The Pink Lady

We have had this rowboat under our front porch for 20 years or so. I originally got it in order to row out to our sailboat which was moored in the harbor at the end of our street. Years ago Amy and her friend asked if they could fix it up and paint it, and they did. They painted it pink, and got letters for the back, and named it "Pink Lady." So when she arrived here, she wondered if it would still float without leaking. So we got it out, cleaned it up, and took it down to the harbor. It still floats, it leaks just a bit, and we rowed around for a couple of hours, with Amy doing most of the work. It was a fun afternoon.

The Mustache Girls

That's Amy on the left, and my niece Jen on the right. I think it was Jen that came up with this cute trick. You draw a mustache on your index finger and then hold it under your nose, and voilà! You have a mustache. They had a lot of fun doing this, we all had a lot of laughs so then I had to take their picture!

The Birthday Party Surprise

OK, so this is an ordinary picture, which I actually shot with a self-timer. But the STORY here is more important than the photo. Notice anything about what the people in the picture are wearing? Right - they are all dressed alike! In a white shirt and tan slacks. Those of you who know me know that this combination is my uniform! So at the picnic last Sunday, everyone disappeared gradually while a couple of us were talking out on the deck, and after a while, they all re-appeared dressed as me, dancing in a flash mob! Each one had one of my baseball hats on, and 3 by 5 cards and pens, so they could take notes! It was hysterical. And I think it took me nearly 5 minutes to notice that they were all dressed like me!

July Fourth Fireworks

Today was an amazing day, from when we first got up, until we came home after dark. We did so many things and I took so many photographs that I don't have enough time to edit all the photographs and pick the best. So I will show you this one. We went to the Gordon's after dinner, to watch the fireworks in the harbor after dark. What we didn't expect was the natural fireworks of a passing thunderstorm. So I put the camera on a tripod and kept opening the lens for 15 seconds at a time, trying to get a photograph of lighting. I only got two and this one was the best. Perfect ending for a perfect day!

Sprinkler Jumping

One of the many fun things that we did during the party in Connecticut, was "sprinkler jumping." The girls thought that up, and we ALL had to run through the spraying water. That was the rule - everyone. Of course in this Facebook world everyone took photographs of everyone who jumped through the sprinkler, and then of course had to immediately see how the pictures came out. So in this photo, my niece Jenny is showing one of the photos she took to some of the girls. It was such a good time. And somewhere out there is a photo of ME jumping, but I hope it never surfaces... I LOVE catching the moment.

Stilts

We had the annual Spencer family July 4th celebration and picnic on Sunday, at Joan's in Connecticut. We had so much fun. There was great food, astounding desserts, and all kinds of activities - from organized games, to jumping through a sprinkler on the lawn. And someone got out these stilts. I haven't been on stilts for years. As a kid, it was so easy for me to get up on them and walk around. Yesterday it took forever to get up and balanced. Everyone wanted to try these, and Liz was able to get up fairly easily on them and walk around. See how much fun she is having?

"Pull!"

Another mystery: what's going on here? Well, for one, it's Amy's birthday! Liz got her a really cool present - a session at a trap and skeet shooting range. How's that for a cool present! So the minute she read the description of what the present was, Amy immediately acted out how the trap shooting would go. Funny! She is really excited about doing this. This is an interesting fact - Amy said she had never fired a gun before. Man, what kind of a father am I, not teaching my daughters to shoot? Oh, "Pull!" is what you say when you are ready for a clay "bird" to be released from the launcher, just before you track it with the shotgun, and try and shoot it down.