Wright Challenge '09
From left: Caleb, Cody, Steve and Geoff, all from Summit City

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb prepares to fence Terry Amrine in foil.

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb prepares to fence Terry Amrine in foil.

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb, left, fences Terry Amrine in foil.

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb, left, fences Terry Amrine in foil.

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb, left, fences Terry Amrine in foil.

Wright Challenge '09
From left: Cody, Caleb and Geoff, all from Summit City

Wright Challenge '09
From left: Cody, Caleb and Geoff, all from Summit City

Wright Challenge '09
From left: Geoff, Caleb and Cody, all from Summit City

Wright Challenge '09
Caleb in his gear for saber.

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
The Spring Fling tournament in Fort Wayne.

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
Caleb helps Geoff and Cody with equipment.

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
Caleb, center of photo, fences Chloe in foil.

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
Caleb, right, fences in foil.

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
General hubbub

Spring Fling '09 in Fort Wayne
From left: Joe, Caleb, Geoff and Brian. Caleb won second place in foil.

Our 2000 Chevy Venture
Here's our "new" van.

Top Ten cool features of our van


10. On-board compressor
For leveling the back end when full of stuff, and for filling tires.

9. Information center
For direction and temperature, plus MPG and miles-until-you-run-out-of-gas gauge.

8. Metric conversion
So we'll know how cold it is if we visit Canada.

7. Remote lock, unlock
A cool feature, of course.

6. Remote side-door open
Complete with "doo-dee-doo-dee-doo-dee" sounds.

5. More storage
Ah! Look at all of that space in the back!

4. Foldable seats
And every seat moves, folds and can be removed separately.

3. CD player
Yeah, I'm pathetic, putting this at NO. 3, but I like it.

2. Loud American-style horn
No little "toot toot!" here. This loud horn has already saved me from one near-collision.

1. Roof rack
Finally! No more Christmas tress stuffed inside the van!

Hannah
Hannah looks quite grown up in this outfit.

She came, she saw ...
she dressed up in a fake toga.

Happy Mother's Day!
Hannah made Mary a Colts tes set out of salt dough.

Happy Mother's Day!
As Mary holds a "flower pot" that Sarita made, Hannah presents a "cake" that she decorated.

Roses
These are the roses I bought for Mary for Mother's Day.

At the library
Hannah looks out over the Great Hall at the new downtown library.

Dad and Mary
Mary shows Dad the chives she's growing in our side yard.

Our yard
Iris.

Rhubarb pie
Mary makes rhubarb pie for Dad -- while wearing her Colts apron, naturally.

Caleb fencing
Caleb dressed in his fencing gear we bought earlier this year.

Caleb fencing
En garde! Caleb (in light pants) faces his adversary.

Caleb fencing
Caleb, in the light pants, faces his adversary during his fencing lesson.

Moss roses
Otherwise known as Portulaca grandiflora. They're growing on our porch.

Foster Park walk
Sarita stands beside the St. Marys River during our walk along the Rivergreenway.

Foster Park walk
The kids and Dad walk across a bridge that spans the St. Marys River.

Foster Park walk
Hi everybody! Jon takes a photo from the top of some stairs.

Plop!
Caleb throws a rock into the river. See the splash?

Foster Park walk
Walking along the St. Marys River.

Foster Park walk
That's a big tree!

Foster Park walk
Sarita goofs around in the park.

Foster Park walk
We cross the bridge that connects the two parts of the park.

Foster Park walk
Caleb looks at a big, beautiful tree at Foster Park.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
One of the peacocks at the zoo was lookin' for a mate.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Canada geese and lots of catfish.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Pappap and the girls walk toward the ponies.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Sarita and Hannah get ready to ride.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
A highlight of the trip for the girls was this pony ride.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Sarita rides by on her pony.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
The animals are pretty tame at the zoo. Here's a chipmunk.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Hannah points out some varieties of butterflies at the zoo.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
And then she tells us how moths are different.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Mary considers the Komodo dragon.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
The Komodo dragon considers us back.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Hannah tries out the cot.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Sarita holds on tightly to the other cot.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Hannah peers at some more bugs.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Mary points out some of the flora and fauna.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Mice! See how small they are? They seem cuter when they're not in your own house.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
It's a large bird! It's in the Indonesian rainforest section of the zoo.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Walking through the rainforest.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Tiger! He and another tiger were pacing, pacing, pacing the entire time we watched them.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
From left, Sarita, Hannah, Caleb and Micah read some zoo literature.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Note: Hannah and Sarita are not riding a real Komodo dragon.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Here's a peahen that allowed me to get very, very close.

Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
Different peacock. Not as cocky.

Our flowers
Here are some begonias. Really.

Plants in our yard
From left, varigated hostas and hens and chicks.

Our flowers
Daisies in our front yard.

Edible plants
Here are our chives, with purple flowers.

Our front yard
A close up of a flowering chive.

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Climbing the hill
The girls start the walk up the sledding hill at Franke Park.

Icier than it looks
Caleb tackles the first hill. Despite the lack of snow at the top, it was plenty slick.

A look from the top
The four kids start their climb back up the hill.

Sarita, and fast
Down the hill she goes!

Micah and Caleb
On the sledding hill.

Sarita again


Back up the hill
Hannah and Sarita.

Close call
Caleb doesn't quite knock over the cameraman.

Watch out!
Jon gets in harm's way to get a great photo of Caleb.

Down the hill!


Here comes Hannah!


Woop woop whoa!
Sarita loses her balance!

Hannah and Sarita
They see the bump.

Hannah and Sarita
They hit the bump.

Hannah and Sarita
They feel the bump.

Sarita on the hill


Sunset at Franke Park


Award-winning photo!
This won us a pizza! Mary sent it to a local TV station, and they chose it as their Sunday Snapshot and aired it!

Caleb tries to hit his father
Another snowball!

Hittin' the slopes
Caleb picks up speed.

Down the trail
The kids discovered this trail among the trees and made it their mission to sled down the hill and then down the trail.

Moon over Hannah
We stayed at Franke Park for an hour and a half, until after the moon cameup.

Wipe out!
Sarita contemplates her ride down the hill, that didn't end as planned.

A view from the hill


Time to go home
Micah drags Sarita back to the van.

Leaving
And Caleb pulls Hannah.

Lake Shore Drive
A gray day in Chicago. Good for going to a museum! Lake Michigan is at right.

Soldier Field
When we see Soldier Field, we know we're near the Field Museum.

Field Museum
Entrance to the Field Museum, just a block from Lake Michigan.

Mary at the museum
Here we are at the cool-but-pricey museum gift shop, where we bought a little figurine of Bastet, the cat goddess.

Bushman
In the 1930s and '40s, this 6 ft-2 in, 550 lb. lowland gorilla brought worldwide fame to the Lincoln Park Zoo.

Micah at the museum
Micah looks over a display of tools outside the permanent Egypt exhibit.

Entering the exhibit
Micah, Mary and the family enter the permanent Egypt exhibit, built to look like a portion of a pyramid.

Inside the exhibit
These hieroglyphics were brought to our shores from Egypt.

So close to real history
Mary and the children look at the walls of an actual Egyptian tomb, protected by sheets of plexiglas.

Walk like an Egyptian
Winding our way through the Egypt exhibit at the Field Museum.

Here's (dead guy) looking at you
When the Egyptians would bury a mummy, they'd often make sure it could "look" out of the tomb between the stones.

Egyptian hieroglypics
This Egyptian sign says, "Next rest area: 26 miles."

Egyptian life
This shows an idealized scene from ancient Egypt.

We begin the ascent
The exhibit is built with two stories, so here we begin the climb to the second level.

Going down
From top, Caleb, Micah, Sarita, Hannah and Mary as they descend the exhibit's spiral staircase.

Jewels!
Hannah looks over some jewelry from ancient Egypt.

The Mummy Curse Inn
Jon discovers an even smaller hotel room than the one we stayed in.

Artisans
These figurines are skilled laborers, including bakers and brewers -- folks pharaohs need in the afterlife.

Jar-Jar Stinks
The ancient Egyptians would place organs like the liver and kidneys in these canopic jars, prepacked for the next life.

Stairway to heaven
This model has a mortician's table (with troughs for the liquid runoff) and the soul of the buried person on the top.

Bone sweet bone
Here's a mummy with an x-ray of the innards beside it.

Sarita and the Sarcophagus
Jon helps Sarita get a good look inside the (empty) sarcophagus of an ancient Egyptian. It's covered with hieroglyphics.

