First,we were delighted by a weekend visit by Jeff, Lexi, Michaela, Nicole and Darrell, all in town for Courtney's graduation party. Then, Jeff made his move to Washington, D.C. to begin his new job at the Treasury Department. Jim helped with the move. Please see The Pearce Family blog (link upper right corner) for excellent entries about both events in addition to the images below in which Michaeala poses with:
GB and Carly...
Granddad, Keith and Margaret...
Nicole and Darrell...
and Kathy.
Below are pictures of the apartment in which Jeff will reside during the week, in between commutes to home. He has just a short walk to the Metro station.
On Sunday, July 20, Jeff and Jim took the Metro into D.C., a dry run for Jeff's work commute. Below, Jeff stands on Pennsylvania Avenue, in front of the U.S. Treasury building which is next door to the White House.
Jeff in front of the Hamilton entrance on the South side of the Treasury Building. Jeff models one of his new suits.
One of the most energetic activities at Camp Split Rock was the scavenger hunt. Three teams, each with a digital camera, scurried around camp in a heated competition to see who could strike required poses in various settings the fastest. The discussion continues today as to which photos are the winners. Below are some of the categories and selected entries.
Construct a people pyramid (minimum of three people) in a unique setting.
Form OHIO in the lagoon--knee deep.
Find someone who might be an alien.
Find a good landing sight for a UFO.
Find people at the mini golf who will give high fives to team members.
Team choice--most original/funniest.
Michaela climbs a mountain on her own, or so it appears.
Are those flowers that I see between Jonah's and Amine's toes?
For more about Camp Split Rock see The Pearce Family blog at: http://thepearcefamily.blogspot.com/. See embedded link in upper right corner.
From June 27 through July 3, Camp Split Rock was in session at the Split Rock Resort at Lake Harmony, PA. Activities included biking, hiking, swimming/diving, scavenger hunt, games, river floating, paint ball, golf, a talent show and even bear watching. A great time was had by all!
Meal preparation was a shared responsibility. But Barbara went off the charts by preparing many excellent breakfasts. By popular acclaim, her pancake breakfast was by far the best! Here Micheala examines a special pancake Barbara made for her in the shape of an "M." Michaela wears koala bear pajamas, a gift from Aunt Nicole's recent trip to Australia. One day we hiked nearby Hickory Run State Park and visited its Boulder Field Natural Area. We expected to see many bolders created during the last ice age but we were overwhelmed by the staggering beauty of this vista. Nonplussed, Carly takes a moment for a business call. Michaela walks on the bolders with Melanie and Dad Jeff.Barb reviews a trail map with Jeff and Lexi. At the start of Hawk Falls Trail in Hickory Run State Park.Michaela borrowed GB's rain jacket during a bike ride the group took one afternoon along the nearby Lehigh River Gorge.
Jeff, Lexi and Michaela pause during the bike ride.Jonah and Amine pose in front of a waterfall the group encountered during its bike ride along the Lehigh River. Paintball at the nearby Skirmish range was a popular activity for many campers. Despite wearing camoflage coveralls in high heat, everyone had a great time.In one skirmish Jonah hid in a tree from where he defended his team's flag for a long period of time. An errant paint ball bounced off a limb and hit Jonah. The referees ruled he must exit the skirmish but praised him for his ingenuity. The video below begins with Jonah arriving back at the safety zone. GB (Barb) and Michaela enjoy playing in the sand at the waterfront lagoon on Lake Harmony. In the video below, Amine demsonstrates his prowess at going off the nearby diving board.
This deer approached our villa most mornings, perhaps accustomed to being fed by humans which is discouraged. Fortunately, bears confined themselves to searching through nearby dumpsters at night. Below, Mo and Amine keep a watchful eye on the movements of a mother bear and two cubs.Darrell and Nicole raise glasses in a toast to the fun times at Camp Split Rock.
Barb is the "guest" blogger on this post to catch up on some June activities. She's definitely getting into vacation mode.
This past Saturday, Tom's son, Stephen Kucera, married Jennifer Neville in a beautiful wedding ceremony in Cleveland Heights, with the reception held at Key Center in downtown Cleveland. The Drs. Kucera will be residing in Tampa after a honeymoon in St. Thomas
Jennifer and Stephen make their grand entrance to the reception.
Tom and Jen are helping to celebrate in style.
Becky, Anne and Joe are in party mode.
Joe demonstrates how he so ably passed out the programs at the wedding.
Tom's parents and Barb and Jim are just a few of the many guests who had a wonderful time.
Here's an update on the progress of Carly's renovation on her soon-to-be rental property. Will it be done by the end of July? Stay tuned!
A community garden is being developed in the park behind our house. I decided it would be a cool thing to get involved with, so Jim and I became "charter" members.
Anne is a proud member of the Class of 2008! Her graduation party was held in Toledo on Saturday with the ceremony on Sunday. She's heading to Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA, where she wants to continue her studies in journalism. Among other high school activities, she was the editor of her award-winning school newspaper.
Anne with her proud parents (Tom, Jen, Paul, Mindy)
Anne with Schuyler and her cousins Carly, Sarah and Evan.
Dave, Lois and Ann enjoy the festivities.
Dave & Dee were Anne's "nannies" - Dave when Anne was just a baby, then Dee took over for the next 17 and a half years! A future member of the Class of 2024???
June 1 was a beautiful day in Cleveland, perfect weather for watching a tugboat pull a long freighter down the Cuyahoga River toward Lake Erie. Here you'll see the freighter Calumet get pulled (backwards) past a drawbridge. First...a look at one of the towers of the drawbridge. The bridge lifts a section of roadway high into the air to give the freighter clear passage. View of the Calumet as it passes under the bridge. The tug pulling the Calumet continues downriver. Ahead, the Goodtime III, a sight seeing vessel, turns to get out of the way and head downriver with the advancing freighter following close behind. Here's a video of the event. You'll hear some noises--the bridge creaking as it moves up, wind and the bridge's bell. Click/drag the red dot to fast forward.
