Linam Ramblings

Merry Christmas 2009!

2009-12-18T15:03:00.012-06:00

Merry Christmas! You know the good thing about teenagers? Division of labor becomes a lot more effective! You know the bad thing about teenagers? Okay, that's a subject for another letter (just kidding)! Anyway, here's everyone's news, written by everyone individually, and, if you want to read on, you can catch some of our notes and photos from the summer vacation trip to Washington (also produced by teenagers!)....

Hi, it's Frank, and this is what I have been doing this year. Over the summer I played on Wimberley's all-stars baseball team and was the starting pitcher. I also participated in the 4-H dog project. My dog, Aggie, and I did very well at the state dog show at Texas A&M. We won the high point award in my age group.
I am in 8th grade and currently on the Hill Country Christian School Junior High basketball team. I also enjoy playing electric guitar (and growing--Mom's note). Have a Merry Christmas!

Hi all, it's Abby, and this is what I've been doing this year. I attended the teen work camp week at our church and had much fun. My golden retriever, Arby, and I went to the 4-h dog show, where both my brother and I got the high point in our age groups. I am a sophomore, 10th grade, in Hill Country Christian School. I played volleyball in the fall, and right now I am playing on the high school basketball team. Also at my school I am playing the electric bass guitar in the praise band. I just wanted to say "Remember, Jesus is the Reason for the Season!"

Merry Christmas from Gordon. I was blessed with another eventful year of family, work, and church activities. Family highlights include: lots of baseball, softball, volleyball, and basketball games; vacationing in the northwest; 4-H events; my sister's wedding in October; enjoying visits from friends from Australia and Germany. This past year was probably one of the busiest I have had at work. The drought drastically reduced flows in the rivers and streams around the state, thus providing the “opportunity” to collect water quality and biological data at extremely low conditions. I spent a lot of time working on the San Antonio River. In addition we completed the second year of data collection on an EPA funded grant targeted at assessing the stream conditions around the state. This project took our team from the panhandle (where I got to perform some work on the Canadian River on T. Boone Pickens Ranch) to the Big Bend region, valley, and east Texas. Sometimes I find myself wishing our state was a bit smaller.
As far as church, I was asked to fill in as the music worship leader for about three months until the vacancy was filled. I enjoyed serving in that role but was very glad when the replacement was hired. Finally, I enjoyed seeing old friends at my 30th high school reunion this summer. "30th" and "old"--I don't like the sound of those words! Best wishes to all of you.

Hi, this is Lee Ann, and I’ve spent this year driving to basketball games and volleyball games and baseball games and softball games and dog shows and church and a couple of times to West Texas! And for that I give thanks. It’s a busy period in our lives, but, as our kids reach their high school years, I’m glad for every moment that we have with them and count the blessings that we’ve been given. Even as much as I’ve enjoyed the chances I’ve had to do field work on horned lizards and frogs this year, I know I treasure most the gift of time we’ve had with the ones we love, and, despite the posts above, it doesn’t all involve competitions (another of the important wisdoms we learned from our dear Amigo, who departed us this year, and who never cared for dog shows! :-)).
And I do slip away occasionally--usually for a bike ride or swim (though our beloved Blanco River didn’t offer much opportunity during this summer of heat and drought) or, when we can find a block of unscheduled time, for a family campout. Finally, it seems I’ve been doing a lot of praying this year--for friends and family facing health concerns or loss, for the futures our children will inherit, and for peace--in the world and in our hearts. That’s what I wish for all of you this year--peace, not as the world gives, but a greater, lasting peace from above…love to you all!

Merry Christmas from the Linams!

Washington Trip - July 22, 2009

2009-12-13T21:55:00.002-06:00

Lee Ann's recollections - Day 8 (Frank's pen or, perhaps, patience wore out...)

We spent our last day in Seattle, just enjoying the sights of the city (like this great pork sandwich-mobile), a little coffee, and a visit with some old college friends of mine...

Pike's Market is still a great attraction (as evidenced by all the people at the fish market, who weren't interested in buying fish at all, but just in photographing those who did...)

Gordon and the kids enjoyed a visit to the wonderful Seattle aquarium while I just enjoyed relaxing on the waterfront, reflecting on the renewal that a vacation brings...

Washington trip - July 21

2009-11-23T09:49:00.005-06:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 7
Photos by Abby

We slept in this morning. After we got up we watched TV until 1:00. Then we went to the library for 1 hour.
Then we went on a hike at a wildlife refuge. Next we went to a nature center on Puget Sound. We went on a kayak trip through the bay.
We saw Mt. Rainier and some seals as we paddled around. After that we just went back to Yelm.

Washington Trip - July 20

2009-11-23T08:13:00.007-06:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 6

We got up and went down to tidepool in the lowest tides all month. We saw seastars, oysters, urchins, sculpins, nudabranks, and lots of kelp. Then we went on a ferry ride to Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. We just walked around the city. We saw some guitar and violin players on the streets. We saw historic buildings and walked through and ate in Chinatown. It was fun. Then we went back on the ferry. We went driving up a mountain to a great view on Hurrican Ridge at sunset. We could see beautiful mountains with snow on them. We hiked around a little and the sunset made it look beautiful. We went back to Yelm, went to bed, and ended the longest day of our vacation.

Washington Trip - July 19

2009-08-19T11:01:00.005-05:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 5
(Photos by Abby--well, except the one of Abby)

We got up and started packing up camp. Karen found a Banana Slug and brought it back. We all got our picture with the Banana Slug. We tried to go to church but no one showed up. We finished packing up and started on our way to some "Hot Springs," stopping at some neat spots at the coast on the way. Someone had made a bunch of "art" out of the rocks on the beach, so we made some, too.

At the hot springs there were 3 pools that were 100, 104, and 106 degrees. There was also a big pool that was a nice swimming temperature. After that we drove around a lake that was formed by a melting glacier. The water was actually a blue color.

We then set up camp on the north part of the Olympic Penninsula.

I finished reading White Fang. We ate supper then we had S'mores. Then we went to bed.

Washington Trip - July 18

2009-08-18T09:02:00.005-05:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 4
(Photos by Abby)

We got up, ate breakfast and started off for the Hoh rainforest. We saw a bald eagle and 2 elk on the way.

We stopped at a river to find invertebrates. The water was actually blue because it was a glacier river. We finally got there and went on a hike. The hike was called "Hall of Mosses."

Its name described it. there was cool moss hanging off of everything. We ate lunch there then we started back. We went to a Ranger Talk when we got back.

Then we ate supper and made a fire on the beach. We stayed there until sunset was over then we went back to our camp and went to sleep.

Washington Trip - July 17

2009-08-18T08:50:00.006-05:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 3
(Photos by Abby)

We didn't do much today. We woke up and had a breakfast of homemade bacon, pancakes, and juice. We packed up and headed for the Olympic Penninsula. After a long drive there we finally got there and set up camp. Once we were set up we went on a walk on the beach. There were dead crabs everywhere on the beach. We went a little way into the water but it was freezing! We went back to camp, ate supper, and started a fire. When it was getting dark we went down to the beach and watched the sunset. It was really neat. The sunsets there last for a long time. We went back to camp and went to bed.
I threw-up in the middle of the night.

