Update November 2008

Here's the whole wedding party on the big day, Jan. 19, at the Tower in Brattleboro. Across the top is J.P. and Daphnee, then Ariane and I, with Chandre and Tao at the bottom. We hike here all the time and it's really pretty. There's a big stone tower that gives a gorgeous view over the town and Connecticut River Valley.

Around March it's Maple Syrup Season in Vermont! Here's a local syrup maker creating the deliciously-sweet juice (yummy). They take the sap, which is really thin (like water), and boil it until it gets thick. It takes 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup! They use modern machines like reverse-osmosis these days to get most of the water out, then they boil the rest off.

Here's Chandre sitting on a cute butterfly chair in downtown Old Saybrook, Connecticut. We were in town for Jason's graduation party, and everybody was there! We saw Stephanie's parents, Paul and Sue, Jason's parents, Greg and Lisa, and a few other friends.

Kyle and little Ezra while we were visiting this summer, in July. We hiked up Horseshoe Falls, a few miles outside Portland. There were a few impressive waterfalls there. One had warn away the rock behind it so you could literally walk underneath the mountain. The little guy liked the hike too.

We drove to Montana after visiting Portland. Here's Ariane and I on the Two Medicine hike in Glacier National Park. We went there with mom and Paul and dad and Janen. It's so beautiful there, but we didn't see much wildlife. I still want to see a grizzly some time!

Here's Ariane kayaking on Whitefish Lake. It was her first time and she did great - didn't even fall over once!

We all went to breakfast in Portland at this great Southern-cooking place, and it was g-o-o-d! I don't remember what I ate, I just remember it being good. Melissa wasn't there, unfortunately, due to her bed rest. I'm sure she's happy that's over.

Chandre was Captain of the boat while Grandpa Rob takes a nap.

Chandre plays flag-girl on grandpa's boat.

This is Chandre in Wyoming at her grandpa Greg and grandma Lisa's house in Cody. She loves riding the horses there and says she wants to try barrel-racing next summer!

Here's Chandre, the cowgirl!

Here's Ariane with a super-cute Alpaca during a farm open house this summer. Alpacas are so nice and so soft and just all-around wonderful animals! There's lots of Alpaca farms around Vermont - they thrive in the climate around here.

Chandre giving Tao a hug.

This is called the Bridge of Flowers and it's just west of Greenfield, Massachusetts. It's a foot bridge over the Connecticut River that's covered with all different types of flowers. The Connecticut River also runs through Brattleboro and server as the border between Vermont and New Hampshire.

Chandre with a few friends from her kindergarten class. They marched in the Strolling of the Heifers parade through downtown Brattleboro earlier this spring. This parade is cool - hundreds of cows get paraded through the streets and they are all decorated with flowers. It's a fun day for everybody! Their class was dressed as strawberries and asparagus in support of local agriculture.

We went to Boston last month to see the Cirque d'Soleil. It was a fun day touring through Boston's historic areas. Here's a picture of the styline from the Quincy Market.

This area of town is a bit older.

We had a wedding party at Ariane's parents house earlier this summer and Chandre got to run through the sprinkler.

Fall in Vermont is just beautiful! This is a picture from the top of that Tower I was talking about earlier - where Ariane and I got married. This looks over the Retreat Meadows and into the Green Mountains. They'll start ice fishing here pretty soon!

Another shot from the Tower. This one is of downtown Brattleboro and into the Connecticut River Valley. Mt. Wantastiquet is in the background.

We hike a lot on the Retreat Trails, which are close to where we live.

We went apple picking this month and Chandre was thrilled they had ladders to climb! We brought a big bag home and made apple crisp and apple sauce. They were both delicious. There were also pumpkins here, horses and a reindeer to feed, and horse-drawn cart rides.

At the ski mountain they have fun summer things to do. Chandre had a blast jumping high in this bungee-trampoline We also slid down the mountain on a toboggin cart slide.

Ariane's sister Elsa got two new kittens recently and Chandre got to play with them when we were in Montreal this summer.

Chandre was a fairy princess for Halloween and she got quite a haul this year. It was a beautiful night and there were kids everywhere. We tried to dress Tao as her horse, but he wasn't too happy about it.

Chandre started karate classes last month and she's getting really good! They're learning lots and sensei says she's almost ready for the next belt. She's the smallest in her class, but is trying really hard. She's really cute!