Another Sunday/Funday

Ian had a birthday sleep-over with a friend Saturday night, and they went to see The Avengers: End Game. There is no talking about End Game until I've seen the movie - no spoilers!

He had a great time - one of his other friends was there, too. This is the group that games online, so I think they really enjoyed being in the same house.

Leah had a friend over, and based on the giggling, it sounds like they had a great time, too.

Once the kids got home, I put them to work bottling my latest batch of beer - it'll be ready to go in about 2 weeks.

Other than that, nothing terribly new here. Cheers!

Marc

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone!

As you likely noticed, we were in Philadelphia to start out the week, but we were back Wednesday evening so I could get back to work on Thursday. What you probably didn't know, was that Ian was scheduled to get his braces off - and he is much more willing to smile and show his teeth!

Yesterday was a big day of brewing a batch of beer and mowing the lawn. It had gone from trimmed to overgrown while we were in Philadelphia - but glad it is taken care of and tamed once again.

This morning Ian was an acolyte for the Easter service, and Leah helped hide eggs for the younger kids after the service.

When we got home, I took a nap. I woke up in time for lunch, and then noted the cherry tree in full bloom in the sunlight, and thought it would be fun to get photos of everyone with the pretty pink flowers in the background. Turns out the flowers are all blurred out, but I still like the look.

Cheers,

Marc

Philadelphia, Day 3

Today we visited Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell 

It was a bunch of waiting in line with some short talks by the Park Ranger staff, but all in all an interesting day.

We lucked out with some beautiful weather, and the crowds weren’t all that bad.

Forgive any typos, I did this on my iPhone (didn’t bring my real camera with me today.

Cheers,

Marc

Philadelphia, Day 2

We started off the day with some hard rain today, but that didn't stop any of the fun. We took it easy in the morning, but eventually we made our way down to the Art Museum, where we barely withstood an apparent requirement to run up the steps and pretend you are Rocky. That was close!

From there, we had a nice lunch, and then walked to the main feature:  the East State Penitentiary. It is a former prison that lay abandoned from the early 1970's to the early 1990's. They rehabilitated some of the cell blocks, but others are still quite rough and not safe for people to get around in.

We were supposed to be there for a tour at 2, but got there early. Good thing, since it was crazy awesome inside...and spooky!

We actually shut the place down. One of the docents, as I'm puttering about and pointing my camera at the kids and random dark hallways, points off down one of the hallways and says something along the lines of "the exit is right down there." Catherine picked up that the place had closed 10 minutes ago, so we beat a hasty retreat.

Afterwards, we met a friend for dinner just across the street. Good food with good company after a fun day playing in an abandoned prison!

Tomorrow looks like the weather should cooperate a bit better - just in time for the Liberty Bell, The Revolutionary War Museum, and all sorts of other goodies.

Cheers!

Marc

Philadelphia, day 1

Sunday is here - my Joint Commission survey is done (passed/certified with flying colors!) and Spring Break has sprung. This year Catherine and I decided to head to Philadelphia. Traffic was pretty yucky getting here, but glad we came.

Catherine found a nice place in the Old City, just a couple of blocks from the Liberty Bell and the Franklin Institute.

Betsy Ross's place is just a block (less) away, which was unfortunately closed when we went by. We then made our way to Eldreth's Alley, the oldest street in America, if you believe the signs.

We then walked to an ice cream store where Catherine and I had nitrogen-frozen ice cream, and the kids enjoyed frozen yogurt.

After that, we walked back home, so I could take a couple more photos and post them here to the blog.

Cheers!

Marc

Early April

Last week I totally lucked out with the lighting with the cherry blossoms in DC. For a while, it looked like there was going to be a pretty good sunrise, but it never panned out. This morning, I opted to not try my luck with sunrise, and just enjoyed a quiet morning. The sun did poke through and painted the tops of the trees, but then the pretty light was snuffed out by some clouds.

After that, I woke up the kids and got us all ready for church. Leah had some stuff with her Sunday school that she couldn't miss, so it was the early service for us. Afterwards, I mowed the lawn for the first time this year. I didn't realize how shaggy things looked - glad I made the time to do it.

After that, it was time to capture some photos of the kids in their natural habitat. Leah in her room, and Ian in the game room.

Catherine and Christina are on their way back from a trip to meet some friends - they all met up in NYC. Sounds like they had a nice time.

Cheers,

Marc