Washington Trip - July 16

2009-08-10T09:23:00.006-05:00

FRANK'S JOURNAL - Day 2

We got up and ate breakfast. After breakfast we started driving towards Mt. Saint Helens. This is the story of the 1980 eruption. Mt. Saint Helens had been acting active and people were told to leave the "blast zone." After a while the people were getting tired of waiting and the police let them go get their stuff from their house. Just 10 hours after the last person left the blast zone with their stuff the only people there were loggers. Just 10 hours after the people who lived there got their stuff and earthquake occured. The magma in Mt. Saint Helens had been pushing a
bulge out of the north side of the volcano. The bulge had been growing by a rate of 6 feet a day! The earthquake caused the north side to collapse causing the biggest landslide in history! It destroyed everything in its path. It destroyed all of the thick forest and carried it down the river. All the logs from the Fir trees looked like spaghetti going down the river. Then toxic ash started coming out.
The ash had rocks flying through it. It was the middle of the day but the ash turned all the light to blackness for hundreds of miles away! Ash from the eruption even reached Texas! No one could enter until all the toxic dust had cleared out. All the ground was barren after the eruption. All the destruction made Mt. Saint Helens 1500 feet shorter! It used to be a perfect cone-shaped volcano, now it is an odd-shaped volcano with a huge crevasse in one side. Harry (B) Truman died in the eruption (it wasn't the president Harry Truman). We went on some hikes. Then we went back to Doug and Karen's house. My dad was excited because he got to see Sasquatch on the trip!

Washington trip - 7-15-09

2009-07-27T09:51:00.004-05:00

Frank's Journal:
Last night we stayed at our friends house just outside of Seattle. Our friends, Doug and Karen, fed us breakfast of home-grown strawberries, blueberries, and cherries. The climate is a temperate rain forest and it feels great. We went to Mt. Rainier, a dormant volcano, and we went on hikes. We went up a hike up the side of a volcano. It was uphill all the way and there was snow everywhere. It was a hard hike at first because the air was thin. We got to a point that you would have to be a mountain climber to get up. Then we started on our way down the mountain. It was the funnest part. We slid around in the snow and had snowball fights! It was actually powdery snow not the ice we have in Texas. It was the most snow I have ever seen. After that we went on a hike and saw some cool waterfalls. Then we went back to our friends' house for the night.

Merry Christmas 2008!

2008-12-17T19:20:00.011-06:00

How can it be that another year has gone by? In some ways it seems like Christmas was just yesterday, but in other ways it seems a very long time ago. This year has taught us much about treasuring, rather than measuring time.

We are all well, and, as always, are thankful for your care and concern for our family. Abby is a 9th-grader at Hill Country Christian School this year.
She is doing very, very well. She’s playing volleyball, softball, and planning to run track. She’s also taken up the bass guitar this year and shows a remarkable sense of rhythm (not sure where she got that!). Her other big hobby continues to be her dog, Arby—they did very well in obedience and agility competition this year. She’s a blessing to us; just the thought of her leaving home in less than four years is one of those things that has us treasuring time.

Video of Abby and Arby on an agility course

Frank is also back at Hill Country this year for 7th grade. Although I miss my homeschool buddy, he’s enjoying the chance to play junior high basketball and compete in academic competitions. He had another good season pitching for his Little League baseball team in the spring. He also continues to play guitar and piano (and GameCube) and enjoys unwinding with his puppy, Aggie. They started beginner agility classes this fall. Frank really grew up in a lot of ways this year (literally—he’s almost as tall as his mom!)

Video of Frank's fastball (the batter was surely out at first!)

Gordon and I just try to keep up. Besides our jobs at Texas Parks and Wildlife, we’re both involved in the music team at church and helping out at school and in the Wimberley 4-H club. We were blessed this year with the chance to serve a couple of meals at the Ronald McDonald House in San Antonio where we stayed all those weeks in 2006. It was good to just give back a little of the care we received there. And then we all enjoyed a camping trip in California this summer. The sequoias, Yosemite, and Big Sur were awe-inspiring, even through all the smoke—you can check out pictures of our trip and read Frank's journal in the posts below.

However, the year did bring us some heartache. In September of this year we suddenly lost Gordon’s Mom to heart failure. We will miss her presence in so many ways—she created such a loving home and wonderful family. I was struggling with words to try to pay her a fitting tribute, and, suddenly, as I read through Proverbs 31, I realized that I only needed to update the list of activities and the passage would be a perfect reflection of Mom’s life. I hope you’ll enjoy reading it below. Even in our sadness now, I realize that she has left us with many blessings…

May you count, treasure, and hug your blessings this Christmas season.

A Woman Who Fears the Lord – Proverbs 31

In Loving Memory of Charlene Ophelia Brown Linam

An excellent wife and mother who can find?
She is far more precious than jewels.
The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
She takes up the dishes and laundry,
and works with loving hands.
She is the friend of the merchant (especially Dillards!);
she shops for quality in food and goods.
She rises while it is yet night
and cooks those famous meals for her household
and for all their friends.
She considers a perfect gift and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she picks the garden and pecans.
She shows remarkable strength;
she does not tire from encouraging her family.
Her work is respected in the City, and still,
at home she works into the night.
She travels for soccer and baseball and basketball and softball…;
her children’s children are her passion.
She gives to the church
and opens her home to friends.
She is not afraid of snow (especially on Christmas Day!),
for she gives fine clothes to her family
(even to her reluctant grandson!).
She wraps her home in beauty;
her clothing is tasteful and stylish.
Her husband is known in the City;
doctors and associates respect him.
She makes clothing for her grandchildren;
and pies and cakes that are beyond compare.
Kindness and generosity are her appearance,
and she laughs with joy among her family.
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
She looks well to the ways of her household;
and, except for Spurs games, she is never idle.
Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
"Many women have done excellently,
but you surpass them all."
Charm is deceiptful, and beauty is passing,
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

We love you, Mom--thanks for all the wonderful years.

California Vacation - July 24-25

2008-12-14T21:38:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

After our plane landed we drove through Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, and Hollywood and stayed in a La Quinta in Santa Clarita. We woke up to the best hotel breakfast ever.
Then we left the hotel and travelled through the hot, boring valley, where we bought some fruitThen we got to Sequoia National Park (NP) and saw our first sequoia trees. They are huge! We went on a couple of hikes--first up Morro Rock and then to see the General Sherman Tree, THE largest living thing on earth! It is 311 feet tall and weighs 138.5 tons! Then we set up our campsite, made smores, and went to bed.

.

California Vacation - July 25

2008-12-14T21:29:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

We woke up in Sequoia National Park, and we ate breakfast and went on a hike right beside our campsite. We corssed the river and hiked up a hill to a cool boulder formation that had water running through it. Then we packed up and went to King's Canyon NP.

We saw the General Grant sequoia tree, the national Christmas tree. Then we followed the King's River into King's Canyon where we saw some cool marble rocks and a waterfall called Grizzly Falls. The we got to the campground, set up camp, and went exploring at Cedar Grove. We saw Roaring River Falls, and then we went on a short hike to a meadow with lots of mosquitoes. Then we went back to camp and went to bed.

