Crayons and Keyboards

Basement Dance-Off

I would try and explain, but I can't find the words to do so...

Fall Foliage Photos

An impromptu photo-op in our neighbors yard turned out perfect.

Our lives are like a movie, and sometimes the best way to sum up a situation or a time in your life is to use a movie quote. If you're having a pissy day; your quote for the day may be "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." Or if your having a great day; your quote for the day may be "I'm king of the world!"

All this is to say that life's little moments are sometimes most easily explained with someone else's words; because they have already said it better than you could have.

Rewind my little life a week ago. I come home from work one day and our neighbor is teaching Jaxson how to ride a bike. She has taken a small bike that gave him the ability to easily put his feet down to stop. He felt less pressure with me not being around so I let her roll with it - she also taught a few other kids in the neighborhood. His confidence grew and for a day he was all about the bike; then he stopped. No interest in riding the bike anymore.

Fast forward to last night. Once again, I come home from work and Jaxson is peddling like a mad man on the small bike. When he sees me pull up in the driveway, he runs up and begs for me to take the training wheels off. I told him there was one rule; once the wheels come off, they don't go back on.

Five minutes later, Jax is burning up the road in the neighborhood with his new found freedom. We're still working on steering and braking - bu the kid has done one hell of a job so far and his confidence is soaring as well.

With all this happening so fast, it reminded me of a great man and his quote:

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

-Ferris Bueller

Fireside With Pops

Wandering Harper's Ferry

From the West Virginia side of the Shenandoah River.

Boo and Jax ready to cross the Potomac River via the Appalachian Trail.

The crew.

The little crew.

Boo & Belle

Other Side Of The Tracks

Railroad Days in Brunswick, Maryland; entire Wheat crew present (minus Jaycee and Cody).

Country At Heart

Boots. University of Texas hat. Denim skirt. Dance moves on a wooden floor.

Our little Texan at heart felt right at home in Pop's boots.

All Alone With His Thoughts

An afternoon stroll through the rainy streets of Harper's Ferry, and a quick side alley exit by me for a photo, left Jax to sit and ponder about the rain and where his next snack is coming from.

Credit to Uncle Chad for the photo

Love These Ladies

In-Flight

Change of Command

Living close to the center of the free world, my appreciation for the military and the significance it plays in our world has grown; as has my respect.

Last weekend, Robyn's uncle, David Dunaway, was promoted to Vice Admiral for the U.S. Navy. Taking over command of the Patuxent Naval Base, David hosted the families for a long weekend of ceremonies, dinners, and bay-side play in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay.

Photo opportunities at the base and ceremonies were mostly restricted; however, the Chief Naval Officer has his own photo stream on flickr.com that has some great photos.

Table Sketches

Teaching the boy about shadows, depth, and how to sketch on a table during dinner. I still think ALL restaurants should have butcher paper to sketch on during dinner, some of the greatest ideas come from when you're nothing thinking at all.

Jaxson's pint of beer sketch on the left; my sketch of the windows on the right.

The Boy Loves His Pirates

Land Lovers Set Sail

Let the pirate them just keep rolling along...

Based out of Baltimore's Inner Harbor, Urban Pirates is a pretty sweet little adventure for the kiddos and with Jaxson's current infatuation with anything pirate, it was a great find by Momma Robbie. Boo hooked us up with some tickets and Jax brought a friend and the rest is history.

We fought rival pirates, recovered the treasure, and screamed "pirate-booty" and "poop-deck" as often and as loud as we wanted cared to do.