Montreal

We flew in Wednesday night, May 6 and had dinner downstairs at the Italian restaurant. The kids were very well behaved and made me proud.

Thursday, Bob worked all day and had dinner with the Averna folks. But before going to the office, Bob meet one of the Averna guys in the hotel and had breakfast there. They were still there when Colin, Nathan and I went to breakfast. Colin just stared and smiled so big at his dad.

After breakfast, I went out in search for groceries with the kids ... in the rain, in the borrowed stroller from the hotel. Turns out we forgot a stroller and Nathan is just not up for all the walking that we typically do on vacations just yet. Fortunately the hotel had a pink stroller that someone left and loaned it to us. I didn't mind it was pink. Neither did the kids. By the end of the weekend though I think I figured out why the stroller was left behind, it was not the best functioning stroller. But it was more functional than no stroller, so we were still grateful to have it.

The grocery store is located in a little downtown mall that had a fountain the the kids loved. We had to go to the top (4th) floor to get an aerial view of it. In the grocery store, Colin saw the croissants and had to get some. I'm thinking that's funny because when we were in Paris, Colin wouldn't eat anything from Paris. But apparently he has started eating croissants at school. Croissants were the main food for Colin during this trip.

After returning the to the hotel and packing the groceries, we went on a little adventure and checked out the pool on the top floor of the hotel. Lunch in the room, swimming in the pool, then back to the room where Colin watched cartoons in French. He didn't mind at all. Dinner in the room. All day the kids ate very well in the hotel room which is rare for them to eat good on a trip.

The next day, Friday May 7, the boys finally saw Bob. First time since breakfast the previous day. Bob asked Nathan what he saw in Montreal. Nathan's response, "Rain." We did a lot of walking in the rain the day before. Today while Bob was at work, I took the kids down to Olde Montreal and we saw some old railroad tracks that Colin thought were very cool. Of course, they had to walk along them.


Then we saw the Cirque du Soleil tents and the boys remembered them from Atlanta. I really would've like to see the show but it just didn't work out. I did take Colin and Nathan to see IMAX, Under the Sea 3D. Their first movie in a theatre. Colin loved it. Nathan not so much. Nathan thought it was scary especially when the big fish ate the little fish. I would turn Nathan's face into my chest and cover his ears when the movie started talking about the eating habits of the fish. Nathan did think that the sea lions were cute but didn't like the sharks. Maybe Nathan was a little young for this movie ... or any movie.

Friday night we went to an Irish pub for dinner where I shared a prime rib with Colin and Nathan. Once again they were so well behaved and got lots of attention. Then we got a babysitter which turned out to be our hotel maid. She didn't speak very much English but it worked out just fine. Bob and I checked out Brewtopia a brew pub. Never have I had such an awful beer! We actually left our half-finished beers on the bar. Our first clue should have been when I asked what was on cask and the bartender didn't even know that cask beer was not a style of beer. Then we went to another brewpub that was much better. At least it cleared my palate from the Strawberry Ale that I had at Brewtopia. Later that evening we were able to see Marc and Sylvie, friends of ours that live in Montreal that we met in Jamaica.

Saturday we took the kids to the BioDome and Montreal Tower. Then Bob and I went out to Diel du Soil, the most incredible brew pub in the world - 17 beers on tap where all of them (at least the ones we tried) were stellar beers!




Additional notes: Nathan made the comment, "In this world, I like Fruit Loops. In our world, I don't like Fruit Loops." He still refers to the places we go to as "other worlds". Too cute.

My facebook status included the following setiment, "Is it really eavesdropping if you don't understand teh language?" I just love listening to people talk in another language!

Grand Cayman - Last Day

Our last day and we spent it at the beach. Bob and I swam around the man-made pods in the ocean while Colin and Nathan held on to our backs. We got to see the fish under the water while the boys got a ride in the water. Of course Nathan was a little freaked out about the fish in the water and ended up on my shoulders for a while. Colin refused to look at the fish through the googles because that meant putting his face in the water.

Some pics from the beach:
A rare picture of Nathan smiling.


Nathan and the Dad-fish.


Nathan climbing on Dad's back.


Colin and Dad going snorkeling.


Time to go home.


Some of the things that the kids said on the trip:
On the plane on the way to Grand Cayman - "There are so many clouds, I can't see the world."

At the airport in Grand Cayman right after we landed - "Do they have taxi's in the other world." (In Nathan's terms, "the other world" is Grand Cayman.)

Upon seeing the first lizard - "Dinosaur!"

Colin said that he wished Grandma and Grandpa GG were at Grand Cayman with us.

On the other hand, Nathan was fixated on when we were going home. (He did this on the last couple trips too.)

On the plane trip home after some turbulance - "Airplanes do strange things to my body."

Also on the way back - "Are we going back to our world?"

Colin's favorite part: the pirate cave
Nathan's favorite part: eating all the jelly beans

Grand Cayman - Pirate Cave

Today we had breakfast in the turtle lagoon again. The kids love the turtle lagoon. There are paths all around the turtles in the pond. I think it's a great place too.