I see dead people
Caleb and Micah check out even more mummies. The Field Museum has an extensive collection.

An ancient boat
We check out and read about the remains of a boat that once floated on the Nile.

Lifting the bucket
Hannah and Sarita try out an ancient Egyptian method of getting water all over your shoes -- and irrigating your field.

Egyptian shaduf
The contraption is called a shaduf -- basically, a stick with a rock on the end, pivoting as a lever to help lift water.

The makings of ancient paper
The ladies look over a scene where papyrus plants would grow. (See shaduf in background.)

Broken statuary
These are pieces of broken statues, brought to the U.S. from Egypt.

Inside the Great Hall
Here are a couple of totem poles inside the Great Hall of the Field Museum.

Tired family
After lunch, we decided we had enough museuming. From left: Micah, Caleb, Hannah, Mary and Sarita.

Veterans Memorial
This monument, the John F. Kennedy War Memorial, was dedicated to veterans in 2003.

North entrance, Soldier Field
This 280-foot long memorial waterfall with green granite has eight medallions of the branches of the armed services.

We're thinking Arby's
This great old sign is in Columbia City, on our way home from Chicago.

Ready for Chicago!
Self-portraits can be tricky. Here we are in Fort Wayne, ready for our trip to the Windy City.

Jedi's Restaurant, near Chicago
"May the forks be with you."

Chicago traffic
Except we're still at least an hour south of Chicago. Oof.

The El Train
No parking spot at Midway Airport station, so we drove to the next one -- and then had to walk two blocks to buy passes.

Up on the platform
Mary and the kids stand on the platform of the Pulaski station on the Orange line, southwest of downtown Chicago.

Running down Chicago line
The train did not jump the track, but trouble was lying in wait.

Riding the Orange line
We really enjoyed having passes, so we could hop aboard a train, bus or subway whenever we wanted.

Chicago! Chicago!
There, in the distance, we see downtown Chicago. The tall black building is the Sears Tower.

Getting closer
Another name for downtown Chicago is The Loop, because of how the El trains loop around downtown in a big oval.

Looking ahead
We can see quite a distance ahead of us, right into The Loop itself. Not that we'd get there...

Waiting, waiting
We come to a stop for quite a while between stations. Another train goes south past us.

The Roosevelt station
We had to get off at this station, which was several blocks south of the Loop, because of a fire down the line!

Wondering what to do next
Take the subway or walk? We mull the possibilities on S. State St. at Roosevelt. An elevated train is behind us.

We find the fire
This building is right next to the tracks, and until the building is demolished, the track remains closed.

Closer, with rainbow
Just because it's a cool photo. Note the water tower, rather dry now.

Pacific Garden Mission
If you've ever heard "Unshackled!" (organ sting) on the radio, well, here's where the show's produced.

Cool old building
I just really liked the look of this building, which looks like an old brick structure that was recently renovated.

Seeking a "rest"
And then we discover that old building is actually the Chicago Public Library.

Library interior
And the building was built in the late '80s. Neo-classical, they call it.

OK, we look like tourists
We get on the El at the Library station, trundle around to the Quincy station, and stand gaping at ...

The Sears Tower
Wow. "Standing at 1,450 feet tall and 110 stories high, Sears Tower is the tallest building in North America..."

The Sears Tower
"... and the third largest building in the world. It was completed in 1973."

311 South Wacker Drive
We almost didn't notice this building, next door to the Sears Tower. It's 65 stories tall, the 6th tallest in Chicago.

Back to the El
So we get back on the train at the Quincy station to go around to the Lake station to get ourselves to the subway ...

Chicago Theatre
Then we get off the Lake station and find ourselves looking at the legendary Chicago Theatre.

TV news studio
And across the street was the ABC7 television studio, broadcasting live with a story about the fire.

Too ventilated for me
Maybe I don't want the corner office after all.

Lego!
We took the Red Line subway north to find the Lego store! Caleb was thrilled.

A lot more Legos
There were an impressive number of Lego structures all over the store.

More Legos
Including this one. Watch the bird.

Lego dude, again
Sarita looks less than excited about sitting next to Lego Guy.

Hannah and Mr. Lego
No, the bench was not made of Legos.

