Under the sea ... tanks

Aquarium time! We haven't stopped by in a while, so we had to check in on the fish. 

Yeah, they still look awesome. 

I swear they're looking back at us, wondering why we move so smoothly outside of water. 

And I still think the pool at home would be awesome with some jellyfish in it. But Dad keeps saying no for some reason. 
 

Innocent until proven otherwise

We were just ... fluffing the pillows. Yeah. That's all. Why do you ask? 
 

Summertime stroll

When your shorts match the flowers, you know you've done something right. 
 

Human Hungry Hungry Hippos

It's a real thing and it is spectacular. 

Boy scout summer camp

Living out in the woods for a week isn't easy, but when you've got a whole troop of scouts to back you up, it's more fun. 

Camp schedule was busy -- five classes a day for five days, with everything starting at 8am. I estiamted I walked about 20 miles over the course of the week between all the stations, not including other activities. 

Luckily it only rained one day, and we had our ponchos ready. 

And our troop brought home the first place award from the swimming and running competition. Not bad for the first time at camp. I may have to try this again next year. 

 

Scenes from a dock

Sometimes we get surprise visitors at the dock. 

Sometimes we get surprise views. 

And sometimes the pictures we expect to get mean even more than we thought. This one earned me the fishing merit badge at Boy Scout camp, after I had to prove to the counselors that I had caught a fish before. 
 

Hickory Run pilgrimage

No Hawk Falls this year, but we still made our trip to Boulder Field to balance on the rocks. I seems like they bring in more every year. 

And we did get to our secret waterfall to cool off a bit. The path there is a mess, but the scenery is worth it. 

 

Visitng Eckley

That picture is the four Shane grandchildren sitting with Pop and Aunt Jeanne on the steps of our great-great-grandfather's house in Eckley Miner's Village. Not only is it a part of Pennsylvania's history, but it's part of our family's too. 

Learning about what life was like here more than 100 years ago was fascinating, but I also don't think I want to try it. I kinda like beds with matresses instead of ropes.  

The main street and a lot of the houses are still here, but most are uninhabited. The outhouses are still standing too. We didn't check to see if they work.

Just north of town is a huge field of coal ash and waste from the days the mines were active. Shaney wants to film an outer space movie here. That's a pretty good setup. 

But getting to hear Pop and Aunt Jeanne talk a little more about our family was the best part of the visit. I wonder if my great-great grandkids will be stopping by our house after it's declared a national landmark because of our feats of greatness...

Fire tamers

Fourth of July plus Poconos equals sparkler time! 

Don't worry, it only looks scary. But in reality its just a thin piece of metal smoldering at more than 1,000 degrees. So there's nothing to get worked up about. 

It's even more fun when you have mulitple cousins sprinting around the yard with several lit sparklers. Go America!

 Bonus video -- we got little packs of gunpowder to play with too!

Nap time

Your version of taking a rest and ours is quite different now ...
 

Summer dance recital

After months of work, my dance class took to the stage this weekend and performed beautifully. Here's a bit of the performance: 

Dad couldn't record the whole thing, but Mom got the rest at dress rehearsal: 

Next up, Broadway!

Come fly away with me

Why are they called lightning bugs when they move so slowly?