Peep Wars

While in Washington DC, Jim's Uncle Richard taught the kids the fine art of "Peep War's". Peep's are those nasty marshmallow Easter candies with colored sugar coating. Richard gives each peep a sword (aka: toothpicks), stands them up on a plate and puts them in the microwave. They end up blowing up and stabbing each other. These are the pics of Richard, Drew and Gracie setting up and engaging in the Battle of Georgetown!

We are traveling which is why I have not been posting. We have been on the road since last Thursday and so far have seen the following:

Baltimore MD, Inner Harbor

• Saw 4 historic ships - the USS Constellation, a submarine, a light boat (a boat that is used as a light house) and a coast guard ship



• Saw a round lighthouse



• Went to the Baltimore Aquarium - saw a great dolphin show

Georgetown

• Went to an Ethiopian restaurant



• Went on a run thru Embassy Row narrated by Uncle Richard - saw Bill and Hilary's house



• Went on a run down the C&O Canal - out at Carder Rock



• Did a little shopping



• We are staying with Uncle Richard and Aunt Roberta in their awesome historic brownstone!

Wash DC

• Have taken a number of driving tours to see all the monuments, white house, the capitol



• Saw a Wizards basketball game

Took side trips to Williamsburg, Jamestown and Mt Vernon (Washington's) home

We have been busy!

Last week

Last week I was in San Diego for a conference that I spoke at. I talked about designing an ethics program to meet the nuances of your company's corporate culture. The session went really well. The conference itself was pretty good and it was refreshing to get out of the office and clear my head a little. I did see my hero there.....there was this great big guy who ate frosted flakes and drank coke for breakfast! CRAZY!

Leprechaun Trap

Drew and his buddy Tyler made a leprechaun trap for school. When they started off, they wanted it to be 4 feet by 4 feet. Jim talked them into something more manageable.

Betty the Bully

Whoa....has there been drama and trauma here.

I decided last week that it was time to find Betty an adoptive home because she had been an only chicken for almost a year and chickens like to live in a flock.

So I found a home for her. And Weds nite, after dark, we took her off her perch and brought her to her new home. We put her on the new perch next to the three other chickens in the flock. They warbled a bit and we left them there.

We talked to her new human mom, Summer, and were feeling good because she had three chickens and one was always left out, so maybe Betty and Poppy could become best friends.

That was NOT what happened. The next morning at 7:30 am , I got a call from Summer and it was not good news. In the middle of the nite there was some noise coming from the Hen House. So she took Betty out and put her in a cage. In morning, she left her hens in the Hen House and let Betty out of the cage to explore the yard. Betty made a mad dash towards the caged up hens and attacked the highest ranking hen! She chewed up her comb! That put the other hen in a tizzy and she started attacking her own hen mates! Lots of drama! And, apparently, lots of blood.

So, by 8 am Betty was back home! And boy was she mad.....and tired. She walked around the yard, doing what I can only describe as chicken swearing, for a good hour.

Pics from the Family Land

These are pics from Jim's Uncles land. This land has been in the family since the late 1800's! Those are redwood trees.

Hiking

Yesterday we went over to Santa Cruz and hiked around with Jim's Aunt and Uncle on their property. It is a cool plot that has its own redwood groves - which is super cool! I got some great pics but have not been able to upload them. As soon as blogger fixes whatever bug it has I will post them. They shared a bunch of family history which is so fascinating.

And Jim's Aunt shared her sourdough waffle starter which is really yummy!

Hound

I love my dog! Here she is with a muddy nose from digging at the cabin! Not sure what she was looking for.

American Idol Pool

I am in an American Idol Pool in which I choose which week I think the final 12 contestants will be voted out. We get one shot to make our choices - there is no changing your selections during the final weeks.

This picture shows how we are deciding our picks. There has been a lot of discussion and juggling of numbers. Final picks are due on Monday.

I will post my picks when I have a final decision so you can follow along.

Cost to get into the pool was $20 and there are 35 players! VERY fun!

Happy Day

I got new running shoes today! As you all know - new running shoes make me happy! I usually wait to get them until my feet hurt.....which is what I have done this time. So, I am fired up to go for a run tomorrow morning....or maybe even tonite.

Weekend Highlights

It was a busy weekend so I did not have time to blog. Two highlights:

1. Mountain Biking
2. Enchiladas

On Sunday morning Drew and I made vegetarian enchiladas so that they would be ready for us when we came home after a long day of mountain biking. The enchiladas were made with black beans, onions, garlic, cumin, oregano, chili powder, fake ground beef, cream cheese and cheddar cheese. They looked so good that we talked about them all day while riding.

We rode 15 miles at Wilder Ranch Park north of Santa Cruz. The ride was incredible - it was 10 miles right a long the water up on a bluff overlooking the waves. And the weather was outstanding! It was one of those days which made you realize why you spend a million dollars to live in a shack on a postage stamp size piece of property. It is for the weather and beauty of California!

We were all beat when we got back so we were very happy the enchiladas were made and ready to go in the oven. While they cooked I made "green rice" - which is rice made with cilantro, onions, green chiles and garlic ground up and cooked with the rice. Whoa! Was that a good dinner!

All in all, a great day!