Lunch in the Gorge

We brought a picnic, which we ate on this rock beside the Rocky Broad River.

Chimney Rock

For our ninth anniversary, Nana and Pappy watched the boys all day so we could take a day trip to Hickory Nut Gorge and Chimney Rock State Park. (And yes, there are plenty of tacky t-shirts in the touristy shops nearby that play up the rock's shape.)

Happy Fourth of July!

Today we celebrate our independence from the tyranny of the oppressive English — well, some of us....

Picking Clover

Ian's refrain while trimming our yard: "This one for you!"

Boys in the Back Yard

I tried to get a picture of Cam and Ian beating on one another, but they were too quick. Instead, I took a snap of them playing quite nicely together, which is not representative.

Independence Day on the Back Deck

You will, we trust, forgive him — holidays are days to indulge. :)

Last of the Cicadas

This year saw the emergence of the "seventeen-year cicadas" — bugs that emerge every 17 years to annoy people with their incessant screaming. They were particularly loud mid-June, like the loudest crickets you've ever heard, but non-stop all day long. This one on our living room screen was, we are happy to report, dead.