Happy Chrisday

This blog keeps disappearing so I'll make it short.  Happy birthday Chris- we'll celebrate with you soon-another adventure.

Ben and Liam sailing on the Sailfish

Ben has become quite a sailor.  Liam really enjoyed the ride, especially the water splashing over him.

 

Ben and Liam and their cousins swimming at sunset

Long Journey

Under 200 pounds for perhaps the first time in the 21st century.

                                                                                                                                       Jul '16

Happy Birthday Ben!!!

Fourteen and on the way to high school and grown about a foot since this pic.

After yesterday's operation

Back to work

Happy Birthday Tui

Wishing you many more high-energy years!!

Happy Birthday Dad (#2)

What a Leap !!  Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Dad

And Many More....!

Nicole's Birthday in Sedona, AZ

Happy Birthday Nicole!  What a spectacular place this is.  It's not possible to capture in photos, the magnificence  of being surrounded by red rock formations.  These pics are from the hike we took to Devil's Bridge.

Liam's Birthday and a visit from Mom and Dad

 Liam's Birthday Party at the "Fun Center"

 Fun, Fun, FUn

 Ben pitching at his baseball game

 Dad looking at the Osprey nest

 Osprey nest

 Introducing Swalwell Cottage. More to come.

Late Spring in Seattle

 

It looks like a wedding every day here--- there are flower petals everywhere. First the cherry trees, and now this.

First Weekend at the Lake in 2016

We thought we might have missed the daffodils but we're in luck.

The water is on.  It's not forecast to go below freezing while we are in Seattle.

Texas Times

April is a stormy month with rapid wild weather swings.  This week we had a severe thunderstorm and hail warning for our area.  After what happened last month, I moved the car under the roof at the gas station.  Lots of people had the same idea as you can see from the pictures below.  I think every roofer within 1000 miles is now in Plano Texas.  Every house has needed roof repair.  Last months storm took out all of the South West facing windows including our bedroom.  I fortunately got word from my coworker that it was coming so drive under a vacant car port and only had a few dents.  You can see what golf ball to softball size hail can do.

Lots of birds back for spring.  The Green Herons are building a nest in the tree outside our window today and we saw our first Yellow Crested Night Heron last week.  Two red tail hawks also hunting by the pond most days.

Flowers at the Arboretum are in full bloom.
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The view from the gas station just before the storm hit.  Cars rapidly pulled under the gas station roof to avoid the hail damage though only small pellets in this storm.  The worst was 3 miles North where they has softball size hail.  One of the cars from this is below.

One of the cars in our parking lot at work that went through this weeks hail storm.

 

Our apartment buildings after golf ball size hail last month.  Every south and west facing window broken including our bedroom.

 

Roofers are making some money.  Here is a picture down a typical street with roof signs in every yard.

 

Our Local Albertson's closing due to a rent raising issue.  They put all their wine on 30% discount after all other discounts (now 40%).  I got a lot of good deals.

 

 Lots of wild life by the pond behind our office.

 The arboretum in full bloom.

Happy Birthday Grand-MA

Czech Recap

 We started out in Cesky Krumlov, a picturesque town with a castle looming over.

View from the castle.

 

 

Seidel home and photo studio (glass area) - a great museum, left as he used it. Beautiful art-deco furnishings.

Then on to Prague, also very picturesque.  Had mostly really good food, discovered Mucha, an artist we didn't know of, and loved the operas and ballet.  Public transport was free for over 70s.

Mucha window in the castle cathedral.  He also was a very successful graphic artist doing posters, some much like the one in Tim's dining room, and later, spent many years doing a series of 30 or more, huge paintings depicting Czech history.

State Opera House, one of 3 similar venues for opera and ballet. 

Had a lovely day in a park on the grounds of a previous castle with a beautiful church, refurbished in late 1800s in art-deco style.

Big Bend, Texas

Tui and I spent Easter weekend at Big Bend.  A very long drive from Dallas but well worth it.  It has views similar to the Grand Canyon with very few people around.  Lots of great hikes to do. 

This is a hike through Boot Canyon.  This was on the return from the South Rim.

 

This is a view from the South Rim.  It is a 12 mile round trip hike but well worth it.  The trail follows the rim for about 1 mile before moving away from it.  It is about a 2000 ft drop.

 

Here is a blow up of someone sitting on the edge of the 2000 ft cliff having lunch.

Natural Infinity Jacuzzi.  105 degrees from a natural spring and flows over into the Rio Grande.  Mexico on the other side.

The park borders on Mexico and at points in the park, Mexicans come across the Rio Grande in a canoe and place their trinkets for sale with a collection box.  They then watch them from the Mexican side of the border.  Not sure where Trump's wall is going to go.

 

Ocotillos in full bloom across the park.  Lots of different wild flowers and cactuses in bloom.

 

 This is the view from South Rim.  We had lunch here.

Trees have a tough time surviving on the Rim.