Birthday boy

A cute photo of the little one as he devours his birthday cake. Today he's officially one year old and it appears he enjoyed the celebration.

Today's Blooms

Now for a baby of a different sort...
Today is a particulary good day out in the garden as the daylilies and glads share their blooms. I am learning the art of raising daylilies from my mother-in-law (it's not a difficult art, that's why we like it). Though I can't name them all the way she can, I thought I'd share a few beauties that decided to poke out their heads today. Enjoy.
Gladiolus

Wild Day Lily

"Nagasaki"

"Court Magician"

This one I think is called "Little June Bug"

Tears

So, the other day I was on my way home from an appointment when I spotted a motorcycle with an interesting license plate. On the back of this expensive ride (Harely Davidson?) was the plate "Y I WORK". The whole way home it made me think, "Why do I work? Why do any of us work?" Then, it dawned on me ... faces like the photo below are why I work...

For the record, the kiddo was extra tired causing his unhappiness with the 'rents.

The Great Northwest

"The bluest skies you've ever seen are in Seattle..." Ah, lucky for us, we got to experience some of the sunny days in the Great Northwest and, indeed, they were some of the bluest skies we've ever seen. With great weather and even better company, we had a fantastic visit with friends and family out west. Check out some of the highlights:

Some photos

Okay, so Jeff and Rebecca convinced us to post a few photos from the trip even though we haven't returned yet. These are images from their camera -- and it's a sweet camera for those of you keeping score at home. Enjoy!

Washington State

We're currently in Anacortes, Washington. It was a lovely time visiting with Jeff and Rebecca in the Northwest. We started our visit in Seattle staying with Deanne & Jeff (sorry, no known blog at this time). We visited Pike Place Market and Pt. Defiance Zoo among other destinations. You'll love the photos of the polar bears at the zoo. Also, all we can say is Tacoma has really cleaned up its act. The Chihully Bridge was awesome in Tacoma. Check out this link for more information about Dale Chihuly. Finally, we visited Anacortes where we were able to kayak near Deception Pass. Many thanks to Anacortes Kayak Tours for the hospitality and equipment. We tipped our guide generously --- at least we thought it was generous.

Photos will be posted as soon as we return. Until then, wear polarized lenses because you never know what you might see.

Family Photo

A recent family photo from Memorial Day Weekend.

Beans, the wonder fruit

Sorry about the title -- The kiddo's first adventure in using a spoon on his own.

Whitesville

A few photos from the recent visit to Whitesville. This was the first visit for the little one to see his great-grandparents and several other relatives.

A little outdoor recreation.

This was the band that played live bluegrass music at the reunion.

First Plane Ride

The little one and I tackled the great adventure of his first plane ride this past weekend. He was such a trooper! He was so charming all weekend, despite sporadic nap and eating schedules. We had a wonderful visit and it was a perfect time to enjoy the northern mid-west.

The little-bit enjoyed mastachioli, gnocchi, pizzels and other Italian fare with Grandpa's family in Minneapolis before heading to Wisconsin for a cousin's wedding. Highlights were Minnehaha Falls with Grandpa and Pro-Nonna, the 'baby cows' on the farm and chasing pets at all the aunties' houses.

Blog watchers

We're working on some new posts right now, but we wondered who are all the people out there watching this blog. Drop us a comment and let us know who you are and how often you look at the blog. We'll get those posts up soon.

Mother photos

Photos of Moms from this past weekend

Tonight's Photos

A few photos from tonight.

Hammock and Driveway Time

Well, it took us two and a half years but we finally put the hammock together. And who's to say we rush into things?! Here's a photo of Annette and her little one hangin' out together. Also, below are a few photos from a quick session we had on the front driveway. The chair in the photo belonged to my grandfather and he always enjoyed sitting out in front of the house to watch whatever was going on. Tonight the "Battle of the Nuk" was going on.

Cheerios

Cheerios are the hardest little buggers to put into your mouth. Here is a series of images where the little one was trying to put the Cheerio into his mouth, but it slipped out and landed between him and his high-chair. He dug around for a little while before more were graciously provided.

A few more photos

For all you PC lovers out there, here's a copy of your wallpaper with the little bit on the right side of the screen. These shots are from a session in the studio this afternoon.

Similar or not?

One of the members of this househould, a.k.a. Annette, thinks these two expressions are similar. What do you think?

Gatlinburg Trip

Here are a few photos from our recent trip to Gatlinburg.

Even more studio photos

We're coming along, but our light is still not 100% where we want it to be.