Grizzly Falls

California Vacation - July 26

2008-12-14T21:19:00.004-06:00

Frank's Journal:
Today we woke up, ate, and then went on a "3-hour hike" to Mist Falls. The hike took us through a cold valley and then up a hot mountain, and then down to a cool waterfall. The water at the waterfall was freezing. Then we started on our way back. It seemed like the hike would never end. We just kept going around a turn to see that we were not there yet. When we finally got back it was 2:00; our "three-hour, 9 1/2-mile hike" took six hours!

When we got to camp we ate; then we went swimming in a 58 degree river! Before we swam we turned in our Junior Ranger packets and got our badges. Then at night we went to a ranger talk on bears. Then we went back to camp and went to sleep.

California Vacation - July 27

2008-12-14T21:10:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

During the night I had bad nosebleeds. Then we got up and packed and started back down King's Canyon toward Fresno. On the way we stopped and got some fruit. We also stopped on the way at a little church and went to their church service. When we got to Fresno we ate at Pizza Hut. That was a nice change from soup cooked on a camp stove!

Then we left Fresno and started toward Yosemite. When we finally got to Yosemite we couldn't believe it. A fire had started two days ago, and we couldn't see anything! So there we were in one of the most scenic places in the world and we couldn't see anything. We drove up to some view points, but we couldn't see. So then we sent down to our campsite in Yosemite Valley and found out we had the best campsite! We were on the edge, so we had extra room. We were also close to the trails and the bathroom. Mom went on a hike, and when she got back we ate smores.

California Vacation - July 28

2008-12-14T20:49:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up, ate breakfast, and started on a hike to Vernal Falls. We started out going through some tress by a creek. Then we started going uphill through some rocks; then we cleared 700 steps! We saw awesome views of the waterfall, and then we got to the top of it and saw where the waterfall began. It was a really tall waterfall.

We stayed there for a while; then we started back. We went back a different way which was much harder. It went uphill and then it came back down. On the way down it wnet back and forth going almost nowhere, and the duirt was super-slippery. In the end it took four hours to go four miles.

After lunch we went to the Awahnee Hotel, and we went to Visitor Center and saw a cool Indian Village. Then we went to Yosemite Falls, the tallest waterfall in North America and the fifth tallest in the world, and I touched it!

In the evening we went walking to Mirror Lake. On the way we were walking and people said, "Just past the bridge there's a black bear and her cub!" We walked slowly, but only heard it. When we got to the lake it was almost dry, but we finally got to see a nice view of Half Dome through the smoky air. Then we went to a Ranger talk on geology. Once that was over we went back to camp, ate oreos and milk, and went to bed.

California Vacation - July 29

2008-12-14T20:24:00.005-06:00

Frank's Journal:

We packed up and left Yosemite Valley and saw a great view of El Capitan.

Then we went to the upper part of Yosemite, picnicked at a cool lake, and went to Tuolumne Meadows. I finished my Junior Ranger packet and got my badge and bought a cool Marmot stuffed animal. Then we started out on a hike to go to the top of Lembert Dome. The dome was about a mile away, but the road took us up hills the whole time and was winding so it was at least four miles. At the beginning of the hike we tasted natural carbonated water. It tasted like iron.

Then we started going uphill. We went uphill for forever and finally got to the dome. We started climbing up it; it was really steep, and in one part we were really rock-climbing. When we got to the top of the dome we could see everywhere. We talked to a couple of other people, had snacks, and then came down. We explored some more areas to look for marmots, but didn't find any. Then we drove and set up camp in the dark at the upper part of Yosemite. We had smores, then went to bed.

California Vacation - July 30

2008-12-14T20:18:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up, packed up, and left Yosemite. We had to take a different route because of the fires, so we drove through gold country on roads that winded back and forth. It took forever! There are no straight roads or trails in California!

Then we finally got out of that country and got into country that was dry where there were tons of almond tree groves. We just kept travelling through them. We thought we got lost and would have to eat almonds forever.

Then we got to straight coastal roads. The Pacific Ocean was really cool. Then we finally got to Monterrey at 5:00. We went to our La Quinta and had our first showers in a week! Then we ate Chinese food, washed clothes, watched cable, and went to bed.

California Vacation - July 31

2008-12-14T20:08:00.003-06:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up, ate breakfast, and went on the famous 17-mile drive. We drove past the Pebble Creek Golf Course (which costs $450 to play on!). We drove along the pretty ocean. Then we started driving down the coast. We picnicked with some Redwood tress at Big Sur. They were tall, but they weren't nearly as big or impressive as the Sequoias. Then we left there and saw some more good views of the ocean. Then we went to a fancy restaurant called Nepenthe. The whole building was made of redwood wood. We ate cheese and bread there. We drove more winding roads along the coast and saw Sea Lions and Seals. We also saw a couple of Sea Otters. The we got to Moro Bay and set up camp and went to bed.

California Vacation - Aug. 1

2008-12-14T18:42:00.002-06:00

August 1, 2008 - Lee Ann's recollections:

Frank finally got tired of journaling, so I had to recreate the notes from our last full day in California.

As soon as we got up we headed down to the harbor in Moro Bay (a moro is an igneous dome that has been exposed by erosion, so Moro Bay is named for the large rock that sits at the entrance to its harbor) to do some kayaking. We'd really been hoping to see some sea otters up close, but, after a couple of hours of paddling past sea lions and pelicans, checking out all the sea grass beds, and hiking across the harbor peninsula to wade in the ocean breakers, we still hadn't spotted an otter. Finally, we thought we better head back to the concession and there, right by the dock, was an otter floating along on his back! He'd disappear occasionally to bring up some type of shellfish, and then paddle along on his back again. What a neat experience.

We opted for an inland route that would let us make faster time down the coast, but the scenery was still awesome, even with the burned areas. It was a bit like the Texas Hill Country, but more rugged.

We'd reserved a campsite at Malibu Creek State Park, simply because it was near Los Angeles (and wasn't closed due to fires), but we were excited to later learn that it the location where the TV series MASH was filmed. Our whole family loves MASH, and, sure enough, as we pulled in the gate, it really looked like we were at the 4077! We took a little side trip to the beach to play in the cold, rough breakers, rounded up all the quarters we could find to take showers, and spent our last night in California. It's been a great trip!

Christmas 2007 News

2007-12-15T14:27:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

I feel like we've already written an unbelievably long Christmas letter in the form of our two blogs (this one and www.abbylinam.com), and those of you who have kept up with your reading know that we've had a full year--full of baseball and dogs and horses and volleyball and basketball and 4-H and academic contests and traveling and much, much healing. We are so very glad to have been granted this full life and full family once again.

