Remebering 2009

February

we visit the new observation deck at the airport

where we wish that we could simply take the next flight out... :)

esp. on this airline, just coming in from London

Landon celebrates a birthday, then Trent celebrates a week later

a little cousin comes to visit while his parents pick up new baby sister, and we make a trip to the zoo

where Kathryn takes in some parrots, who do some observing of their own

Kathryn at 14 mos.

we celebrate the visit of a newborn cousin

Spring-like weather produces blooming flowers

flowing waters

and happy ducks

Remembering 2009: January

A pictorial look back at our year...

January
on a trip down south, we made a run through Austin where we drove past (but did not stop) at the Capitol

and where we drove past (and stopped) at Hey Cupcake!
yes, that's an Airstream in a parking lot on Congress. Only in Austin...

we then ended up in San Antonio

where we attended a film festival

and ate the world's best mole

at this restaurant

(which we visit on every trip to San Antonio)

Kathryn at 13 mos.

creatures flying,

swimming,
and all-around-nuisances!

Merry Christmas

The Worst Ideas of the 2000's

The Washington Post lists what it thinks were the worst ideas marking the decade. Not surprisingly, the BlackBerry is included in the list ("Once upon a time, elevator rides were silent..."). Other worst ideas included are the endless sports season ("Selfishly, we should... care because day by day, sports is eating up more of our time. And more time is one thing even ESPN can't give us"), the prosperity gospel (although this has been around for so long that it should have been included on a "worst ideas of the last century" list instead), and even tv dancing competitions ("This was the TV decade of the real and the grotesquely unreal"). The list, while interesting, is hardly conclusive. I would have also added Facebook and Twitter, as both of those have contributed to the growing egoisom that will surely be a mark of this generation.

The Old Peabody Pew

I found the book 3 months ago when visiting a used bookshop in North Carolina. The title and cover first caught my eye, then on turning the pages I discovered some charming illustrations and what looked like a lovely story of a small New England town at Christmas. I turned to a blank page inside and discovered that the author, Kate Douglas Wiggin, had inscribed a postscript to her story and signed her name beneath it. I bought it, along with some other exciting finds, and then I carefully packed it into my suitcase and managed to get it home without damaging the frail binding. Once here in Texas, I placed it in a safe location and promptly forgot about it - until recently, when on a lazy Sunday afternoon I retrieved the book from it's temporary home and read, in a few short hours, of a charmingly diverse group of women in a small town in Maine at Christmastime in the early 1900's. The narrative's pinnacle is reached when, on Christmas Eve, lonely and 30ish heroine Nancy is given the gift of romance when her once-upon-a-time lover returns after many years of absence. Pensive reminiscing and hopeful dreams of the future are skillfully woven into the story, which, incidentally, must have created a refreshing and surprising read for single women in the early 20th century, who were often considered too old for marriage when once into or past their 20's.

The book was originally published in 1905; my edition was published in 1907. It doesn't seem to be in print any longer (what a shame!) but is available for download if you have a Kindle.

"Man-ifesto"

Dockers has created a "man-ifesto." They use odd phrases like "Once upon a time... men took charge because that's what they did" and suggests that our "genderless society" now needs men to "put down the plastic fork... and untie the world from the tracks of complacency." Go read it. It's a daring statement. I'm sure they are only trying to think of a new, creative, eye-catching way to sell men on their khakis when jeans are so much more commonplace, but it still begs the question: is it just advertising or is something more serious being offered for our consumption? If the former, that's a risky way to sell khakis; and if the latter, that's a refreshingly strong statement in support of masculinity.

Extra! Extra!

If I lived there, I would spend hours on this bench...

Nestled off and away on a dirt path that leads out into the harbor, in a wooded setting with only the hushed rustle of leaves falling down, the occasional scampering of creatures unseen, and the sweet chirping of birds swooping across the skies that stretch beyond the ancient trees.
Here there is only stillness and solitude. Nature and her Creator. Life and art merging as one in a serene tableau, a feast for the senses.

Here I would sit; here I would meditate, pray, write, ponder on things beyond knowledge, and wonder at it all.

Mount Desert Island: Day 1

At last, I have gotten around to posting more pictures! :)

Our cottage during our stay on Mount Desert Island.

The cozy living room where we curled up with books in the evenings.

The upper deck, which overlooked the Asticou Gardens behind the cottage

The Asticou Gardens

After rambling around the gardens a bit on our first morning there, Ashley, Hunter, Parker, Landon and I wandered across the street where we saw this:

hmm, why not? we thought.
We were soon upon some truly inspiring scenery...

across a rickety wooden bridge, over fern and fallen leaves, the path eventually wound out to the quiet harbor

Hunter was the first to take off his shoes and wade through the shallow water and onto this rock

where he blended in nicely with the fall colors :)

I couldn't resist getting my feet wet and taking a turn on that smooth rock
where, alas, my purple shirt clashed horrendously with nature

After a day of island exploration (on foot and in the car), we were ready for a hike.

Here we all are, about to start out on our first (and only, due to a couple of people getting sick during our trip) hike
It was cold, in case you can't tell from the picture ;)

Bliss

thank goodness for blue trail markers!

Extra! Extra!

Just because I'm dying to share photos doesn't mean that my readers are dying to see them, but for the sake of an excuse to post more without feeling like the world's biggest bore, I'm going to pretend that you are as anxious to see them as I am to post them. :)

So, more photos of Boston...

Our photographer, Landon. He's on the other side of the lens in all the pictures here. :)

A view of the harbor as we sped away from it.

Boston's skyline, viewed from the USS Constitution.

Me in the Captain's quarters. We followed some other people in there, not seeing any signs that said we couldn't, but we were escorted out a few minutes later. The Naval guide was nice about it, but we felt bad. We really had no idea it was off limits. Thankfully, Landon got some shots while we were in there. It was an incredible place, most definitely the most interesting part of the ship - what a pity the public isn't allowed in.

The captain's bed.

"Old Ironsides" from the front. Unfortunately, she is undergoing a massive renovation, so the top was covered in tarps and her masts were down.

Lexi, Mom, Ashley