Frozen Lake

Part of our last day in Minnesota fun was the boys first walk on a frozen lake. This is Long Lake and my sisters house is off to the left there somewhere. Friday was a little drizelly and nearly 40 degrees but it was about 20 degrees in this picture with a little wind and 5 degrees when we left MSP this moring at 6am. The boys loved the idea of walking on water but as you can tell from their faces, it was a little cold. Back to Alexandria and 65 degree weather when we landed at noon. We got out on the yard and put the boys new baseball bats to work. I kinda miss winter.

Peef the Christmas Bear

Peef the Christmas Bear
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Saw a lovely production by some taleted children at the hopkins art center yesterday. The plays are only 50 minutes long and perfect for the kids. Went out with my high school buddies last night. Good times.

Merry Christmas

All the best from Sam, Finn and Dylan.

Tracks in the snow

Tracks in the snow
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Today it didn't get out of the single digits and sledding was much colder. Once the face got numb we were fine. We also hit the big hills at Orono golf coarse, getting some serious speed going. Hope everyone has a very happy Christmas.

Sledding

Sledding
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Got out in the fresh snow this afternoon and did some sledding. Trudging up and down the hill really wears out the boys but I got to stay at the top and give them a little shove towards the jump half way down.

Last year I had to carry Sam up after each ride down because he had a full leg cast. That was exausting and the leg thing was a little scary at the time.

Plenty of snow

Plenty of snow
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Here in Minnesota. Plenty cold too but are expecting a heat wave this week. Hello low 20's.

Happy Hanukkah

We spent the day today down at the Capitol and US Botanic Gardens and riding bikes in Virginia. It's getting cold around here and we got ice last night but the sun was out and it felt good to be outdoors. I have picture from the trip downtown and I'll post them later.

Here they are http://www.flickr.com/photos/homerclees/sets/72157611503633328/

Class Photo

Dylan brought home a class photo yesterday and said he really likes the girl next to him. He, like Sam really likes school and look forward to it daily. I don't remember those days. I did choose to go to college and grad school, I guess I didn't have to do that but I don't remember getting up in the morning and running out the door to get there.

Jail Bird

Jail Bird
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Found Santa jailed on the street last night. Bad Santa.

Long Week

This week has been dragging a little and I think it's just the anticipation of Christmas and the New Year. I still have work to do but somehow it's easier to get distracted with an article on Washington Post.com or by typing out a blog posting. I'm pretty much out all next week and in for a few office cleaning and organizing days between the Christmas and New Years. I know their is a ton of stuff I should be working on but the overwhelming desire to build a fire and do nothing is tearing at my concentration. I did call the firewood guy and have another couple cords coming my way soon. Hmmmm, Fire..

Wheels to the world

Wheels to the world
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

I finally got around to taking the training wheels off the boys bikes today and much to my surprise it took them all of 2 minutes to be riding circles in the school parking lot. Sam was all about giving it a try and got going right away while Dylan protested that he couldn't do it but picked of up as quickly as Sam after I forced him to try. I'm proud of them both.

I remember the freedom of having a bike when I was a kid. It opens up so much more of the world. I would ride hundreds of miles during the summer going to friends houses, movies, the beach and dairy queen. The boys world got a little bigger today and they got a little further out from under our wings.

The tree

The tree
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

I do like this time of the year. The house smells good, the boys are a
little more excited and the extra long nights make me want to stay
close to home. Time for a long winters nap.

Obi Wan and Luke

The boys went to a Star Wars themed birthday party on Saturday after noon and cam back with some funky outfits. They didn't get to bring these weapons with them but the whole party had smaller balloon light sabers. All they wanted to do today is play star wars even though it was about 38 degrees with a 25 mph wind. Chilly... We managed to get up on Saturday and attend the Alexandria Scottish Walk. It is always a good time and we saw many men with skirts including Willard Scott, this years Grand Marshall. Check out the picture here. http://www.flickr.com/photos/homerclees/sets/72157610813548915/

Today was Christmas tree day and we got a little bit bigger one this year. It still fits in the traditional spot without moving furniture but feels much bigger than the small ones we've gotten in the past. The boys loved decorating it and only broke a couple ornaments in the process.

I finally finished uploading the Thanksgiving and Napa photos and posted them to flickr. I got a few good ones but nothing spectacular.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/homerclees/sets/72157610806671577/

The BIG Game



Finally got another set up pictures up from our Thanksgiving trip west. The Cal-Stanford game was fun and the weather was perfect. Oh yeah, and the Bears won.

Gingerbread

Gingerbread
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

The ritz carlton pentagon city had a real full size gingerbread house set up. If you like the smell of gingerbread you couldn't get any better experience than being inside it.

Had all day board meetings at the hotel but it's closer to home than my office which was nice.

Yes Sir Captain

The boys got wings from the flight back to DC on Friday and they wanted to wear them to school yesterday. Dylan went as far as wanting to wear a tie and jacket. We convinced him that pilots were ties and sweater vests too. It's been a rough awakening getting back to work after being away for 10 days but I'm starting to get the hang of it again. I will get to posting the rest of the Thanksgiving pictures later this week. Got some decent one's of the big game and Napa.

Safari West

Our trip up to Napa started with a safari in the mountains between the Napa and Sonoma valleys. The place was chock full of African animals wide open spaces only accessible by these crazy jeep like things. While the animals were cool I was more afraid of the big inclines, declines and cliffs as we made our way through the park. We were just a blown tire away from rolling over a ledge and plunging down into a gorge. Here are the pictures.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/homerclees/sets/72157610626848292/