Friday, December 23, 2016

Good Times

We've had a lot of fun over the last few days catching up with all the peeps, and taking pictures, of course;







Sunday, December 18, 2016

Brian is Back

Brian completed basic training, and has returned to central Illinois for 30 days leave. We had a small gathering of peeps last night to welcome him back, with another, much larger gathering planned for Tuesday.



More pictures coming soon.

Thursday, December 01, 2016

Thanksgiving is Gone

But the memories are forever:














Saturday, November 19, 2016

Return of the Peeps

Nick arrived home yesterday for Thanksgiving break, and now today we've seen a resurgence of peeps at the house. Tonight it was Nick, Drew and their friend Kamryn that stopped by to play some cards:


We had a great evening and hope the flurry of activity continues over the next week or so.

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Missouri State Visit

Drove 6 hours to see Nick and Sarah last weekend, and to stock Nick up with groceries. We also took in a movie called The Accountant, which I thought was pretty good.


Thursday, October 20, 2016

Banyan Tree




Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Pill Box


Monday, October 17, 2016

Luau







Sunday, October 16, 2016

Waikiki Beach




Saturday, October 15, 2016

Rabbit Island


Friday, October 14, 2016

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Makapuu Point Light


Friday, October 07, 2016

Monday, October 03, 2016

Turtles all the Way Down

One of our greatest experiences on our trip to Hawaii was swimming with and photographing giant sea turtles:

This was just one of many groups of sea turtles we encountered that were quietly resting on Hawaii's beaches. One larger group consisted of nearly 30 turtles:


More Hawaii pictures coming soon...

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Hawaii!!

Michele and I just returned from a two week trip to Hawaii, and it was amazing.




More pictures coming soon...

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Dolly Loves Windows

Dolly loves to sit by a window and watch the birds outside:


Monday, September 12, 2016

Alex is on His Way to Northern Ireland









Good luck Alex! Hope you have a great time in Europe!

Update 9/13/2016 - Alex texted us this morning at 4:30 to tell us his plane has landed safely in Belfast.

Sunday, September 11, 2016

Brian Joined the Marine Corps

Today we watched as Brian left for basic training. It felt like we were sending off one of our own kids, as Brian has been a part of our extended family since he was in kindergarten with our youngest son Nick.

Good luck Brian! Semper Fi!








Sunday, September 04, 2016

Illinois State vs Valparaiso

Yesterday's highlight was college football at Hancock stadium, where Illinois State obliterated the Valparaiso Crusaders. There was a crusade alright, but the Crusaders were on the receiving end of it.

Here are just a few of the highlights that began with some tailgating in the RedBird Tent Zone:








The last photo pretty much sums up the night. The final score of the game was 50 to 13.

Monday, August 29, 2016

Finally!

For about 5 years now, I've envisioned shooting a majestic photo featuring a local church in the shadow of an ominous growing storm system. That church is Calvary United Methodist church in Normal, IL, which is located about a mile from my house.

Last week, as Michele and I were leaving the house to eat at a local Chipotle, I spotted an incredible storm system growing to the North of us. Without hesitation, I turned the car around, drove home to get my camera, and detoured for the church parking lot.

Michele was hungry, and at this point not too happy, but the photographer in me was on a mission, and nothing was going to stop me from photographing this:


Saturday, August 27, 2016

2016 Sweet Corn Blues Festival

It's that time of year again when Uptown Normal proudly features its annual Sweet Corn Blues Festival. This year we took a pass on the sweet corn, as we just weren't feeling it. Instead, we headed over to The Rock restaurant and feasted on gyros, Then we ventured out and listened to some blues from the stage at the roundabout:








With food in our bellies and smiles on our faces we wandered home knowing that this adventure was definitely worth our time.