Package Pickup

Rachel picked up her fundraiser items at school. Now she has to distribute them.

Family photos

I spent a nice morning with mom and dad going over family photos.

Blessed be the animals

Max gets a blessing from Rev. Jimmy Abbott.

All About Atmosphere!

Walking into this home was a mystical experience: candles, incense, folk art and paintings. Books everywhere. Fruit and flowers. What a treat for the senses!

2010-2011 School Year Begins

First day of school: 8th grade for Stephanie; 4th grade for Rachel.

Blessing of the Back Packs

St. Alban's filled 31 back packs for Cedar Ridge School and they were blessed at the service today.

Work Day

Rachel wipes down the shelves in the kitchen at St. Alban's.
Rachel dusting the photos.

Meet the Teacher

Rachel met her new teacher, Mrs. Haber, at Meet the Teacher.

School lockers

Emily, Ambree, Stephanie and Jessica putting their supplies in their lockers.

The ice man cometh...

The new air conditioning outside unit is in place. $3,415.19 but with temps over 100 degrees, it's a necessity.

Keep cool...

Since the air conditioning was out all day, I left for the library in the afternoon. I browsed the books in the genealogy section. I'm sure they wondered why I was there for hours and hours.

Bike Lessons

Stephanie is trying to teach Rachel to ride a bike while they are in California.

Air Conditioning on the Fritz

The temps are over 100 degrees, our air conditioner compressor broke down. The repairman attempted to fix it, but the unit is too old. $3,500 for a new one.

Salad Days

For hot summer days, nothing like a cool chef salad for dinner.

Yosemite

Technically, I didn't take this photo -- cause we're sweltering (or would be if we went outside) in the Texas heat and Stephanie and Rachel are with their grandparents in Yosemite. This is Stephanie "climbing near the top of Half Dome." Hmmmmm.... got to be a story there.

Hot-Hot-Hot

And the Heat Goes On....

Great Grandmother

My mother-in-law, Norene, sent me a large box family photos to scan into my Ancestry.com tree. I particular like this one of Vera Eastridge Stringer (1898-1987) -- Paul's great grandmother -- in front of a half-dugout in Tahoka, Texas, near Lubbock. She's with four of her five children: Lewis, born 1922; Cecil (Paul's grandfather), born 1917; Marie, born 1918; and Wallis, born 1920. This photo was probably taken in the summer or 1922.

Johnson County Courthouse

Under the heading of "they just don't build 'em like they used to...." I give you the Johnson County (Texas) Courthouse ceiling. This is looking up about three stories. I went to Johnson County to find marriage records at the courthouse for my geneology research. I got eight records but was a bit disappointed I was not able to look at the actual ledgers, and their were no signatures from the bride and groom. But still, it was a great experience and I loved the courthouse.

Life of Pi

Our book club selection for August was Life of Pi. While most of the members of the club confessed they didn't particularly like the book, it did result in a lively discussion of what is real and what is not; what is bearable and what is not.

Gitars 'n Cadillacs

Some cities have painted cows; Austin has painted guitars. These are displayed on the luggage carousel at the airport. We just dropped off Stephanie and Rachel for two weeks in San Jose.

The Biltmore and Chattanooga, TN

We couldn't take photos inside but it's really beautiful -- and big!

Chattanooga Choo Choo song in the plaza by the river front.

Washington, Day Two

Air and Space Museum.

The Capitol.

Washington DC

The National Cathedral.
Arlington Cemetery.


Washington Monument at Sunset.

LaLaFuLooza Day Two

Playing around at the Chinese Embassy.

At the Museum of American History.

Fu's at the Lincoln Memorial.

Dressed elegantly in black.

Fu's and siblings at the banquet.

LaLaFuLooza Washington DC

Waiting for the Metro in DC.

Face painting at the 10th annual Friday night party.

Lots of dancing.

New York City

Taking the Silver Streak from Atlantic Highlands to New York City.

Great way to commute!

Stephanie and Rachel on the Top of the Rock.

Spring Lake, NJ

Sharon's cute house in a picture-perfect seaside town.

Sam and Lauri.

Fu sisters and mei-meis.

Pittsburgh

View from Mt Washington

Paying the fare to ride the incline.

The incline. We rode just before the rain hit us.