Watching the pistons play poorly

Linsey at the Grog with a sangria.

Stephen with Bushmills.

A painting of an old fisherman that hangs above the fireplace in the Grog.

Maisy and Cassandra, not at the Grog.

A few more VA pics

We were very smiley. 

A dinner at TrueLuvs (or something). We ate outside, with no lighting, and the dinner ended in the dark. It was good food.

Shelby and Linsey, who is wearing an oversized scarf called a pashmina. 

The Berlin Wall inside the Newseum in DC. 

It was cool. The whole museum was cool.

Small, for some reason. This is a picture of a luminary at the cemeteries in Fredricksburg, VA. Besides the thousands of graves -- for both confederate and union soldiers -- were white bags with candles inside them. It was a cool site.

A fun weekend in D.C.

This past weekend Stephen and I went to visit Shelby in Virginia.  She moved there last August to teach middle school.  Her birthday was on Friday, she turned 23, and my mom and dad met us down there for a fun little weekend get together.

Here is the family at the train station before Stephen and I left to come back to Massachusetts. The train was definitely better than driving in most respects.  It was a long trip though...almost 12 hours.   

 

We went to a really fun museum in D.C. called the Newsuem, with six floors of exhibits dedicated to journalism.  It was really fun to visit a museum all about what Stephen and I do for a living.  They had a really cool terrace with a beautiful view of the Capitol.  That is where Stephen, Shelby and I are standing.

  

Out side of the Museum they have something called Today's Front Pages (you can also do this on their website.) They display the front pages from different papers from all 50 states and lots of different countries.  Michigan's front page for that day happened to be the Kalamazoo Gazette, which was cool for me because I used to work there.  It's fun thinking about that fact that so many people are looking at your pictures.

One of the coolest parts of the trip was a motorcycle parade called Rolling Thunder.  Thousands and thousands of motorcycles ride up Constitution Ave., by the Capitol and then down the other side of the Mall and then they all meet at the Vietnam memorial.  We've heard different numbers about how many bikes there there, but the most recent number is 400,000 (from the Rolling Thunder website).  It was non stop motorcycles for nearly four hours!  It was totally amazing!  

This is Stephen in front of a 74 foot tall marble tablet with the first amendment on it outside the Newseum.  

We also spent a day in Fredericksburg, which is a fun little town near the city Shelby lives in. We had a great time, and it was really fun to see my family since we haven't seen each other since Christmas.    

Kristen Mo.....

Kristen, on the left, came to visit us this most recent weekend. It was our third weekend in a row of entertainment: first Heather, then Florida and most recently Kristen. And now, for Memorial Day Weekend, we are heading by rail down to Virginia to visit Shelby, Jeff and Shirlene. 

Stephen and Jason just moments before digging into burritos at Agave.

Linsey and Kristin.

Home Tours

Our street, Fruit Street, is the city's only Local Historic District, which means it is protected under city law to preserve the historic architecture of its homes. This week was Preservation Week and as part of that, people took a "Fruit Street Crawl" with an architect explaining the different aspects of the homes on this block-long street. 

Our's is the former home of Jacob Perkins, an inventor. His garage, which is in our backyard, is getting turned into a museum. 

Drinks at the Thirsty Whale. On the left, a vodka with Sprite and a splash of lemonade. On the right, Bushmills on the rocks. 

Florida Pics

Adam and Stephen playing darts.

Some ladies.

Adam singing a power ballad. 

Jason playing in the surf of the Gulf of Mexico.

Newlyweds Scott and Emily. 

Florida Pics

Cassandra, Janelle, Suria and Linsey soon to be on their way to some watering holes.

Adam, Ryan, Dan and Stephen outside one of the waterholes.

Stephen and Bryce.

Jason, Dan, Bryce and Stephen.

Alden and Linsey.

A Friendly Visit

Heather, on the right, came to visit us. This is here first time seeing the Atlantic Ocean on a perfect raw New England day.

The ladies at Faneuil Hall in Boston.

Pretty flowers.

Pretty girls and pretty flowers.

We also introduced Heather to mussels, which is growing as a favorite appetizer for us.

Cinco de Emily

Happy Birthday Emily! We miss you here at the Fruit Street Free Press.
This is Emily with her husband, Scott.
I believe they are in Mexico in the this picture as part of their honeymoon.

Turkey Time

So I saw this guy while I was driving around at work today. Not something I usually see. Just thought I'd share it with you all. He caused a lot of traffic problems. There was actually a lady chasing him away saying, "Go away so you don't get hit by a car! Stop Following us! You're not supposed to like people...we like to eat you!"