Harvey takes time to smell the roses

And sometimes he eats them:

Not tired, just REtired

What an exciting weekend this has been! We had Fred's retirement ceremony Friday afternoon in the park across the street from our house and his party that night. His parents and all 3 of his brothers were able to join us, which made the event all the more special. Here are some photo highlights from the day (click to see 'em bigger).

Mike and Annabelle:



Fred and his brothers:



Taylor family photo:



Handsome dudes in uniform:



The 4 of us:



Me with some of my friends:



Jennifer wins the prize for coming the farthest for the event (she is on her way from Korea to Virginia):



Fred receiving his award:



I love the perspective in this one of me receiving an award:



Fred's brother James took these of the kids receiving their "Brat" awards from LTG Perkins:





Fred giving his post-ceremony remarks:



That night at the party, we played this amazing slideshow that Fred's deputy, Luisa, put together:



I smiled my way through the ceremony, but the video gets me every time!

Somebody's gonna retire today!

Retirement festivities have begun!

Today was Fred's retirement luncheon. Lots of presents, some funny, some sentimental:



Can't have a party without cake!



It has been a great 3 years here at Ft. Leavenworth, and I know that Fred and I are both going to miss all the great friends we have made through the JAG community and our neighborhood.

Animal hijinks

Buddy sometimes has crazy ears (sorry 'bout the crappy image quality):



Don't make Mom mad, or she'll use her laser-eyed cat on you:



"Who, us? We've been sitting in this chair the whole time. Whatever it is, the dog probably did it."

Who has peephole face?

Annabelle, Jenny, and Buddy have peephole face (still playing with the iPhone):

Well, hello, Arlo!

Playing with toy soldiers at Disney Hollywood Studios

Pancakes, pretties, and panoramas

We went to DeLeon Springs this morning to cook our own breakfast:





While we were there, I messed around with my iPhone a bit, experimenting with taking panoramas and closeups (as always, click to see the photo bigger):







This panorama shows what a lazy afternoon (my favorite time!) in DeLand looks like: