

Here's our happy girl before we left home. We think she was pretty much saying,

"you're kidding, right?"

First, we took the ferry from Ludington to Wisconsin.

Maeve liked it all except for the big horn.

After a great stay-over with friends in St. Paul, we stopped in Fargo at the Red River Zoo, and Maeve had her first carousel ride. She was all for it.

We'll try to post some of our photos from our time out here in Portland before we begin the journey home.

Here we go...

We're preparing for a big trip out west to visit Matt and Ahna, and we have all these pictures to share from the last month. Lots going on! A week in Charlotte for Katie's class, a visit from the Colorado cousins, a sweet birthday gift, all among other things. Here's a quick photo tour of our May and June.

First stop on the way to Charlotte was at the Toledo Botanical Gardens - a free and beautiful park where Maeve got to run and play and we got to enjoy watching her.

In Charlotte, Mike and Maeve checked out the U.S. Olympic Kayak Training Center and....

The NASCAR track..... yeah, they had some time to kill!

Of course, we spent more time at the park. Here's Elizabeth taking Maeve down the slide! Noelle and Maeve had a good time on the swings, watching each other from afar.

Here's all seven of the grandkids with Grammy in T.C.

And last, but not least, here's Maeve's new chair, a gift from Aunt Theresa and Uncle Jeff. A great place to sit and watch the river, just like Mom and Dad.

Happy June everyone!

Springtime Swingin'

Good times at the local park!

Happy Birthday Maeve!

It sure has been a great year. Here are some of the recent highlights, including a cake shot!

Ghost of Naked Walker

see if you recognize our little pistol...

Grandpa!

Over the past month, Mike and I have been able to spend a few weekends in Chicago while Maeve stayed home with grandma and grandpa. We had so much fun in the city - and now we see that Maever had a great time too. See below for the photo evidence! And thanks, mom and dad, for all your help.

Special thanks to the photographer, grandma, pictured in the photo above, at left.

Care Bear Luv

We sure love our happy girl. :-)

Olympic Feaver

Parts of the river have frozen over, and Mike & Maeve took the opportunity to practice for the Olympics. Watch for us this February!

In other news Katie has been grinding at school and tends to her children away from and in her home. She is amazing and we are very lucky and blessed.

We enjoyed the festivities of Christmas & the New Year celebration, and now just look for our next trip to warm up - hopefully in early March.

Now, click on the video link for some REAL entertainment!

Christmas: Part I

Happy New Year!

We had a great time in Traverse City over Christmas. Maeve found a box she fit in, and became a human jack-in-the-box, dropping a toy, bending down to pick it up, and then popping out again.

Yes, that's a giraffe - handmade by Uncle Jeff for Maeve (ok, and Katie). :-) It doubles as a coat hanger. How clever! We love it!

Stay tuned for Cadillac pictures from our holiday break!