Another year nearly finished! Christmas day is here and as has become tradition we gathered with Lisa’s family on Christmas Eve for a wonderful evening of food and fun. I’ve made a gallery of all the pictures I took last night. Enjoy!

temperatures more often than not. Today was in the low 40′s, it stayed dry most of the morning, but we stayed around just long enough to get poured on as we left. Oh well, it was still a good time!

The actors in these reenactments amaze me with their dedication, knowledge and desire to share. most of them had spent the night in their period tents and actually live the weekend as if it were 1861 (with porta-potties, some concessions to the modern world are necessary).

The day started with a march down Main street in downtown Bethlehem. The soldiers conducted a recruitment at the end of the march and convinced a number of locals to “sign up”. Three of our boys from the scout troop decided to join. They lied about their age so that they could fight for the cause, but it’s OK, the war is only expected to last 90 days or so. That is what President Lincoln said. He seemed like a nice fellow, if a little awkward. He didn’t seem too concerned about the rebels, even though they surprised our boys in a couple of battles.

We visited the blacksmith shop on the way to the camp and watched them forge basic tools. They had a fire, so at least it was warm!

The encampment had everything you would expect, a quartermaster, cooks, tents, an operating table (yikes!) and all the other “comforts” of home. Check out the gallery for my favorite photos from today.

Since Christmas we’ve finished a basketball season. William was on the “Freshman” team and they had a very good season overall, winning something like 75% of their games.

I made two business trips to Denmark in as many months. I don’t really mind being there, but I hate the travel and being away from home and family. Winter in Denmark is also my least favorite time. Damp, cold, dark and dreary. In two different weeks I did not see much of the sun!

Most recently, William went to the Snowball dance at his school. I think he cleans up pretty well, don’t you? That is his cousin, Tara, standing with him.

More pictures in the gallery

Phoenix was wonderful, and in spite of 115 degree temperatures, it really is a “dry heat” and we found it quite tolerable. The Kipps have a nice pool and we all enjoyed the refreshing dips. While in Phoenix we went tubing on the Salt River, which was a lot of fun and nice and cool.

Sedona is a beautiful place, surrounded by and filled with rock formations from ages of mother nature’s work. We took a “Pink Jeep” tour of the Dry River Gulch and it was a blast, rough enough to be exciting, but not too scary for the average person. The downtown shopping area was also cool. While we didn’t visit any of the so-called vortexes, the natural “spirituality” of the beauty that surrounds you is something that you cannot escape.

Finally on to the true wonder of the world, The Grand Canyon. The road from Sedona to Flagstaff is not to be missed for any driving enthusiast. Fantastic switchbacks on a climb to a 6500′ summit with an incredible overlook. From Flagstaff we took a slightly longer route to the canyon that brought us in from the east, along the rim. We made a stop at the Little Colorado Gorge along the way and bought some Navajo jewelry. We stopped at an eastern overlook, and at my first real view of the canyon I admit to getting quite misty-eyed. No photograph or video, hi def or otherwise, can do it justice, it simply must be seen. Absolutely magnificent. I got myself up at 4:00 to catch the sunrise. From Grandview point, I was in solitude for much of the morning, climbing my way out as far as I dared, I set up and started shooting, losing myself in the beauty of the morning. Eventually I was joined by a couple of other shutterbugs, but everyone was silent, just watching it unfold. Truly unforgettable. We spent the morning at the canyon, and went back for the sunset. low clouds spoiled the view a bit, but it was still fantastic. Before heading back the next morning, we got one more view of the canyon, this time from a helicopter!

Off we headed back to Phoenix, with a stop along historic Route 66 for lunch at “Cruiser’s Diner”. What could be better? Back in Phoenix we had another full day to spend with our friends, relax, and enjoy some superb meals before heading home.

Where was Meagan in all this? She was in Ireland, Wales and England, but that’s another story…

Yep, it’s a wrap. Meagan officially crossed the stage to collect her diploma on July 20th and sealed the deal unofficially with a graduation party on the 26th (thanksto everyone who shared in the celebration!). Pictures from graduation are in the gallery.

Meagan is off to Ireland, Wales and England for some time with friends and before you know it, the summer will pass and she’ll be off to UD!

We didn’t hear much about the prom for several days since she left for the physics trip at 4 the next morning (yikes!), but it seems they all had a good time.

Another High School moment passed on the rapid march to college!

Senior Finale

After 14 years of softball, Meagan played her last Varsity game for Salisbury. No, it didn’t end in glorious victory, but it ended with team spirit, genuine relationships, and strong emotions. I’ve enjoyed every one of those years, and every stage of her growth as a player, from the cat herding days of T-Ball to the “Please don’t talk to me during the game” days of a young woman. I don’t know what else to say. I’m proud of you Meagan. Always have been and always will be.

Pictures in the gallery

Meagan did a wonderful job as did the entire cast. Congratulations to everyone!

Meagan seems to have really found an attraction to theatre and being on stage. No one has any idea where she would get that from… I guess she regrets a little that she didn’t get involved until her senior year, but she had a blast and I’m sure she will carry this into college.

Speaking of college, for both of you who aren’t on Facebook, Meagan has decided to become a University of Deleware Fightin’ Blue Hen! We’re all very excited and personally, I’m looking forward to taking over her room for some purpose or another.

Softball season is also already in full swing. No pictures yet but the team looks solid despite a first game loss. We’ll get ‘em next game!