Watch out Tiger!

Last week I took the afternoon off work to take Andrew on a special little outing. We went to the local mini golf park in our town and Andrew and I had a blast. Andrew was an excellent student of my amazing putt-putt skills (laugh!). We got off to a slow start but he really caught on quickly. He jumped for joy every time the ball dropped.



Andrew tied me on the back 9 and even landed a birdie and a hole in one!



I'll leave you with this smile as evidence of how much fun we had!

Off to Jay, VT

I'm headed off to Jay, Vermont again to run the 33-mile Ultimate XC Challenge. Last year I ran with a buddy and this hear I've tricked convinced my sister, Stephanie to join me. It's very difficult to describe what this race is like, and even photos can't capture all the terrain and insanity of it, but here are a few shots from last year to remind you. If we survive (supposed to be tons of rain and high winds) we'll post some pictures when we've recovered!

Hula Hoop is a Hit!

Just last week we took the kids to a community concert in a local Wheaton park and they actually handed out hula hoops to all the kids who attended. Well, they were a real hit with the kids and I thought some of you might get a kick out of some of the images I captured. Andrew caught on quickly.



And he was such a good big brother that he helped Katie with all of her attempts. She REALLY loved trying.



Josh wasn't interested in the hula hoops, but he sure loves his brother and sister. Here's Josh giving Andrew a "big hug."

Peek-a-Boo, I See You!

Actually, I don't see you, and you can't see me either. That's the whole point of this post! As many of you know, over the last year we've been doing major renovations to our home. Part of this project was an addition over our garage which includes four large clerestory windows on the west side of the house. These windows provide tons of natural light without sacrificing and privacy.

Well this is all well and good, but there's another window (probably 3x3 feet) on the west side of the house that was supposed to be frosted, but by mistake it was manufactured as clear. Might not sound like a big deal until you realize this window is directly between the master bathroom and our closet. Not wanting to attract undue attention from our neighbors, we've been living with a lovely paper shade from Home Depot to retain our privacy.

Well, the replacement glass finally arrived and our contractor replaced it today. It's just wonderful! Tons and tons of natural light, and privacy and modesty for all! Here's a peek of what this looks like at night.

Paris Review

So I'm finally getting caught up enough on work stuff that I've had enough time to start working through all the photos I took in Paris. I doubt I'll post too many more times on this trip, and I doubt you're interested in seeing all 10 GBs of the images, but since many of you have asked I'll post a few shots from day one for now.

We flew through the night from Chicago O'Hare and arrived at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris the following morning.



We saw an IKEA on our way from the airport to our hotel.



After a short rest in our hotel, Cindy enjoys our first French lunch, a crudité with ham and cheese.



Our first hotel was only a block from the Eiffel Tower, but after walking about a mile or so past the Eiffel Tower we got this great view.



We continued walking over by the Hotel des Invalides and were amazed by the way the Eiffel Tower really towers over the city.



Eventually we did make it over to Les Invalides, but didn't go inside.



Just around the corner from there is the Musée Rodin, which Cindy visited by herself later in the week while I was working.



I had a bit more energy than Cindy today, so we took a rest on the stairs in front of the Musée d'Orsay.



It was quite a warm day in Paris (86F), so we enjoyed walking by the Seine River.



Cindy needed a bit more refreshment, so we stopped for mango ice cream at the end of the Tuilerie Gardens.



After passing the obelisk at the Place de la Concorde, we headed up the Champs-Élysées toward the Arc de Triomphe.



Seven miles later, we made it back to our hotel so we could freshen up and head back out for dinner.



After dinner, we connected with Karl, one of Adam's coworkers, and snagged some shots in front of the Eiffel Tower again, this time with an amazing evening sky.



And Karl captured this photo of us at the end of our first day in Paris. Would you believe this photo was taken at 9:50PM?