Then the hotel put on an Easter egg hunt on the beach where the kids could take two plastic eggs and all the candy that they wanted. It was pretty cool.




After the Easter egg hunt we rented a Jeep Wrangler to explore the island a little. Our main destination was the Pirate Caves that we were talking to Colin about. At first he was very excited about it, then out of no where Colin changed his mind and didn't want to go. Turns out that he was afraid of the caves, but I talked him into it and told him that it wasn't going to be scary.


Six year old, David gave us a tour of the caves and took Colin into a little passageway. Nathan wanted to go so I climbed in the passageway and went with Nathan. There was a mini-zoo at the Cave too, that we checked out.



Afterward we drove to the North side of the island, saw a fire and ate lunch at On the Edge, a restaurant on the water. We took the long way back around the eastern edge of the island. Nathan fell asleep just before we got back to the hotel. He would've slept more but Jeeps are just too windy and booster seats aren't good for taking naps.

Then the kids watched a little bit of kid's show. This was something that we did everyday, the kids liked the break and we got a little nap.

Time to hit the beach where Bob and I took turns going snorkeling with a face mask and no snorkel. I saw so many kinds of fish in the man-made pods that provided shelter for the fish. I think I even saw a small shark lurking in the middle of the pods, but probably not. I saw a blow fish and a little orange and purple fish that I remembered from Hanama Bay in Hawaii.

Dinner was at Yoshi Sushi and dessert at Hammerhead a brew pub that didn't have very much of their own beer. Sushi was an excellent choice, we really need to take the kids to more sushi places.

Grand Cayman - Good Friday

Day two of our little get-away, Friday, April 10, also known as Good Friday. First breakfast in the turtle lagoon in the hotel. Then we took a taxi to the turtle farm, but being Good Friday, it was closed. So came back and went to the beach.

Turtle lagoon in the hotel.

Bob watched the kids while I went running. I ran to this purple hotel/condo called The Avalon about 2 miles away. Nature called and I spent 20 minutes trying to find a bathroom. Eventually found a very yucky porta-potty, uggghh! And ran back.


Before lunch, Nathan had the worst meltdown -- note to self, don't miss snacks! We went to a little place across the road for lunch that someone recommended, then we went to a butterfly farm which was surprisingly open (being Good Friday, everything else was closed). Cool guided tour where our guide described the life cycle of a butterfly. It was pretty interesting. The females are bigger and stronger and the males are used for sex, get kick out and spend the rest of their short life getting drunk!


After the butterflies, we went back to the hotel room for kids shows while Bob went running. Oh yeah, on my run, I saw a bright green lizard, a whole field of big iguanas, and a snake. Bob said the snake was dead because he saw it twice, in the same position. Dinner was at Pizza Hut. With two kids, sometimes it's easier to stick to the basics.

Spring Break - Grand Cayman

Spring Break for Colin and Nathan and with the big Averna/DAQTron deal, we needed it! Unfortunately with everything going on, we couldn't leave town until Thursday of Spring Break and ended up taking just a quick, long, weekend trip to Grand Cayman. Bob wanted to go somewhere where the weather would be guarenteed to be warm.

We got to the hotel Thursday, April 9 before check-in and the room wasn't ready so we changed into our swim suits and hit the beach. Colin and Nathan loved the water and ocean and sand. Had to drag them away to go to lunch at the hotel restaurant. Bob and I had the local beer, Caybrew and it really hit the spot after being in the sun. Better than the other carribean beers like Red Stripe too.


Then we went swimming in the pool. While I was getting towels, Colin went out too deep in the water and got really scared. Bob was more scared and jumped into the pool to rescue Colin. Fortunately Colin was okay, unfortunately Bob's cell phone was sacrificed during the rescue.

As a result, I tried working with Colin on getting him to swim and put his face in the water. I think it's going to take a professional and private swim lessons for him to get over his fear of water. Which is crazy becasue the kid LOVES water. By me working all last summer and not doing any swim lessons with the kids, I think we really missed the boat with Colin. I just wasn't comfortable sending them to swim lessons with a babysitter. No offense to the babysitter, it's just my job.

Nathan on the other hand was loving going underneath the water. Bob would say 1, 2, 3 and dunk him under. Nathan just laughed and laughed. I think he was laughing under the water too. Then he would say, "Do it again!" Group swim lessons for Nathan.

Dinner was at a place across the street that was like a beach bar with picnic tables and outside seating. Very cool ambiance.

Denver - Butterflies

While in Denver, we saw my Aunt Janet and went to dinner with her. We also went to lunch and the Butterfly Pavilion with Bob's cousin Julie and her son, Asher.

The Butterfly Pavilion was a big hit with all the kids except for Nathan. Apparently Nathan doesn't like butterflies very much at this point. In the green house where all the butterflies are, one of the butterflies landed on Nathan. He was not happy about that at all and cried and cried. I'm sure that Nathan will out grow this stage, but it was very strange none the less.