The Lego Store
Micah checks out a display of Lego sets. The store is in a building on the legendary Michigan Avenue.

Lego geegahs
Hannah looks over some little Legos. Michigan Avenue is also called the Magnificent Mile. It's where Oprah shops.

Lego stuff
Lego watches, Lego magnetic notepads and ice cube trays that make ice cubes that look like ... Legos.

Another impressive display
Sarita check out a faux Chicago street, complete with marauding dinosaur.

Augh!
Sarita escapes, barely, from the clutches of Darth Lego.

Our destination
Here we are, at Pizzario Uno, the birthplace of the ...

Oh, my.
... Chicago-style pizza! Why is it that pizzas have more than pepperoni and cheese? It all started here.

Pizza for the guys
Micah and Jon agree: It's delicioso.

Satisfied
Sarita and Hannah cannot eat very much. It's so *thick*.

Back at the hotel
We find our way back to the hotel room, and Sarita finds the hideaway bed.

Allen County Courthouse
Completed in 1902, the courthouse's blue Bedford limestone exterior is accentuated by Doric and Ionic columns.

Inside west entrance
This is the ceiling of the old west entrance. The colored columns are an imitation marble called scagliola.

Rotunda
The three floors of the courthouse open up in the rotunda, which features four murals.

Mural
Here is one of the murals that surround the rotunda. This one is titled "Joy and Peace."

Rotunda
Here, we're looking straight up from the main floor of the courthouse to the dome.

Superior Court One
This courtroom is decorated in dark green scagliola ...

Superior Court One
... and has all the original mahogany.

Superior Court Two
Gold and black scagliola. Above the judge's chair is the seal of the State of Indiana. Note the woodland mural, top.

Superior Court Two
These bas-relief panels depict important events in the history of Allen County.

Superior Court Two
This courtroom features a stained-glass ceiling.

Windows
These windows face the east side of the building.

Superior Court Three
This courtroom features pink and cream scagiola and an American eagle behind the judge's chair.

Superior Court Three
The ornate clock in the courtroom, like all the clocks in and on the courthouse, was originally run by air impulses.

The Circuit Court
The mural at the top depicts the Roman Emperor and lawgiver Justinian, left, and the Old Testament lawgiver Moses.

Rotunda
A large-scale renovation project completed in 2002 took eight years and more than $8 million.

Our courthouse
"On a par with ... the Library of Congress, the Paris Opera ... and but a handful of statehouses." Smithsonian curator

Micah and Caleb
Micah and Caleb at Hamilton Park 2006-06-13

Mary at Wheeling Park
Mary at Wheeling Park 2006-05-21

Visit in Barton, Ohio
Kathy and Dad with Caleb, Hannah, Sarita and Micah 2006-05-19

At the Wedding
Sarita and Hannah at Jeff and Jenn's wedding 2006-06-24

At the Wedding
Caleb, Micah, Hannah and Sarita at Jeff and Jenn's wedding, outside the church in Dublin, Ohio 2006-06-24

No more braces
Hannah gets her braces off 2006-05-23

At the Wedding
Sarita at Jeff and Jenn's reception at the Heritage Golf Club in Hilliard, Ohio. 2006-06-24

At the Wedding
Micah and Caleb at Jeff and Jenn's reception at the Heritage Golf Club in Hilliard, Ohio. 2006-06-24

At the Wedding
Hannah at Jeff and Jenn's reception at the Heritage Golf Club in Hilliard, Ohio. 2006-06-24

Lobster!
Sarita isn't "crabby" in a lobster costume. 2006-09-25

Reading Scarry
Unca Jeff reads Richard Scarry to Sarita, Hannah, Caleb and Micah 2006-09-02

Sea lion 1
Welcome to the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo! Ark ark!

Sea lion 2
They train the sea lions not just for entertainment. The training helps when the vet has to check on a sick animal.

Sea lion 3
This sea lion was found with fishing line around his neck, and he grew a few months with the line around his neck.

Prairie dog 1
Here's the prairie dog exhibit at the zoo.

Prairie dog 2
These little guys are cute, but hazardous to cattle. A cow can step in a hole and break its leg.

Peafowl
A beautiful albino peacock -- or peahen. (Yes, peahen is the feminine; peafowl is the generic name.)