For those of you who haven't kept up and want the condensed version...After spending much of the spring continuing outpatient rehabilitation therapy, Abby returned to school full-time this fall. She's back in 8th grade playing sports, running her dog Arby in agility contests, and continuing to ride horses at a local riding therapy center (where she also volunteers). Some activities take a little more time and effort, but she is doing very, very well. Frank has chosen to homeschool once again, and I'm enjoying having him here while I work from home. Homeschooling suits him very well, as he's a conscientious worker and then enjoys having time left to play sports and take some after-school classes in art and music. He had a very successful baseball pitching season in the spring and summer, but is really looking forward to the start of basketball season (his favorite sport). Gordon and I continue to stay busy with our work at Texas Parks and Wildlife, with church activities, and with our kids' 4-H and sports. We had a 20-year-reunion with our German friends, Uli and Birgit, this fall, and our summer vacation to the canyon country of Arizona and Utah is described below!

Finally, we need to introduce you to the newest member of our family, "Blanco River Aggie" or just "Aggie" for short. She's a cute, cute golden retriever whose mission seems to bring new life and enthusiasm to all of us (Arby and Amigo included)! It's great to be around someone who is always happy!

May this Christmas season bring much happiness to you. We keep you close in prayer--knowing that each year may bring new challenges to each us, and yet knowing that Christmas itself brought to us the hope and strength that can carry us through. Though I said I was finished with Abby's blog on October 3, I added one more post this month, featuring lyrics from some songs that seem to tell our story. We pray that, if you face hard times this year, you may also find the strength and hope that these songs reveal and that you will let us walk together with you as friends.

Love,
-the Linams

Canyon Country Trip - August 24 & 25

2007-09-17T13:40:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up and ate breakfast at the hotel. Then we went to hike up the Organ Mountains. When we got there we saw hummingbirds, signed in, and went to go hiking. We got there and went hiking on the trail. The trail took us up to the mountains but not up them. We turned around and went on a different trail back to the car. When we got to the car we drove and and ate lunch at Burger Time. Once we were done with lunch we went back to the hotel and swam in the pool. Then we went shopping and went to the Rio Grande. After we were done shopping we went to a cool playground, and swung. Then we went back to the hotel and went to bed. The next day we drove home--most of the way across Texas...

good bye!

Canyon Country Trip - August 23

2007-09-13T12:31:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:
We got up at Aunt Linda's Dad's house in Phoenix and went for a hike at South Mountain Park. We got there at 9:00 and it was 95 degrees! We went on a hike, saw cool quail, and lots of small lizards. My Mom and I climbed up some rocks to look for lizards. We were climbing and I saw the tail of a Chuckwalla! We didn't see a Horned Lizard but we did see lots of other lizards. Then we drove through Saguaro National park and saw lots of cool saguaro cacti. Then when we finally got to the Desert Museum, we went on lots of hikes, and saw awesome animals. We saw birds, reptiles (including a Gila Monster in the zoo and a Regal Horned Lizard in the wild!), foxes, pumas, coyotes, wolves, and lots more. Once it closed we drove to Las Cruces and spent the night there.

Canyon Country Trip - August 22

2007-09-12T10:22:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

Abby, me, Kayla, and Aunt Linda with their new calf, Star

We got up and met Michael, whose house we had been staying at. He was nice, but he had strep throat. Then we started on our trip to Phoenix. We drove past Vermillion Cliffs and some rocks called Balancing Rocks. On our way we stopped on a bridge to look for California Condors. We looked for a couple minutes then my Mom said, "I got excited because for a second I thought that was a Condor, but it's only a vulture". I looked at it and it spread its wings out. "That's a big vulture!" I said to myself. Then it turned to us and it had white triangles on its wings; it was a Condor! It went inside a little cave; then it flew away from us. After a little while we saw it coming toward us. Then it landed right under us! It stayed there a while, and then it flew off the other way. Then another one came flying really high! Then they flew off in separate ways, and we left. After driving for a while we stopped at a Navajo roadside market, and I got a cool necklace.

It was my favorite day. =)

Canyon Country Trip - August 21

2007-09-11T09:04:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

When we got up we went to Cedar Breaks National Monument. It was cool, there were cedar and pine trees, and then it all of a sudden was desert. In the desert there were tall slender rock formations called Hoo-Doos. We did the junior ranger program and got our badges. We drove around to some cool overlooks of the desert. Then we hiked some trails. One of the trails was hard because it was long, it went up and down, and it was at a high altitude. On the way back to the house we stopped at a rock shop and bought some cool sandstone carvings.

Canyon Country Trip - August 20

2007-09-10T11:48:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

On Monday we went to the Grand Canyon. On the way there we stopped at a couple of cool overlooks of the north rim of the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon is so big and so massive that it's hard to believe it's real! We did some hiking along the Grand Canyon but not in it. We stopped and ate sandwiches and chips. Then we went on some more cool hikes and Abby and I got the junior ranger badges. My favorite hike went to a cool overhang with a window in it. When we left the Grand Canyon we drove back at night to Aunt Linda's old house.

Canyon Country Trip - August 19

2007-09-06T08:12:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up (from our campsite) and went to church. After church was over my Dad, my two uncles, and I went to the raft trip building and waited. Then the bus got there and we went on a bus ride through a cool tunnel, to the inside of the dam. When we got there we got on the rafts and started down the Colorado River. We went on turns through Glen Canyon and stopped on a little beach where some people got out and swam in 47 degree F water! At the stop we also went on a hike up a little slope to the side of the canyon where they had some cool petroglyphs. Once we finished the raft trip we took a bus back to town. Then we drove back to the house.

Abby's Journal:

On Sunday I rode Lillie--a draft horse--it was really fun. She was a gentle giant! She was a Shire. She was 17.2 hands tall. (Now you know why I call her a giant).

Canyon Country Trip - August 18

2007-09-05T10:38:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

We got up and went to Paria where they were filming a movie about two kids in the desert. Then we went to Lake Powell where we set up our tent at a place called Lone Rock.

Once we got it set up we went to tour the Glen Canyon Dam, which is the most massive and one of the tallest dams in the US. The tour was cool; it went through and on the dam. After the tour was over we went to town to buy some supplies. While we were shopping the wind started blowing really hard, and we began to worry about our tent.

We hurried back to the lake and found our tent blown over but saved by our neighbors! When we got the tent set back up we went swimming. When we got out we ate supper and tried to go to bed, but some other people kept their light on and it was hot.

Canyon Country Trip - August 17

2007-09-04T09:11:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

When we got up Abby and Mom went to ride horses, and Dad and I went to to climb F hill. When we got to the top, we stood by the F (which stands for Fredonia). After we climbed down, we went to Pipe Springs, where we learned how Pioneers and Indians lived. At Pipe Springs my favorite part was the big garden. They had lots of cool garden plants there. =)

Canyon Country Trip - August 16

2007-08-29T11:25:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal

We got up in the mourning and went to Zion National Park. We went through two cool tunnels to get to Zion. When we first got to Zion the altitude and my allergies made my nose bleed for 15 minutes and made my stomach feel bad. Then we hiked up a couple of trails and then we ate ice cream. After we ate the ice cream we hiked some more and saw cool waterfalls. Then it began to thunder really loud. Whenever it stopped thundering we went down a long trail to where the two mountains on both sides of the Virgin River came together separated by the Virgin River.

Canyon Country Trip - August 15

2007-08-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal:

We spent last night at Red Rocks State Park. We started out our day with a walk towards Church Rock.

