So, the botnet is still hammering on WordPress websites like this one, all over the world. But my webhost has put in an added layer of security so I can at least post to my own website.  Let me get back to the video I was going to post 10 days ago:  Nick and Dane in the pool.  This is before Gabe, Erin and Julian drove down to visit.  Where are those videos I wonder?   Wait…a beach ball is an indoor toy?  I’m with Dane on this one.  Daddy is just control freakin’.  So great to see the kids in the pool! Wish your mom and I were back there.

You may be wondering how I can post this if I can’t login. I’m using an app on an I-Pod Touch. It allows basic posting, but no video. Sorry.

Happy tax day!

Here’s master kitesmith Gabe flying his kite.  No, that’s not confetti in air.  It’s kites.  The sky was full of them.  And I see the Washington monument behind him seems to be wearing an attractive skirt made of kennel wire.  Nice.  BTW, don’t forget, you can click to embiggen any picture on this blog.

Here’s Gabe’s kite in the air. It’s pretty cool looking.  It’s a fighting kite, necessary here because wherever you fly, you run into other kites, resulting in Kite Wars!

Julian and I were flying the fish kite.  Also very cool.  Here’s Julian flying the kite.  He did great!

Best thing to do when you find yourself beneath giant art things:  play a little soccer.  Here’s Julian and I kicking the ball around while the giant art just stands there.

We stopped at a little place near the ice rink for sandwiches, salad, etc.  and ate outside.  Pretty good.  Here’s Brenda and Erin finishing up.

After lunch we walked around some then flew more kites.  I think Gabe took this picture, walking backward, probably bumping into people.

Since we’re on the National Mall, of course we had to ride the carousel.  The carousel was built in 1947, so it’s one of the few things on earth older than me. It has galloping horses four abreast, and a big sea dragon that was a little too big for Julian.  The workmanship of the animals and trim is beautiful.  It’s been a fixture on the National Mall as long as we’ve lived here, but it turns out it was only moved to the National Mall in 1981.

Here’s Erin watching her son on the carousel.  Julian waved and said “hi” to every person he passed while riding the carousel.  Even the surly, bored kids who ran the thing began to wave back and smile after the 15th or 20th time we went around.  We had a great time.

Here’s Dane showing us his new swimming pool with Nick helping Dad clean up.   Ha ha!  Brian’s working. Click picture to embiggen.

And look!  After swimming, should you be cold, there’s a fireplace to warm you.  That is so very Florida!

Well, I need some more pictures of the house.  I assume they are all on Facebook, but I don’t do the Facebook because I live on Earth, which only has 24 hours in a day.  Pictures with Nick and Dane in them are of course, best.

I think I’m going to love this car – if Brenda ever lets me drive it.  As always, click on picture to embiggen.

Gabe, Erin, Julian, and Erin’s Mom Diana, came over to visit on Christmas.  Here’s Diana, Gabe and Julian opening gifts.  Julian was of course, deluged with gifts.  He loved his “Little People Santa Cottage,” his guitar, his Yo Gabba Gabba Beany Babies, and his rubber band gun, which was conveniently left behind along with the louder toys, such as the recorder.  

Speaking of Yo Gabba, here’s Julian playing with Muno, while Amanda looks on.

We had prime rib for dinner, followed by Brenda’s delicious apple pie, or a French silk pie…I mean “and.”

We had a rousing game of Apples to Apples, went to bed, and woke up to Snow!  There’s about an inch of snow on the ground!  So we have a white day-after-Christmas!

Brian, Susan, Nick, Dane, and Thor sent us a text at about 8:00 telling us that they are on their way here & should arrive about dinnertime.  Can’t wait!

UPDATE:  Brian, Susan, Nick, Dane, and Thor arrived Wednesday evening.  We had leftover prime rib dinner.  I gave the boys rubber band guns that I’d made them.  Rollicking fun.   Next morning, we had Christmas II:

Here’s Brian and Nick playing with the Leap Frog

Susan and Dane building a Lego beach house.

Go ‘Skins! – Beat Dallas!

And then we went to DC and visited a couple museums, the Newseum, and the art gallery.  Here we are in front of the Newseuum, and the second picture is from the top.

The game featured a blown call by the officials that was as bad as any bonehead call we saw from the replacement refs during the lockout: Texans running back Justin Forsett was allowed to get up and run for an 81-yard touchdown even though he had clearly been tackled after eight yards. The Lions can also blame a stupid challenge from coach Jim Schwartz, and a stupid NFL rule that says the challenge negates the referee’s ability to review the play.

John Cole gets it right:

The Lions got totally jobbed by the only rule in football dumber than the helmet rule in the NCAA where [a player] has to leave the game because someone knocked the shit out of them and their helmet flew off.

What was the logic of [the rule in the Lions game]? Were Bidwell and the corpse of Al Davis involved in that idiocy? “Hey- every touchdown is automatically reviewed. But if a coach demands a review on that same play, we just say to hell with it, no soup for you, then penalize him 15 yards.”

Complete idiocy. If you want to penalize someone for throwing a challenge flag on an automatically challenged play (and even then I don’t know why you would), I don’t have any idea why you would then refuse to review the play at all. Charge them a timeout or something for being an idiot. But letting absolute garbage like that through? Some team may have just lost home field advantage because of that, and the Lions season may be over. Just appalling stupidity.

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving.

There was a parade, lots of arts and craft displays, dogs in costume, and pony rides.  I was helping Erin guide Blaze (the pony) and Julian, so I have no pictures.  Sorry.  Here’s Julian, Brenda, Diana, and Erin watching the parade on Rehoboth Ave.

Here’s Brenda and Julian, in stylish Elmo costume,  coming out of the ocean, which they were in for some reason…

And here’s Julian later in the night, after cake, with his new lion hat (reversible into a monkey – so cool).  Sorry, no pics of his new tricycle, or his animal wagon, or his book, or his favorite gift: his Tee ball and bat – perfect for indoor use, it turns out.  Birthday boy and guests all had a great time.