Eli and his First Mountain Bike Ride

 We have a pretty good hand-me-down bike system in our household.  A lot of my old mountain bike parts find their way on to other bikes, and as the kids grow they get the next larger bike hanging in the garage.  Today, Eli inherited the bike that Hanna originally got in 2008.  It's a 24" wheel mountain bike-ish object.  Both Hanna and Tyson have pretty much surpassed it in size, and Eli just fits.

 I cut the seat post down (an old Bontrager carbon post from my old Superfly) and lowered the FSA carbon handlebars (from my 2006 Cannondale Rush) and he was rockin'. 

He was marveling at how easy it was to go uphill.  Yeah, gears will do that for you.

Deanna and I took him to Cliff Cave and I took him on almost every trail.  I was so surprised at how well he got down the trail.  He was so excited!  I could not believe how long we rode...probably an hour?  Deanna was walking Rex while Eli and I were riding.  I had to go back into the trail to find them...it gets a little confusing back in those tight trails.  But we all came out alive and Eli had a brand new adventure that I hope lasts a lifetime.

Eli and the All Star Game

 Lining up for photos before the All Star game.  He was excited to play.

 Eli with his year end trophy.  He's turned into such a big boy.

 He was getting bored as he waited for a good pitch.

 Nice swing!  I caught it just as he contacted the ball.

 I love the expression he has here as a bad pitch went right past his head.

The awesome after-game pizza party.  What a great group of kids.

The many Faces of Hanna

 Here, Hanna and I were waiting for Eli's baseball game to start.  That's Tyson behind her.

 One of fifteen photos I found on my phone today.  This is the most presentable face I could upload.

This is her and I at Tyson's game.  It's a selfie by her, as you can see in the reflection of her glasses.  You can also see that I need a shave...badly.

Riding Giant Bikes in Utah

 I was invited to attend the 2014 product launch for Giant Bicycles in Utah this past week.  I had never been to Utah, and it's always nice to be in the mountains, so I was excited.  As soon as we left the airport on the charter bus toward Deer Valley, I snapped this.  It's a very touristy photo, but the contrast of dark clouds, mountains, and blue sky was so much more than my camera could capture.

 We passed the ski jump area that was used in the winter Olympics a few years back.

 This was the view from the ballroom where our meetings took place.  Imagine:  70 degrees.  Breeze.  No humidity.  Yep.

 Just under that bridge to the left was the entrance to the mountain biking trails.  There were so many trails that at times it was difficult to follow them.  We did our best and had a blast on some really cool new mountain bikes.  Eric Pirtle is our Giant rep, and a really, really good mountain biker.  Who better to show us around the trails?  We were very lucky to have such a gracious host and guide.

 I just couldn't get over the impact of coming around a corner and having the mountains as a back drop.

 Hundreds of 2014 Giant bikes waiting for the dealers to ride them.  In this setting, it was hard to dislike anything.  The first day, we rode the wheels off of the mountain bikes (I can talk about them August 1st) and on the second day we did a 50 mile road bike ride in the mountains.  Altitude bothers me a bit.  All of the riding was at between 8000 and 9000 feet.

Just one shot of my room at the Chateaux.  It was nicer than my house.  Two bathrooms, living room with leather couches, kitchen with full fridge, stove, dining room, king sized bed, another fridge in the bathroom, and windows that viewed the mountains.  Giant did us up right.  Thanks for the opportunity.

Grandpa's 70th Birthday "Surprise"

Deanna and her brothers and sister set up a train ride to Hermann for her dad's 70th birthday.  It was supposed to be a surprise, but it's really hard to surprise people like him.  He's always thinking too much, using deductive reasoning too much, etc.  So, maybe he was surprised, maybe he wasn't.  But it was a great day anyway.  We all rode the train to Hermann, at a picnic lunch, saw some of the cool sights, went to the museum, rode the trolly car, took a tour of the Stone Hill winery and ate at the restaurant there.  And rode the train back to the Lou.  I really enjoyed it, whether we surprised Grandpa or not. 

Great Photo with the Tiger, Hanna!

 Hanna poses with the big inflatable tiger at the Webster Groves Fair.  But maybe we can get a better photo.

Yeah, that will do it.

Riding the Moby Dick at Webster Fair

 Wait for it.....

 Wait for it....

There it is......

Hanna caught in mid-serve

When Hanna first started playing volleyball, her serve gave her a lot of trouble.  Now, she's one of the better servers on the court.  I can't believe I caught this photo, but I think it's a good one.

Buddy Doll

I took a photo of this little guy just for Hanna.  He's creepy.

Webster Groves Parade 2

 There's always a Thunderbird at these things.  I love these with the removable hard top in place.  I do understand that during a parade, the top will be down, though.

 C1 Corvette in a color I have never seen before.  Sort of bronze-ish.

 Ford Model A?  Not very good with anything before the 50's, but it was cool.

 This guys SS 396 had a bitchin' blower sticking out of the hood, a devilish whine, and a cam so lumpy it barely ran without his foot on the gas.  But it was cool.

Again, I don't know what this car is, but it was really nicely done.

Webster Groves Parade 1

 I usually take photos of more than cars, but this time that's all I did.  I really liked this car, new age wheels aside.

 Anybody know what this is?

 1967 is a great year for cars.  I'm usually not a fan of convertible Corvette's, but his is a beauty.

This is the finest example of a Chevrolet I have ever seen.  This car was so perfect that it was hard to believe he was driving it.  I saw it up close a little while later and I stand by my statement of perfection.

A Mutt's Life

I heard a commotion in the bedroom while I was in the bathroom.  I thought it was Deanna, but nope...it was this guy.  Glad my bed is such a wonderful place to sleep.  Freeloader.

My phone is a magnet for photo bombs

Although I must say that this is a good one.  Aren't they cute?