Summer Activities...

Logan and Carsyn started swim lessons last week. They are having a great time with it, although it's probably more fun than instructional. Carsyn must have been a real treat to teacher today because when class was over she was singing lyrics from RENT over and over again. (Yes, our kids know almost every word because on our eight day drive out here...whenever they weren't watching a dvd...we listened to the RENT soundtrack!) Maren isn't in classes, but during her sisters' class she gets to swim around with Daddy. We also went to our neighborhood pool to check it out. It's definitely not the same as the Khaki pool on base, but we had fun!

Maren loves the water...

Swimming with Daddy...

LOOOONG Weekend...

What a busy weekend we had, and most of it was spent in the car. We got into Indy very early Friday morning and slept at Nana's friend, Nancy's house. We were so excited to go to her house because it had been such a long time. Nancy was so awesome to put us up and feed us all our favorite breakfast foods! We also had tons to play with there--thanks!

Thanks, Nancy!

Then we hit the road again to visit our best friends from California who were home in Illinois for the summer. The girls had been looking forward to this reunion almost since the day we left Lemoore. It was so great for the girls to spend time with their friends again. They played and played, ate dinner, watched a movie--what more could you ask for? We had a really nice visit. We'll see you guys again soon!

Best Friends together again...

Leo, Logan, Grace, Carsyn, Sophie, and Maren...

Saturday we went to one of daddy's friend's/fraternity brother's wedding in Evansville, IN. All three girls were pretty good during the ceremony, and it was a full Catholic mass. The girls just love seeing brides and bridesmaids. They are already planning their weddings. But, the real fun was had at the reception! The girls had a blast dancing and truly enjoyed the cake! Congrats, Jon!

Sisters and future brides and bridesmaids...

Who's leading?

National Zoo...

When we went to the zoo last time, Daddy did not go with us. So, today we went again and brought him along. We tried to see all the exhibits that we missed on our first visit. We spent a lot of time in the Great Ape House watching the Orangutans and Gorillas. The primates were almost as fascinated with the girls as the girls were with them. We also went to the children's zoo area where the girls thought about touching the goats and cows, but decided against it. Here are a few photos of our zoo trip...

The Lion Queens...

Barack the Vote!!!

What an exciting afternoon we just had. Yesterday morning mommy and daddy went to stand in line to get tickets to see Senator Barack Obama speak at a town hall meeting here in Fairfax. So, all six of us went over to the local high school where he would be speaking. It was a long day for the girls, but it was so worth it. His speech was fantastic! Maren lasted through most of it before falling asleep. Carsyn kept herself entertained by talking, singing, and dancing. And, while Logan did complain a bit, she was really good. After the conclusion of the speech, Logan and Mommy were lucky enough to shake hand with (hopefully) the next President of the United States of America!!!

Waiting for Barack...

Logan has a crush on Obama!

Senator Barack Obama...

Mommy and Logan shaking hands with the future President...

Logan with Grampa Joe, Uncle Danny, and Aunt Sofia after the speech...

Old friends and a trip to the Zoo...

Some of our friends from California moved to Pax River, MD about a month before we moved. Today Ms. Traci and Abbey came over and we all went to the National Zoo together. Carsyn has been dying to go to the zoo since we moved here. So she was excited times ten. It was warm and sticky, but the girls had a blast. We didn't get through the whole zoo because everyone was getting tired, but we saw the giant pandas--which was all Carsyn could talk about. It was great to see good friends. And, we're very excited that they only live an hour away! Thanks for coming up guys.

Logan, Abbey, & Carsyn...

Maren had a good time too...

Happy 6th Birthday, Logan!

How did Logan grow up so fast?--six years old, although she thinks of herself more like 16. Logan is very smart. She loves to read and do school work. She also loves the playing with her friends (her sisters at the moment) and watching Disney Channel. Logan is very excited about starting first grade in the Fall. For Logan's birthday today she and Carsyn opened the rest of their presents and had birthday cake!

All dressed up, and nowhere to go...but, downstairs to open presents!

Happy Birthday, girls!

Sisters...

Birthday Girl...

Happy 4th Birthday, Carsyn!

It's hard to believe that Carsyn is four years old already. She is such a sweet little girl. She loves her sisters, loves to play, dance, and sing! Carsyn is adjusting well to our new life, new home, and new city. She had a blast with her "Uncle" John when he was here with us. For Carsyn's birthday today, we took the girls to Build-A-Bear Workshop. Carsyn picked a panda bear and put her in a wedding gown. Logan chose a pink bear which she dressed in stylish purple and black outfit. Maren got a pink poodle! Afterward they opened presents from their Nana.

Carsyn is four...

Happy Birthday!!!

Watkins Glen

It's only a five and a half hour drive up to Watkins Glen, NY--want to go to the IRL race? Well, Daddy and John were on board, so off we went. We went up the night before so the girls could see Tony Kanaan. He was super sweet to the girls, as usual. However, when he tried to hold Maren she started crying. What a funny girl. After leaving the track we went out to eat in downtown Watkins Glen. We ate an Italian restaurant. It must have been pretty popular because at the next table over was Tony George and Ed Carpenter and family. Vitor Miera was also at another table.

Logan, Tony, and Carsyn...

Carsyn hanging out on an AGR go cart...

What kind of ice cream should I get?

We had good time at the race on Sunday. However, we were hoping to see TK get his second victory in a row, but he made up some points with his third place finish. After the race we went drove back down to Washington and John headed back to Indy. The girls were very sad to see him go. Thanks for visiting, John! What a great dad you'll make--some girl is going to be very lucky.

Pre-race fun...

Daddy, Logan, John, Carsyn, Maren, & Nana ready for the green flag...

Don't forget to check out our pictures on www.indycar.com under fan photos!

Happy Independence Day...

Since we live here near the Nation's Capital, we decided to head downtown for the Fourth of July festivities. The girls had fun riding the metro. We stopped in Arlington first. John wanted to see the National Cemetery, and none of the girls had ever seen it either. It's amazing how massive it is. It's hard to keep three little girls quiet and reverent, though. But, they did pretty well. It also started raining on us pretty hard, which was not fun. We weren't very prepared...no umbrellas or rain jackets. The girls were able to stay dry in the stroller though.

On the Metro...

Robert F. Kennedy's grave...

After Arlington we took the metro into downtown. We went to the Air and Space museum to get out of the rain, and then found a spot on the National Mall to watch the fireworks. There were so many people there. It was pretty crazy. Logan and Maren like the fireworks, but Carsyn announced to everyone, "Who cares! I've seen fireworks at Disneyland a hundred times!" Well, what a snob: ) The back drop for the show was the coolest thing--right over the Washington Monument. Afterwards it was a zoo trying to get back to the metro station, and then trying to find room for six people and a double stroller on board. But, eventually we made it. We've also learned a lesson--no more strollers in high crowd areas!

It looked much better in person...

Mount Vernon...

We drove to Mount Vernon, home of George Washington, today. It is very impressive and very pretty, right on the Potomac. The girls actually enjoyed it more than expected. Of course, it's probably because John was with us. Anyway, here are some shots from our visit...

What a good sport...