Church Rock is a steep rock that looks like a church's steeple. When we got back we found out that prairie dogs had eaten our cookies!@#$

After we were done with our hike we went to Arizona to the Petrified Forest. The Petrified Forest was cool; they had lots of petrified logs and badlands.

A petrified log that was there weighed 43 tons--wow! Once we left the Petrified Forest we went to Aunt Linda's old house and spent the night there.

Canyon Country Trip - August 13-14

2007-08-27T11:13:00.000-05:00

Frank's Journal

We spent the night at Muleshoe, TX (a nice but stinky town). (Here we are with the mule.)

Once we got to New Mexico we went to Petroglyph National Monument.

We hiked up a mountain and saw lots of cool petroglyphs.

In both days we have traveled through lots of terrain; we've traveled through plains, mountains, volcanic rock, badlands and layered mountains. We also saw Sky City, an Indian city on a mesa.

Mississippi Memories

2007-08-27T10:16:00.000-05:00

Recollections of Decatur

I remember...

Climbing mimosa trees
and playing "Lost in Space,

Hot mornings in the pea patch
and sipping Coca Cola with Grandma,

Exploring all the "junk draws" for treasures
and sliding down the wooden hallway with the attic fan on,

Hiking across the pastures
and jumping from hay bales,

Walking down the red dirt road
and exploring the feed crib and old barn and block house,

Collecting eggs
and shelling peas,

Playing hide and seek
and "Ain't No Ghosts Out Tonight..."

Swimming at the club pool
and working up our courage to go off the high dive,

Waking up to the sound of birds through the open window
and the smell of biscuits in the kitchen,

Riding Goldie
and fishing for catfish with a cane pole,

Sleeping on feather beds at the old farmhouse
and pumping water from the old hand pump,

Cows at the farm
and the time my dad put me on one!

Cookies at Aunt Dorothy's
and milking cows at Uncle Sam's,

Big family dinners with sweet, sweet tea
and Aunt Bobbie's caramel pie,

Grandma chasing us with her false teeth
and watching "The Price is Right,"

Colored lights spinning on the aluminum Christmas tree,
and sleeping on the wooden floors with cousins,

Family
and love.

Dedicated to Grandma, Aunt Mavis, and all the ones we've loved and lost...

Feb. 16, 2006 - South Padre Island, Texas

2006-03-17T22:36:00.000-06:00

Sunrise and Venus over the Gulf of Mexico
Water...light...a new day...

Feb. 8-10, 2006 - Zacatecas City, Zacatecas, Mexico

2006-03-17T22:03:00.000-06:00

These are photos from Zacatecas City in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico, where I recently attended a North American Crane Conference. It was a wonderful meeting, with the chance to interact with biologists from Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Cuba, and even Germany.

And Zacatecas is a wonderful city! It’s located in the Mexico Highlands, with a wonderful mild climate for much of the year. It’s a very friendly, clean, and safe city, with many famous museums and lovely parks. But, the history is what is really amazing...

Zacatecas was settled in the 16th century, and around every corner of the winding Spanish colonial brick streets there is treasure—an old church, a stone wall inlaid with local minerals, a stately government building, even a silver mine dating from the 1500s. Our conference was held in the Rafael Coronel Museum, which is housed in a convent built in 1593!! 1593!! It makes the Texas history that Abby is studying seem like current events.

Anyway, here are some photos of a very lovely city—one that I’d love to revisit with the entire family one day…

Rafael Coronel Museum, Zacatecas--not your usual boring conference site!

2006-03-17T21:43:00.000-06:00

Entering the convent/conference site...

The meeting room--presenters had to compete with a ghoulish, yet riveting painting at the end of the room...

Lunches were held on the convent grounds--many enticements to wander away from the meeting...

One lunch break included a tour of the museum, which holds the largest collection of masks in the world, from pre-Columbian to modern...

Feb. 8-10, 2006 - Zacatecas at night

2006-03-17T21:26:00.000-06:00

This city never sleeps!

I can understand why--because it's so beautiful at night...

One night we added to the night life by forming a "callejonada," sort of a progressive street dance that wanders around the city led by a burro loaded with mescal. Just the music and fun is intoxicating!

Feb. 9, 2006 - Somewhere in the Sierra Madres, Zacatecas, Mex.

2006-03-17T20:47:00.000-06:00

North American Crane Conference field trip...

The conference organizers had a great idea--break up the monotony of scientific presentations by inserting field trips to actually view wildlife on the middle day of the conference. The choices were tough to choose among--visit a distant wetland in the late afternoon to view waterbirds and cranes arriving at dusk; visit nearby wetlands, along with the famous artwork of the Virgen de Guadalupe Museum; visit a historic mine which is now the site of a wildlife sanctuary and zoo; or hike in some of the highlands with a chance to glimpse breeding golden eagles. I chose the highlands, with a hope of seeing both eagles and and a more remote hope of seeing horned lizards in the late winter.

The location was not too distant from Zacatecas, and we made great time while traveling on some of the newer highways. One could almost feel confident about negotiating a tour of Mexico on your own using those roads; however, when we dropped off the main highway to wander our way through a town perched along the edges of a canyon and then found ourselves traveling a dusty gravel road through the yucca and grasses of the Central Highlands, I sobered up a bit on the thought of leading the family on a road trip off the beaten path (especially with my toddler-level Spanish!)

The starting point for our hike was just outside a small settlement of cinderblock and adobe houses. There were "gardens" of prickly pear planted near the homes, and animals were everywhere--small horses (ponies, really), goats, chickens, thin dogs, burros. The homes and people were quite different from the quite affluent and relatively modern population of Zacatecas, though the residents were welcoming and even tolerated my broken attempts at conversation.

Our hike began over some gravelly slopes that were obviously heavily used by the local livestock, but as we climbed higher, more native plants and grasses appeared. Our guides, who included some university students, state wildlife officials, and another fellow who seemed to be a local resident hired to study the eagles, pointed out several distant crevices where golden eagle nests had been found, and then we spotted an eagle soaring high over the ridge of the sierra. Or at least it must have been an eagle--it was large and it was soaring in the place where the eagles were supposed to be...

However, my dreams were realized when someone shouted "here's a horned lizard!" It was a female Mexican Plateau Horned Lizard who might have been venturing out for some of her first sunshine of the year. !
She was probably willing her body temperature to rise and release her from her sluggishness as she found herself surrounded by 20 gringos with digital cameras. However, she held true to the horned lizards' reputation for a placid nature and endured quite a lot of handling and photography. The plateau on which we found her was covered with harvester ant beds. From that point I ignored eagles and kept my eyes on the ground, hoping to spot another, but a single spiny lizard was the only other reptile we saw. Never mind--that one camaleon coronado convinced me that I had chosen the right field trip

Feb. 9, 2006 - More lovely scenes in the Sierra Madres, Zacatecas, Mex.

2006-03-17T20:24:00.000-06:00

December 1, 2005 - Home again

2006-01-05T21:52:00.000-06:00

It's a sad and glad day. We left beautiful Australia, but we are glad to be home. We watched movies all the way home (for 15 hours!) (I watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory three times on the plane!). Now we feel like these Australian Sea Lions...

