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Here’s Randy enjoying the Atlantic on the Jersey Shore in early 2003.  We were living in Jersey City at the time and escaped the place for a few hours, braved the cold wind, and went lighthouse hopping.  Regionalisms are interesing.  It’s the Jersey Shore, not the Jersey Coast.  If you said Jersey Coast here, the locals would know you were from out of town, for sure.  One stands on line, not in line.  And everyone who has ever ridden the train (subway) in the city knows that it’s House-ton street, not Houston, as in Houston, Texas.  But I digress… Randy does like to stand there and stare at the ocean.

 Libby is right.  There is something very special about the ocean.  These shots are from the coast of Maine and the coast of Oregon.  It doesn’t matter what ocean, they all smell, look and sound the same.  I love to just sit and watch.

The website is undergoing some changes and you’ll see a few weird things on it until we settle on the images we are using.  Just thought I’d give you a heads-up.  Keep tuning in!

  Here’s what Old Faithful looked like this morning at about 11am, Old Faithful Time.  I clicked on the link from this site, and caught it at its finest.  It’s interesting to see the smoke in the air from the Western fires.  It’s been a hot summer in those parts, especially in Driggs.  There have even been sightings of Dad wearing shorts, and he is seldom warm these days.

I saw a list of “most beautiful places in America” the other day.  Interestingly, we’ve been lucky enough to have been to many of them over and over: the coast of Maine, Yellowstone, Niagara Falls, the Tetons, Hawaii, New England in the fall, the Hudson Valley and Upstate New York.  What would you add to the list?

Here’s a nice refreshing snapshot of ice skaters at the Wollman Rink in Central Park, taken in 1999, I think.  Looks like fun, doesn’t it?   Nice and cool.

Happy 2nd birthday to Claire DeEtta Beisel!  Have a fun day!

  Randy and I had a fun day on the links yesterday.  We both shot aces, and had pretty good short games.  We avoided the numerous water hazards and the fire breathing dragon.  The spiraling tower even netted us a few extra balls, abandoned by less skillful putt putt golfers.  The course was challenging, though, because two courses actually are intertwined, and we weren’t too sure if we were to take the hole with the dinosaur skeleton or the giant castle with the swinging bridge.  We opted for the swinging bridge and the spiral.  Good thing I had my phone with me so we could document this hilarity.  Hey, Noah, have we got a putt putt course for you!

Cape Cod has a plethora of putt putt courses, just waiting for us.  Now if there were just more croquet courses on the horizon..

How fun it is to read to a child.  Claire, like all children, soaks it up, except for stories about Monsters.  Don’t even think about reading There’s a Nightmare in my Closet to her. Smart girl.  My kids loved that book, that is, when they were a little older than Claire.  A week from tomorrow she will be 2 years old. 

I’m flirting with the idea of writing a children’s play.  (I’m taking a playwriting class.) Joyce suggested adapting Nick’s Adventures of Tom Leaf for the stage.  What do you think, Bones? 

Happy reading, whatever you are reading right now.  On my booklist, for the moment:

Working on the Edge (crab fishing), Mayflower (yes, that Mayflower), Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Joseph Smith, Rough Stone Rolling, and Benjamin Franklin, by Walter Isaacson. 

What are you reading?

I thought it was about time for a bathtub photo of the kids.  This was taken just before the screaming started.  It seems that Claire doesn’t much care to have her hair washed. 

For pre-schoolers, what is more fun than an empty box?  An empty box with a divider, a two-seater!  Claire and Noah went shopping with us to Sams Club and are home enjoying the spoils in this photo.  In the other, Noah was at Deering Oaks Park with Randy.  While they were enjoying the park, Ginny, Claire and I were at the Queen of Hats, trying on –what else–hats.  Gotta love the Queen of Hats.  Obviously we had a good time in Portland this weekend, playing with the kids and Ginny and Craig.  Next trip to Maine:  August, with Nick and Tiffany-Ann.  Watch out, Mainers!