2016-08-07 - Sunday - End of the cruise

Sunday we got off the ship and headed home, but not before standing in long lines at customs. That's always fun.

We took our bus back to our car and headed north from Port Canaveral. It's about a nine-hour trip and we were glad to be home at the end of it.

My final thoughts on the trip were that I would not do a Caribbean cruise again. I am not a sun-worshipper like the folks partying on the deck, and I don't have too much to do on the islands. I would love to have tried some snorkeling, but the ulcer on my foot was acting up again and I couldn't do it.

The standouts for me about St. Thomas and St. Maarten/St. Martin were the iguanas and the bus tour, respectively.

I enjoyed the food and entertainment on the ship, but the best part of every day was sitting down with my family and in-laws at one large table and enjoying each others' company while eating.

Just like we do in PA and at the NJ shore.

Bon voyage.

2016-03-27 - Sunday - Easter In Pennsylvania

We went to PA for Easter to see family. It was a short trip, but fun. It's always good to spend time with family. We spend a lot of the time with Karen's family, but I also got to see my brother while we were there.

We went to church.

Later, we had a big holiday dinner.

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2014-06-12 - Thursday - Graduation

On Thursday evening we attended Ryan's graduation ceremony.  He was one of over five hundred graduates so it took quite a while to get through the line and that was after all the speeches were made.

It's a joy to celebrate milestones with the people you care about.

Ryan is on the left center aisle, sixth row from the front.

There he is.

And while people are still filing in
we see his commentary on the proceedings.

Each photo was shown on the screens above the stage...

...while the graduate made their walk.

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August 8 - Thursday - Kitchen and food

With a large gas stove and two wall ovens (one with convection) you can turn out a bunch of good food.  And we did.  We always eat like royalty on vacation since we've got several good cooks in our family.  Having the right tools just makes it easier.

Good family.

Good food.

Good stuff.

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June 26 - Family fun

Tuesday Karen's aunt and uncle came over with two of her cousins.  It's always good to see Uncle Anthony and Aunt Camille and it's surely a bonus when Janet and Julie come along too.  I've said many times that I am blessed to have married into such a great family.

My brother also arrived for a couple of days.  I really like to spend time with him and we always have a lot of fun.

Early morning.

Stephanie, Ryan, and Justin clowning around.

Karen, Julie, and Janet.

John and Anthony.

A family meeting on the beach.

Atlantic City in the distance.

While waiting for my brother to arrive
I found a nice cloud at the end of the street.

Later, the moon caught me.

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June 23 - Shore trip

Saturday we arrived at Ocean City, NJ for our annual pilgrimage to the coast.  I grabbed this shot with my cell phone on the back porch at about 8:00 pm.  The sea was calm and pleasant.  The only sound was the pound of the surf and the occasional gull.

Inside the house was a completely different story.  Everyone bustling about, unpacking, finding a place for things, and enthusing about the week's vacation.  Six adults and five teenagers can raise the decibel level quite a bit during this project.  It's good to be surrounded by family, but it's also nice to have a quiet place to slip away to for five minutes.

Walking through the patio door I am right back in the fray.


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December 28 - The Perk

The Perk is a small place in Perkasie, PA that we love to go to during our visits.  The place is always jammed and it's no wonder since the food is amazing and quite reasonably priced.  One of the things I always look forward to getting when we're there is the delicious onion soup.  It's hard to beat.

Of course, the best part about going to the Perk is that we all go together as a family.  It's always good food, good company, and good times --what the holidays are all about.

It tastes just as good as it looks!

Eleven of us at a long table.

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Family outing

My folks came for a visit and on Saturday afternoon we took them to Homearama and then to Ru San's for supper.

There were only three houses at Homearama this year, but they were quite impressive. The master bath in the second house was alone worth the price of admission.

Mom and Dad on the tram from the Homearama parking lot.

Karen, Meredith, and Stephanie finishing up their meal.

Mom and Dad enjoying the
pulsing beat of the house mix.
(The music was a bit loud.)

Meredith showing her
expertise with chopsticks.

One of my favorite sushi side dishes.