November 30, 2005 - Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-05T20:15:00.000-06:00

I can’t believe this is our last day! We spent the night at Edward’s and then drove into Melbourne to do some last-minute shopping. Frank bought a stuffed platypus that he had wanted for the whole trip.

Then we drove through a lot of Melbourne traffic out to my Mom’s favorite park near Melbourne (Sherbrooke Forest Park). We stopped at a picnic ground to eat the last of our snacks and saw a ton of birds gathered around a picnic table. There was a lady and two kids there with some bird seed. They were surrounded by sulfur-crested cockatoos, galahs, king parrots, and crimson rosellas! We sat nearby and the birds started coming around us too.
One even sat on my Dad’s shoulder and stole his cracker from his hand. One time I had a bird on each hand and one on my head! It was so cool! Those parrots were nicer than Paquita, my parrot at home!

Then we went walking through the forest. Mom says these Mountain Ash are her favorites. Frank and I climbed up some big knots at the bottom of one.

Then we drove back into Melbourne and visited the college where Mom went to school (Monash University). We walked past her dorm and picked some Eucalyptus leaves to take home.

On our way back to Edward’s (in bad Melbourne traffic again) we stopped and got gelati again at Trampoline. It was soooo good. Edward cooked us some steaks and sausage outside on the grill. Australians really like to barbecue (it was good!). Frank and I played a little more wall-ball at the school and then we all started packing for our trip home. I can’t believe we’re going home tomorrow. I’m sad about leaving, but I can’t wait to see Arby…

November 29, 2005 - northeast Victoria to Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-05T19:43:00.000-06:00

The place where we are camping is an old gold mining site. The man at the restaurant told us to watch out for mine shafts! We decided to pan for gold in the stream. We found gold, but it was too tiny to get it out of the sand.

After that we went to see the lady with the kangaroos (Glenda). She is a wildlife rehabilitator and lives way back in the forest. She had seven little joeys at the time, and we got to go on a walk with them! It was so much fun! She was training them to live like wild kangaroos, so we had to follow kangaroo trails and run on our tippy-toes. Whenever we would stop running we would turn around and see seven little cute joeys hopping after us! She also had kookaburras, magpies, possum, parrots, and a Galah (which we got to pet).

We also took a wombat named Wanda on a walk. It was so funny! Wanda would run through the tunnel that our legs made when we would sit down and would nuzzle on our backs. It was lots of fun. Frank wanted to take a wombat home for a pet.

We had milkshakes in Yackandandah for lunch. They were good. Then we went to Beechworth, an old gold-mining town. It was also the place where Ned Kelly was in jail. I bought a Drover Hat to wear in horse shows. Then we drove to Melbourne and had a late night dessert with Clive and Kate.

November 28, 2005 - the Snowy Mountains, Australia

2006-01-05T17:22:00.000-06:00

This morning we went into the Snowy Mountains. Even though it was early summer it was snowing! We went on a boardwalk and saw snow gums. We were high up, but it was so cloudy that we could not see Mt. Kosciusko, the highest peak in Australia.

After that we stopped on the side of the road to hike up to a snow patch. It wasn’t that bad going up until I slipped and got muddy. I didn’t really play in the snow because I was very cold. While walking down the hill we all got soaked.

Once we got dry we drove through the mountains and through Dead Horse Pass where you can see brumbies (wild horses). Then we went to Cooryong (the home of the Man from Snowy River). We went to the Man from Snowy River museum. It was soooo cool. It had tons of old timey stuff, including a baby carriage carriage on skiis and the saddle from Jack Riley, the real man from Snowy River. They had several old buildings. One of the buildings was a school. It was very cool.

Then we drove to Yackandandah. We had supper at a take-away restaurant, and the nice owner told us about a good place to camp and an interesting lady with kangaroos that we should go see tomorrow. I can’t wait, but I hope it doesn’t rain again on our last night camping...

November 27, 2005 - Sydney to the Snowy Mountains

2006-01-05T16:37:00.000-06:00

This is a Waratah, the state flower of New South Wales.

It was raining again this morning, so we rolled up our tents and went to Hillsong, the famous Australian church. They had a very good band. It was like going to a Christian rock concert. After church we went to a very good Chinese restaurant. Frank and I shared lemon chicken, but across the room they were fixing a huge banquet for a family birthday party. That looked really good!

Then we drove to Canberra, the Aussie capital. We went to the Australia National Museum where we got to create our own virtual house! Mine ws lime green with blue splotches. It was lots of fun! Then we went to the capital building. It had a pointy thing on top! It was very cool.

We stopped for the night in a town at the edge of the mountains. We stayed in a tiny cabin at a ski-lodge. When we got the there got in the hot-tub. It felt so good! Today we had lots of fun.

November 26, 2005 - Blue Mountains to Sydney

2006-01-05T09:27:00.000-06:00

When we woke up today the rain was back...My Mom and I dashed from the tent to the car, since our tent was starting to drip. When my Dad and Frank woke up they ran from their tent to the car, and we drove down the road to a house where they served "Big Country Breakfasts." The eggs, bacon, and toast were great, and the hot tea and fire in the fireplace felt so good. The owners were nice, too (the lady told us stories about wombats), and didn't seem to mind that we were wet and maybe a little smelly...

Finally the rain stopped a little, and we rolled up our wet tents and drove to some lookout points. By the time we got there it was sunny and hot! My favorite one was the Tree Sisters (three rock pillars sticking out of the ground). They were very cool.

Then we drove to Sydney where we pitched our tent at a caravan park. At the park they had a pool and a spa! Frank and I would slike out of the spa and into the pool. I felt like a penguin sliding on my stomach into icy water!!

We then went to downtown Sydney. The traffic was horrible! Finally we got to Sydney Harbor and saw the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House. The were both SO cool!

We ate dinner at a McDonalds, sitting out by the harbor. The bridge was very cool at night. We had to hurry back to our car, however, because it started to rain again. It was quite a day!

November 25, 2005 - Dubbo to the Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia

2006-01-04T21:45:00.000-06:00

This morning we rescued an Eastern Rosella! We found her sitting on the road and picked her up. I got to hold her most of the time while we tried to find a rescue shelter. She liked me but nobody else! Once she escaped from my hands, ran under Frank's legs (while he was screaming), went around Dad's seat, and then bit Dad when he picked her up! We decided to see if she could fly afterall. She couldn't so we had to keep looking for a shelter for her. Finally we found a ranch shop and asked them if they knew how to reach an animal rehabilitator. They did, so we gave "Rosie" to them.

We then drove for a while before we got to the Blue Mountains National Park. We went to see a very cool overlook. You could see clouds rising up over the mountains! My Dad said it was his favorite place of the whole trip. That's where we had our lunch.

After lunch we went on a four-hour hike. The hike was called the Grand Canyon and went all throughout the rainforested valley. We saw very neat flowers and plants. We did the 4-hour hike in 2 hours, 15 minutes!

We decided to camp right outside of the N.P. While Frank and I were looking for some dry wood (it had been raining in the area all week) our camping "neighbor" brought us over a ton of dry firewood! He gave me and Frank a Coke and gave us some unopened cans of soup that he had found! He even let us use his hatchet. He just kept dropping in to talk. We gave him some cherries and tea. He was a very friendly neighbor!

