Vacation Part I

Well our summer vacation has begun. We will try to update periodically.

First stop was to drop off the dog. Thanks Travis and Tom for meeting us in order to make our trip shorter and thanks Ana and Travis for taking such good care of Tsuga. We will not be surprised when he wants to be adopted by you guys who have more time and energy for him these days....

Second stop was Asheville, NC. It was nostalgic and quite nice to wake up here after a long evening of driving (Alder sleeping...at least a little) and get coffee at Malaprops while sifting through cool books.

Next stop Knoxville! It had been over a year since we moved from this great town and it was so nice to spend some QT with friends we had not seen in too long. Thanks Lara and Biff for the hospitality - keepin' it safe with good food, good wine, and most importantly...good times. A funny side note: we have known Lara and Biff for around 8 years (from our Boone days) and we have not once seen Biff not wearing his favorite hat!

Jason and I are now in Chattanooga for the Society for Conservation Biology meeting. Alder is with Granna, Grandad and Aunt Eli....we miss him terribly but are enjoying the opportunity to go out and get a beer and sleep until 8!

Alder continues to be so pleasant and fun. He barely fussed in transit and seems to make a good impression on all the folks he is meeting. He is laughing and 'talking' up a storm. Reports from the grandparents say that he is saying new words by the hour! We got a call two hours after separating from him announcing that he was saying 'umbrella!" Yeah...and a two syllable 'aan, aa' is certainly him saying 'granna'....;)

More to come....and that was a joke about Biff's hat.....