and....we're back

Back in AUGUST (I know!) we went to Washington DC. Papa Seal had a conference, so the rest of us tagged along. I put the pictures in flickr (there are tons of pictures there for the viewing, really--and some of them are hilarious), but never posted about it. We had a good time.We were able to meet up with my friend Pin.

And the pups and I got a chance to see a lot of the Mall while Papa went to training sessions.

After we got back from DC we kept ourselves busy. I finished a book chapter for a book being published next spring. Get excited. Papa tore apart our downstairs bathroom to renovate it. Seal Pup 2.0 had surgery on his ears.
And we decided to buy a new house while trying to also sell the one we are currently living in. So now we are packing. Good times!
I am sure we did other things that are probably worth mentioning, but I can't think of them now. I will try to be better about updating, so as not to make you think the blog is defunct, because it isn't. I just haven't prioritized updating, which is usually my biggest blogger pet peave (unless, or course, I am the one not blogging). But now we're back.

california days

At the end of June, we made our annual trek to the west coast to hang out with family (and a friend or two). Who can complain about a week at the beach, really?

Especially when you got to the San Diego Zoo.
And Benihana (it's like a tradition!).
And a playground or two.Oh, and Legoland.
Well, actually, you can complain Legoland if you decide to swing on a chain suspended from a barricade and almost knock yourself senseless on a cement curb. Yes, then you'd have something to complain about, I guess. But then, your parents will probably buy you tons of Lego-related plastic-y bits after you start to normally again, and that might just make you feel better.
The week, for us, is mostly about getting the kids together with their cousins and letting them hang out.

They have fun together and we have fun watching them. There are many more vacation shots in our flickr account; and tons more in (Grand)Papa Seal's flickr account too.

go sox! (red sox, that is)

I am working my way through pictures from our recent family trip to California. Until I get my act together, how about I share these pictures from Papa and Seal Pup 1.0's adventure to Boston to see a Red Sox game last month? I found the pictures while working on our California pictures last night and thought they were fun, so obviously I thought you'd think they were fun too.

Papa got two tickets to see the Red Sox play the Phillies last month and decided it was time that SP 1.0 saw the Sox play in real life. Getting there involved an automobile, a train, and the T (which was, you know, a great way to start the day, I guess).

And there was food.

Lots of food.
And, I am told, there was actually people playing baseball as well.More pictures in flickr.

when the cats go away

They have fun. At the end of last month, Papa and I celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary. Being subscribers of the "go big or go home" ethos when it comes to celebration, we opted to go on a Meditteranean/European cruise sans pups (thanks to Grammy, we felt pretty good about leaving the pups at home, thanks Grammy!). We started off in Spain.

After we got on the cruise ship and cruised for a day we pulled into Naples and took a bus up the Amalfi Coastal stopping in Sorrento, Positano, and Amalfi. Before heading back to the ship we also stopped in Pompeii.

On the third day, we pulled into Cevittivechia a port in Italy. From there, we took a bus to Rome. We were able to walk around the Vatican Museum and see the Sistine Chapel. We also went to the Colisseum. Rome was pretty awesome.

On the third day we pulled into a very industrial port and took a tour bus to Florence. Decidedly beautiful and romantic.

On the fourth day, the boat was anchored just off of the port of Villefranche and took a tourbus to Nice, Eze and Monaco. I enjoyed Nice most.

Papa was a fan of Eze.

On the fifth day, the ship pulled into La Sur La Mer and we took a bus to Marseilles. It was a beautiful city and we had a great time seeing the sights.

We had a lot of fun. There are a ton of pictures in flickr, have a look-see!

so let's talk about maryland...

I am in the process of sorting through 12oo photographs of European vactioning at the moment, until I can get that taken care of, why don't we talk about our family venture south to Maryland, shall we? Oh and yes, hello, we are back.

At the beginning of last month, the family made the trek down to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, it's a start of summer tradition of sorts for us, but it was really hot. We didn't stay too long.
But we stayed long enough to see sheep, so that's something.
After the heat and sheep exposure, we decided to visit the Naval Academy in Annapolis, and just to be wild and crazy, we decided it would be a good idea to take our kids on the two hour docent lead tour. Good times!Before we headed home on Sunday, we visited some friends in Baltimore and stopped at a little neighborhood playground in Laurel.

It was pretty sweet.

Tons of photos up in flickr!

we saw sheep, we saw wool

Last weekend the Seal Pups and I (Papa Seal, went to the Academy for a day's worth of meetings) headed north to Vernon Rockville, Connecticut to attend the 101st Connecticut Sheep and Wool Festival. We tend to enjoy these things, so we had fun. We had so much fun that we are heading south to Maryland for the weekend to attend the largest sheep and wool festival in the U.S.

We hope your weekend is going to be a fun one, too (whether sheep are in the forecast or not).

More pics in flickr!

spring has sprung

It occurred to me that this blog was still celebrating SP1.0's birthday, so clearly, it is time for an update. I meant to post after Easter; but, we were too busy chasing bunnies (we were also cleaning out our basment which got flooded when the northeast was hit with all those rainstorms, but let's not dwell on that).

We haven't been doing much besides enjoying the spring weather and trying to get out of doors as much as possible. We spend an inordinate amount of time outside blowing bubbles. Bubbles have, apparently, become our thing.
We have turned the learning of bike riding into a family affair.
There was kite day at school again. Someone may be over any sort of wariness he had about flying kites in years previous.
Kite day was an important day for the record books, it was the day that I may have conceded and admitted to Papa Seal that Seal Pup 2.0 did, indeed, need a haircut (sometimes his 'do maks Amy Winehouse appear well-groomed).

So we did that. First haircut, went okay. It was just a trim, because his curls are awesome.
And I got a new partner in meal planning. He is very opinionated.
We are going to see some sheep this weekend, so there will probably be cute pictures in the corner of the itnernet net week.

Have a good weekend!