November 24, 2005 - the Outback, New South Wales, Australia

2006-01-04T21:32:00.000-06:00

Today we did ALOT of driving again. There weren't many towns, but we did drive through a town that had a lot of Aborigine people in it.

We were going to go see some rock paintings, but it flooded too much and we almost got washed off the road! We are not going to tell the rental-car people about that.

Today is Thanksgiving, so we ate at a Red Rooster when we finally got to a bigger town called Dubbo. We had roasted chicken with stuffing, potatoes, green peas, and Australian tarts for dessert! It was very good. It looks like there will be a lot of rain tonight, so we are staying in a cabin in a caravan park.

November 23, 2005 - the Outback, Australia

2006-01-04T21:19:00.000-06:00

Today we left the Flinders Ranges. On the way out we saw an Australian bustard, a tall grassland bird.

We drove into the Outback and stopped to look around for Thorny Devils, but we did not see any. The scenery was tallish shrub/trees with a red sand base. Dad liked jumping around and saying "Crikey," like he was the Crocodile Hunter.

After driving for another LONG time we got to a caravan park in Broken Hill, New South Wales. We were all very surprised that they had a heated pool! Now that is luxurious! Frank and I went swimming in it two times. Then I slept very good...

November 22, 2005 - Flinders Ranges, South Australia

2006-01-03T15:07:00.000-06:00

Today we went on a LONG hike. We hiked all the way up a mountain! It was tiring but a lot of fun. From the top you could see down into a circular valley called Wilpena Pound. We saw a lot of lizards on the way up.

When we got back we went for a COLD swim in the pool. It was very refreshing.

We then packed up camp. Because we weren't going very far we did not pack up as well as we usually did, and, instead of rolling up the sleeping bags, Frank and I sat on top of them all! It was very cushiony. On the way we stopped to look at some lizards, including a Blue-tongued Skink and a Gould's Goanna.

At the new campsite there were a ton of flies, so we had to do everything with our fly masks on. Frank and I found some flint and tried to make arrowheads.

Later we went on a hike looking for Yellow-footed Rock Wallabies. As it was getting dark we saw a ton of them climbing down among the rocks. They were everywhere! It was very cool.

November 21, 2005 - from Adelaide to the Flinders Ranges

2006-01-03T12:13:00.000-06:00

This morning we left Adelaide, but first we stopped at an opal and Aborigine art shop. We saw a model of an opal mine and learned how the Aborigine drawings were actually their method of writing.

Then we drove A LOT (from Adelaide to the Flinder’s Ranges).
Near our campsite we saw wild Red Kangaroos. They were so big and could jump really far! We also saw Euros (Wallaroos) and Western Grey Kangaroos.

Around the campsite we saw a lot of different types of birds, such as Corellas, Galahs, and Ring-necked Parrots. This is a galah.

We took a short hike, but it was getting late. It is very dry here, but there are big river red gums along the creeks. Frank and I are inside a hollow part of the red gum.

November 20, 2005 - Adelaide, South Australia

2006-01-02T12:01:00.000-06:00

Today we went to Cleland Wildlife Park. We got to pet Red Kangaroos, Eastern and Western Grey Kangaroos, and Koalas. They were all so cute!

While walking around we saw a Potoroo. We had some animal food so my brother tried to give it some food. Instead of biting the food he bit my brother’s finger!

We also got to see them feed Dingoes and Tasmanian Devils. The Tasmanian Devil was getting very impatient for his food. His ears started turning red and he made a little barking sound.

Later we went to downtown Adelaide. We went for a walkabout in the botanical gardens. While Frank and I were climbing a tree a kookaburra flew in and laughed at us. It was very funny!

November 19, 2005 - Kangaroo Island, South Australia

2006-01-02T11:24:00.000-06:00

This morning we had to say good-bye to Wally and Beaver. We will miss them

We then went to see Australian Sea Lions. They were very tired because they spend three days at sea and then three days resting on land. One big male came in from the water, took three steps, and then flopped on the ground.

Then we went on a hike again looking for Glossy Black Cockatoos. We still did not see any, but Frank picked up a lot of sheoak seeds that looked like baby echidnas. We then went on the ferry back to the mainland. After that we camped in Adelaide in a caravan park beside some really pretty purple trees.

Good-bye Kangaroo Island!
P.S. I am writing everything in a Ford Falcon car. It's funky. You have to roll up the windows and lock the doors by hand.

November 18, 2005 - Kangaroo Island, South Australia

2006-01-01T22:53:00.000-06:00

This morning when we woke up we saw two kangaroos outside our tent. They were really tame because Kangaroo Island doesn’t have any predators on it. We named them Wally and Beaver. I even got to touch them—they were very soft.

Later that morning we took a drive to Admiral’s Arch.
When we got there we saw New Zealand Fur Seals. They played a lot—like they didn’t have a care in the world.

After that we picnicked at Remarkable Rocks. They were remarkable! Frank and I climbed all over them.

After that we drove a LONG way, hoping to see a rare type of black cockatoo, but all we saw was a Heath Goanna and a lighthouse at the end of a long road.

We were joined by a kangaroo we named “Joey” for dinner.

That evening we went on a walk to look for duck-billed platypi at some ponds. We did not see any, but we saw roos, Tammar wallabies, and a talkative koala. He made a noise like a howler monkey: “hoo-ooh-hoo…” It was a fun day!

November 17, 2005 - Coastal South Australia

2006-01-01T22:33:00.000-06:00

We got up and left the mosquito and fly campsite in a hurry. On the way out we stopped and looked at a mallee-fowl nest. It was a big volcano-like dirt pile. We also saw a shingle-backed skink, a lizard with big scales whose tail looks like its head.

We drove to Cape Jervis, South Australia, to catch the ferry to Kangaroo Island. While we were waiting there we saw a bearded dragon, honey-eaters, and tons of galahs. On the ferry we got a good view of the ocean.

Once we got to Kangaroo Island we had a picnic and waited for the sun to set at the Little Penguin colony. As it started to get dark the baby penguins were all coming off their burrow, waiting impatiently on the parents to return. Finally we started seeing the parent penguins come in from the ocean. It was very funny when the penguins got to the beach because the baby penguins would run out to them to beg for food.

After that we still had to drive a long way across the island to our campsite. Before we got there we saw a short-beaked echidna. It was so cute and spikey! Once we got to our campsite it was dark. While setting up our tents a brush-tailed possum came up to us. It was a cool day!

Still working on our trip blog!

2006-01-01T22:19:00.000-06:00

Hi--thanks for checking in! This posting is taking longer than I thought (if only Santa had brought me DSL!!). We've got the first ten days or so of the trip posted, so feel free to take a look. Keep checking back--I'm getting a little more efficient at navigating Blogspot, so I'm hoping that we can get everything posted by next weekend (January 6)...

November 16, 2005 - Ocean Road, Victoria & South Australia

2006-01-01T22:01:00.000-06:00

When we got up, there were red-necked wallabies near our picnic table. The baby was almost as big as his mother, but he still tried to crawl in her pouch!

