Homecoming Surprise

Kyle did some decorating on my house...

The Last Day...

Silliness and fun at Fighter Practice. Click the links for comparisons with a year ago.

Kyle clowns at fighter practice. (Previous shots of Kyle.)

Jacque at 3. (Jacque at 2.)

The dastardly duo... (Adventuring with Conner.)

[PS -- Happy Birthday, Dad!]

Not Chinless or Mindless

Kyle shaved off his beard, so I thought I'd document it.
Isolda seems to like it:

And here's my snow-loving puppy in the park:

Boo at the Zoooooo

My favorite costume of the day (imagine him waddling)...

Jacque, Conner, and the gorilla

A moment of repose

Since he did it, I documented it...

Sad Jac

I can't get it, Jenn...

Plus: Kyle teaches Shrek and a Cabbage Patch Kid to make a sword:

Got Wood?

I do. :) Just after my dad finished giving me a lecture about how I needed to get the boxes out of my garage so that my car would fit in it... Khaentlahn called and said that there was something they had that didn't fit in her or Kyle's garage, could they bring it over. I said, "Sure." "Great, can we bring it over?" "Now? My parents are here." "OK. Can we bring it over?" :) So, now I have wood. A lot of wood. In my garage. :o)

And here's a bonus experiment with fire...

You *Must* Pay the Rent

Fun with cat toys...

Frog Fingers

Jacque's impressions of a poison arrow frog.

Which one to eat first?

All 10 fingers...

A little help from the positive influences in her life:
What concentration:What is it with this group and wearing food? ;-)

Chickens Everywhere...

We're about to put the latest issue of the magazine to bed. Last issue, I spent a large amount of time on a story about cattle breeds. Now, I like cattle, actually a lot. Grew up on a farm where we raised some. This issue, it's chickens. To put it mildly, I'm not a chicken fan. We had them on the farm, too, and I collected my share of eggs and walked through my share of chicken poo. (Bleh.) Enough to make a truly negative impression. My coworkers have been giving me no end of trouble about it. So, when we started setting up our demo on Saturday, and it was across the way from the chickens I had to get a photo. :)

Soon chickens will be out of my life, for awhile, so I roamed around and snapped a few images. This big boy was checking out Kato's shield:
And, Polish chickens are always a hoot:

They must be getting under my skin a little, because I thought this little girl was just pretty:

Last but not least, I think it's because he's not home as much, but KC doesn't get as much play as others do here. The look on his face in this photo so characterizes what my thoughts often are when I'm listening to Kyle...

Jacque's Ice Cream

Where's that Sling again?

David vs. Goliath at fighter practice.

A great pic of Khaentlahn in armor.

Miguel in Kyle's armor.

The perks of being a fighter... getting your shoe tied by the birthday boy.

Beauty at the rose garden.

I Swear by my Pretty Floral Bonnet...

Jac in the bonnet that we bought for her at the Lincoln Library. (Which I didn't buy *just* for the Firefly reference, though it was the first thing that went through my head. Picked it up, turned to my brother, and quoted Mal. Can't really picture Jac saying, "I will end you"--but I could teach her... hmmmm...)

Wabbit season! Jac scares the ducks at the park.

There were *fighters* in a park in Topeka at something I think is called "fighter practice," so I couldn't resist documenting it. :-)

Khaentlahn and Kyle (and the van):
The nip hides:
Though it was all for naught:

Seated Buddha and Child

I *love* this picture. There's something about this statue that makes you approach it straight on and at the center, seems Conner felt it as well.

Today's adventure included the Nelson and the plaza in KC. As well as Meet the Robinsons in 3-D (highly recommended!).

Petals in a fountain on the plah-zah...

Jacque enjoying the whipped cream that came with our cheesecake, and a pic of Conner where he's *not* making a face! (Never fear, there were faces before and after this one.)

Coolest Car and The Little Rocker

May I present the winner of "The Coolest Car" award for the Pinewood Derby. :)

We went and watched the races, saw TMNT, and then rocked out with Guitar Hero II (most of us had never played). Jac got in the act, and these photos are mostly for her dad.