Lake
The fountain in the lake at the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo.

Feeding 1
Caleb feeds the ducks, and geese, and assorted other animals.

Feeding 2
Sarita feeds the waterfowl.

Feeding 3
Mary feeds the ducks, too. You get a big handful of food for a quarter.

Fowl 1
Here's a mallard.

Fowl 2
And here's a goose. These guys can be nasty.

Fowl 3
The ducks have terrible table manners.

Fowl 4
Lots of waterfowl eating lots of food.

Fishes
Plus, lots of catfish eating lots of food!

Fowl 5
Ducks redux.

Fowl 6
Ducks flapping their wings.

Fowl 7
Ducks squabbling over the last morsel.

Family photo
Jon, Sarita and Hannah.

Tortoise
A giant tortoise at the zoo.

Alligator
It's not a log.

Flower
A plant of which I do not know the name.

Bird
A bird of which I do not know the name.

Shark 1
A shark!

Shark 2
A blacktip reef shark!

Jellyfish
Next time, I'll take a tripod. I didn't use a flash for this shot, so the exposure was like 1/2 second. Too shaky!

Birds 1
Boids!

Birds 2
More boids!

Bats
They didn't have many bats in the exhibit this year. The volunteer in the cage said they rarely fly into her. Rarely.

Australia 1
Here we are, traipsing through the Australia bird exhibit.

Australia 2
Here's a cattle egret. Love that toupee.

Australia 3
Kookaburra! But not sitting in the ol' gum tree, alas.

Kangaroo relaxing
A kangaroo, far, far away through my zoom lens.

Dingos 1
The family takes a look at ...

Dingos 2
... a dingo! Beautiful animal.

Dingos 3
Hi, little guy! Don't eat me.

Dingos 4
He finally got tired of people looking at him.

Log ride 1
Here we are on the Australia log ride.

Log ride 2
Kangaroos, watching the exhibit float by in these strange log-like things.

Log ride 3
Here comes the tunnel ...

Log ride 4
Oooh! Tunnel! Watch your head!

Alligator exhibit 1
Zoo workers are shielding the alligator from the water tank while it's being hosed down.

Alligator exhibit 2
He's not too happy about being kept from a delicious meal of Groundskeeper.

Penguins 1
These are South African penguins, so the temperate weather here in Fort Wayne is very much like their home town.

Penguins 2
A picture of me walking like a penguin isn't as funny as I thought it'd be.

Kangaroos 1
The kangaroo walk-through was closed (they have a new male), so this was the best photo I could take of them.

Kangaroos 2
But this kangaroo shot came out much nicer.

Monkeys
On Monkey Island, every day's a holiday.

Jon
I barely survived the attack of the giant fern.

Big cat
Here's a bobcat, pacing, pacing, pacing.

Toucan
Squawk! Here's a toucan.

Prairie dogs 3
Cute prairie dogs! No caption necessary.

Prairie dogs 4
Cute!

Prairie dogs 5
He's looking at me! Really cute!

Prairie dogs 6
Still cute!

Balloons
Jon receives some festive black balloons marking his 40th birthday on Sept. 2.

Where's Jonny?
Jon pretends to be shy.

Surprise!
Jon at his surprise birthday party at the Dupees.

Being pushed over the hill
Openin' the presents, such as the Walgreens Fresh Breath Denture Adhesive Cream and Centrum Silver. Funny.

Card tricks
Card from my own mother: "You're not over the hill... yet!"

For the myopic
Of course, the card has large print.

More elder abuse
They look like innocent greeting cards. But they're loaded with smart-alecky remarks! Hey!

"Happy" birthday
That's a vulture on the cake. Another old geezer joke.

Where's the grub?
The line for the delicious food was appropriately long.

Make a wish...
... please don't use 41 candles next year...

Story time
Later, at our house, Jeff picks up a book...

Unca Jeffy!
... and reads classic Richard Scarry to the kids.

Book from the past
Mom and Julie walk down Memory Lane, looking through the Richard Scarry book. We had a copy when we were kids.

Fun in Fort Wayne
Dad and Kathy in the dining room of the Jon Swerens residence.

Jenn and Mary
We're sisters, sisters... they talked a lot about musical instruments, such as violins and flutes.

Good night!
Uncle Jeffy reads Richard Scarry to the kids.