Ohana

I've been thinking a lot about family this week. And I'm feeling so deeply blessed by my entire family that I want to tell everyone about it. I was born of goodly parents and brought up in a home filled with love. I was taught the important things that would bring meaning, purpose, and joy to my life. Each addition to my family has brought new richness and blessings that I never even realized were missing, but couldn't imagine now living without. My latest Chipman-style addition was, in all seriousness, beyond my wildest dreams. They're everything I never knew I always wanted. How fortunate I am to have been guided by a divine Hand to where I am today.

I have so much love for my complete, eternal family. I have so much gratitude for each and every member of it. We support each other. We pray with and for each other. We share in each others' successes and trials. We will always be there to lift each other up in our times of need, and I believe that help comes from family on both sides of the veil. We are, as a wise man I know has said, 100% family.

It is with these thoughts in mind that I feel a need to take the time to "resurface" and share more of the positive experiences I've had over the past few months. These are for you, my wonderful family, the most loyal readers of my blog.

Covington is where it's at

And by "it," I mean my Fidelity training trip. And also the center of everything Fidelity, really. It was grand. I got to meet other Fido workers from all over the country, and in our freetime we got to explore all over the Covington/Cincinnati area. Among said activities:

We met Mayor Mallory of Cincinnati, owner of the worst opening pitch in baseball history:

One of my new Fidelity friends convinced him to pose for a picture with all of us.

He requested that we put it on facebook and tag him. Awesome.

Could the night get any better? I submit that it DID! We stopped at a nearby establishment that had, of course, a mechanical bull. Needless to say, most of us took a turn.


It was a grand trip. By the end, everyone was calling me Shirley Temple after my Sprite-based drink of choice. Aren't work friends great?

Summertime and the Livin's Easy

Despite the humidity and masses of tourists, DC is an excellent place to be in the summer. Especially if you're friends with fun people. Which I am.

Here's proof.

This year was my first Independence Day in the US since 2007. So, of course, we made it good. David and I went camping that weekend. Sort of.

Yes, that's our backyard. We dined on popcorn and hot chocolate and slept soundly on a mat made of memory foam.

We also made some killer pancakes.

(The regular-looking one is actually the Death Star. Bonus points if you figured that out before I said it.)

And, of course, we took advantage of our location by biking down the Mt. Vernon trail to a fantastic lookout point for some fireworks.

See those kayaks on the water? That's where I'd like to be next year.

Here's my attempt at capturing us and the moment at the same time.

Self-portrait fail. If you'd like to actually see some quality shots, you can find them on David's blog.

Also awesome: Screen on the Green! Copycats of this pastime are popping up all over the area, but we stayed true to the original with a trip to the National Mall.

Not even the rain could keep us away. We were far too prepared for such sissy impediments to stand in our way.


And more awesomeness: Go Ape!! It's how I spend my weekends when David's away. How does one go ape, you may ask? Like this:

and this:

and a little of this:

and don't forget this:

and perhaps most importantly, this:

The trick is to embrace the swinginess. And don't forget your harness.

Can there really be more in this awesome summer? Why yes, yes there can. How about a nice game of polo in the not-too-distant town of Middleburg?

And just for fun, here are some shots of Marcia's award-winning "best wedding shower activity idea of all time."

Yes, it's true. She happens to have a belly dancer friend who came and showed us the ropes.


There's more, but I've gone on enough. If you want more, it'll be on David's blog. Eventually.

Summer is wonderful. And it ain't even over yet.