After breakfast we took a hike to a place called Whaler's Lookout, a high point where the watchmen would look for migrating whales and signal the coastal towns whenever they saw any by building a fire.

Today we mostly drove in the morning. During midday we went on a hike looking for echidnas, but only found black flies (and a pretty Superb Blue Wren)!

Later we went to Blue Lake, a crater lake in Mt. Gambier, South Australia. We stopped at a nice beach to pick up more seashells.

That night we camped at Coorong National Park. We saw emus, kangaroos, and galahs along the way, but there were TONS of mosquitoes!

November 15, 2005 - Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia

2006-01-01T21:38:00.000-06:00

Today I woke up and looked out the window and saw two Australian wood ducks and 10 ducklings. While Mom and Dad were packing Frank and I jumped on a HUGE bouncy thing. It was like walking on the moon!

After driving for a while we stopped and did a rainforest walk. It was a temperate rainforest with lots of fern trees, so I guess that’s why it was damp and cold.

While driving we saw some people stopped by the side of the road, so we stopped. There were about a dozen koalas in the trees! They were so cute! One even had a baby!

Later we stopped at the beach. There were tall cliffs there and some rock formations called the Twelve Apostles. There was kelp all over the beach.
We also stopped at the place where the Loch Ard shipwrecked.

As we were driving to our campsite we drove through a wildlife refuge that is in an old volcano crater. We saw emus, koalas, and kangaroos. It was very cool.

We reached our campsite about dark. As we were setting up camp we could hear gliders screeching at us from the trees, but we couldn’t find any before we went to bed. A tiring day!

November 14, 2005 - Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia

2006-01-01T21:25:00.000-06:00

This morning we left Melbourne for our camping trip. We went west along the Great Ocean road and stopped to look for seashells while the tide was low. In the rock pools we saw sea anemones, pink starfish, blennies, pink coral, and lots of snails.

We also stopped at an Aboriginal arts centre. We listen to a guy play the didgeridoo (cool sound!) and walked along a trail, where we got the chance to throw boomerangs (mine never came back to me).

While driving we saw a lot of sulfur-crested cockatoos, but it started to rain. When we finally got to a campground it was really rainy, so we were all really happy to find out that they had cabins there!

November 13, 2005 - Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-01T21:12:00.000-06:00

Today we mainly washed and packed for our camping trip. We also went to stay at Edward’s house and had a Brazilian barbecue that Ed cooked.
There was sausage, beef, chicken, and lamb. Frank and I went to the school next door and played wall-ball.

November 12, 2005 - Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-01T20:50:00.000-06:00

Today we went to the park near Kate’s house. At the park we saw a cricket match. The bowler (pitcher) would run a long way and then throw the ball. It was very interesting.

Late in the afternoon we went for a barbecue in a park. It is not at all like Texas BBQ. First, you cook in a pot over a fire, not a grill. Second, you cook prawns (shrimp), fish, and KANGAROO! On the was out we saw a sulfur-crested cockatoo, a kookaburra, and kangaroos and heard a koala growling!

When it was dark we went to a nearby ranch to catch wombats. It was fun!!! Clive was the one spotlighting. One time when he saw a wombat on the road in front of us he ran and jumped on it! But the wombat got away.
We went walking all through the pastures (it was very misty and wet again) and finally Dad caught one with a huge net. By that time all of our shoes were like walking in water.
It was a lot of fun!!

November 11, 2005 - Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-01T20:24:00.000-06:00

It was another wet and cold day, so today we went to the Melbourne Museum. It had a lot of cool things in it. One of the things it had in it was a great exhibit about Phar Lap, the great Australian race horse. It also had a big section about Aborigines and a neat outdoor exhibit about how Aborigines understood the natural environment, but it was cold and wet out there!

After the museum we walked into downtown and shopped. We bought something for almost all our relatives.

After that the sun was finally out, so we went to the botanic gardens. There were so many good climbing trees!

We rode one of Melbourne's famous trams to back to Kate's house. On the first ride we did not have enough change so my dad jumped the tram!

Kate has a really cute cat. His name is Felix. He loves to play rough. I have scratches from him all over my arm.

November 10, 2005 - Melbourne, Australia

2006-01-01T20:05:00.000-06:00

Today started out (and ended) wonderfully. We went for a walk in a park (near Kate's home where we are staying in Melbourne). We saw a brush-tailed possum, Willy wagtails, magpies, rainbow lorikeets, and a barking owl. Soon it started to look like it was going to rain. We decided to make our hike a little shorter. Then it started to rain.
Soon we were in town and we stopped at a bank to exchange our American money, but they said we needed to have an account to exchange for Australian money (Mom's note: If we had an account, then we'd already have Australian money!!). So we walked some more in the rain, because we didn't have any money to take a taxi or a bus (or to buy anything to eat!). Finally, about an hour and one-half later we finally found a bank and got some lunch (including some real Aussie meat pies!). We were all so happy to finally get back to Kate's house.

We had dinner with Kate and Clive and then went out to feed some brush-tailed possums. We also saw some grey-headed flying foxes (fruit bats) and had some gelati on the way home!

November 9, 2005 - Fiji

2006-01-01T15:06:00.000-06:00

Today my mom and I got up early to go horseback riding. Mom rode a smart little mare and I roade a stubborn stallion. I could not make him go faster than a trot. Mom's horse would do anything Mom wanted her to do. When we got back Mom let me ride her horse and the stallion's owner rode him. We loped all over the beach. It was fun!
Afterwards we went snorkeling. We saw pretty fish, blue starfish, and spiky sea anemones.

When it was time to go to the airport an Indian man offered to drive us. On the way we went shopping and climbed sand dunes. It was a lot of fun!

November 8, 2005 - Fiji

2006-01-01T14:37:00.000-06:00

Today we're still in Fiji. We went on a jungle trek to a waterfall with Jiuta (the coconut man!).

It was awesome!
Here are some things he told us we could make with bamboo: 1. You can make sides of a Fijian house by weaving it; 2. You can use it to bring water to your crops; 3. You can use it as a water bottle; 4. You can use it as a tube to cook food; 5. You can make goal posts for a rugby field; 6. You can use it for rafts; 7. You can use it for part of a spear. We also saw a big marine toad on the jungle trek.

After the trek we went into Jiuta's village and had some kava. When you go into a village you have to take off your hat. The whole village is one family. If you go into the village you have to give the chief something.

During low tide we walked around in the ocean looking for shells. While we were out there we found many pretty shells. We also saw a blacktip shark! Every day at 4:00 p.m. we have tea and scones. They are really good.

There are a lot of geckos. They make the weirdest chirping sound. I have not caught one yet...

November 7, 2005 - Fiji

2005-12-19T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today (which is also two days ago) we left home on our trip to Fiji and Australia. The flight took a long time, but we did get to ride on one plane with George Jefferson (Sherman Hensley) and watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on the plane from LA to Fiji. After we got to Fiji early in the morning we rode on a bus to the place we are staying (on the Coral Coast of Viti Levu).

We did a lot of fun stuff already. First we went snorkeling and saw parrotfish and other neat fish, then kayaking, and then just played around on the beach. There were two big bamboo swings--they were a lot of fun!

Frank really likes all the coconuts here.