Netherlands-Paris Trip - June 2007

Our friends Brett and Cristina and their daughter, Jodie, are living in the Netherlands for a few years, which provided a good excuse to visit Europe with the kids. This was Clay and Lucy's first trip out of the United States. We were able to see the cities of Amsterdam, Leiden, Wassenaar and The Hague. We really enjoyed being able to take some long bike rides on the nice flat trails that are common there. We also had a short side trip by train to Paris, where we primarily visited the typical tourist attractions.

Posted: June 17, 2007 | Permanent Link

Charleston Trip/Kazaks Family Gathering

All of Julia's side of the family (that's 15 people in all) gathered in a big house on the beach near Charleston, SC just after Christmas to celebrate, relax, eat, and talk for a few days. We were lucky to avoid rain and it was warm enough to at least putter around on the sand, if not go swimming. The various families and sibs took turns preparing dinner each night, which resulted in a lot of great food being served, with enough leftovers for breakfasts and lunches in the days following. We took a couple breaks from lounging around to explore an old coastal fort and some of downtown Charleston.

Posted: December 31, 2006 | Permanent Link

Family Life - December 2006

Perhaps December should be called performance month, with Lucy wrapping up her first ballet lessons and Clay staging a play with his classmates, at our house. The play came out OK by the estimations of the other parents, but it certainly left us ready for a margarita (or two) at the end of the day.

Posted: December 30, 2006 | Permanent Link

Christmas 2006

We had a quiet Christmas this year, with Kris visiting from New York. The big gathering was deferred until the Charleston confab.

Posted: December 20, 2006 | Permanent Link

Florida Trip - November 2006

We made a rare Thanksgiving appearance in Florida, in lieu of Christmas break visit. We had very nice weather and the kids enjoyed several nostalgia trips to locations from Julia's childhood. The horses continued to be Lucy's focus, while Clay liked the wide array of signs and equipment that could be deployed in the farm's large driveway. We also had a great time go-karting and playing the arcade games at Livingston's in Sarasota.

Posted: November 25, 2006 | Permanent Link

Iceland Trip - November 2006

Judd found an excuse for a 3 day visit to Iceland: A one-time reunion concert of 1980's era Icelandic rock group The Sugarcubes. Besides attending the concert, which was blast, Judd had time for a day tour of the "Golden Circle" of natural wonders that lie a short drive from Reykjavik, including the Gullfoss waterfall, the Strokkur geyser, and the Pingvellir national park. On the way to the airport, he also took a dip in the Blue Lagoon hot springs, while it was snowing outside.

Posted: November 17, 2006 | Permanent Link