Then the next exhibit at the Butterfly Pavilion that we went into had giant mechanical ants moving around. Nathan didn't like that either! So Nathan and I went into the gift shop and waited for the rest of the gang there.

Denver - Cold, cold, cold

Denver was cold and rainy, so we spent a lot of time in the hotel. Colin and Nathan really know how to destroy, ummm ... I mean rearrange the hotel room to best maximize they're play time. The closets are elevators. The cushions come off all of the chairs and make slides.

Here they are doing some art. Colin is a such a camera hog!


Working hard.


Colin drew beans and Nathan just colored the whole page.


When the rain let up, we took the free bus up and down the 16th Street Mall. Colin and Nathan really thought that was great fun!





Lastly, some pictures of typical Denver sites.

The convention center with the huge blue bear.


A "No Smoking" sign at a bagel place.

Denver - GABF

It's been two years since Bob and I attended the granddaddy of all American beer fests. So it was time to go back to the Great American Beer Fest in Denver (GABF). Last time we brought the kids and found a babysitter on-line. She was one of the best babysitters ever! So when we were planning this trip, I crossed my fingers when I emailed her. To my great surprise, she was still at that email address ... and was available!! It's also a bonus that both Bob and I have family in the Denver area and were able to see them.

The beer fest was amazing as usual. I found my personal favorite, New Glarus Brewery and sampled some of their Raspberry Tart and Belgian Red. They really excel doing fruit beers, yummmy! Friday night we were able to get samples from them with little effort (maybe a 15 minute wait in line). Then Saturday afternoon, the line was at least a 30 minutes to 45 minutes wait. All for a one ounce pour! I was very happy that I already sampled New Glarus and didn't have to wait in that line.

I tried a lot of pumpkin beers, and a couple gluten-free beers, but I have to say that I was extremely happy to discover Dogfish Head's Midas Touch. And more importantly, this beer is available in the Atlanta area (unlike New Glarus).

Day 1 - Enjoying the fest Friday night.


Mexican Beer Dudes - Notice the pretzel somberros and pretzel bullet holders. Many people would wear pretzel necklaces to munch during the fest. These guys took it a step further!


Day 2 - Bob and I were the Alesmith reps with our matching shirts!

North Georgia mountains

We were fortunate enough to get invited to spend Labor Day weekend in the North Georgia mountains at Bob's aunt and uncle's mountain retreat. John, Sue and their daughter Emma were the most gracious hosts, the boys had a blast, and we had some good R&R!


We arrived Saturday afternoon and got the grand tour of their house and their tree house. They had a hammock for leisurely naps and swing set too. Bob tried out the hammock while John and Emma got into a swinging competition. At dinner time, we ate out on the back deck and saw hummingbirds coming up to the feeders.

John and Emma's swinging competition:


Sunday we went out and about, seeing the beautiful waterfalls in the area and then I got to go to a craft fair with Sue and Emma. Sue and I both purchased pendants from the same booth, Goldenrod Designs. Mine is a large pyrotized ammonite from Russia. That evening we went to a Mexican place, then Sue played hide-n-seek with the boys. Of course Colin would get bored of hiding before Sue had a chance to find him and would always come out of hiding early.

The next morning, John played "big bear" with the boys. In this game, each boy took turns holding up a big bear head and pretending to be a big bear and scare everyone. It was great fun for everyone!

Then it was time to go home. For most of the ride, we had an extra passenger on the windshield. A Katydid, which I called a leaf bug was stuck to the windshield and held on even when we were driving 70 mph! Then we stopped for lunch and it crawled to the roof of the car. When we got back into the car, we watched the Katydid through the sunroof until it disappeared.

Austin - Bats

My favorite thing to do in Austin is see the bats come out at dusk. Congress Street bridge in downtown Austin is the home of the largest urban bat colony. The bridge was even specially constructed with grooves on the underside of the bridge to provide lots of roosting places for the bats.

We went to watch the bats from the top of the bridge this time. It takes about 20 minutes or more for all the bats to emerge from the bridge and go down stream to consume many tons of insects each night. Colin wanted to watch the bats from underneath the bridge, but I thought we might need an umbrella if we were to be down there (for all the bat poop!)

The bats starting to come out from under the bridge.

Clouds of bats going down stream.

Nathan and Colin listening to the vibrations of the bridge railing. I'm not exactly sure why!

Austin - Children's museum

Monday afternoon, July 7 while Bob was at his meeting, we went to the Children's Museum. When we arrived at the children's museum, Nathan went straight for the train table and played there for a long time. In the meantime, Colin was running around, trying to play with all of the stuff that was there in the shortest amount of time. Just a classic example of their different personalities.

Here are some pix of Colin and Nathan playing on the "bus" at the entrance of the museum.

Austin - Pool

Monday morning, July 7 we went to the hotel pool to cool down.

Austin - PF Chang's

Across from our hotel was a PF Chang's. The kids love chinese so this was a natural place for us to go. And Bob and I love PF Chang's. Now-a-days, chinese places have kid-friendly chop sticks. Both Colin and Nathan are pros at using them.