Independence Day!

Hopefully everybody out there had a great Fourth of July last weekend! We went down to the National Mall and watched the fireworks around the monuments. There were tons of people, but overall, it wasn’t extremely crowded and wasn’t too difficult to get out of there afterward. A beautiful summer day filled with explosions, what could be better? Check out the photos:

Another great 4th of July! It was a good experience, Paul enjoyed the fireworks, and Adam pretty much slept through it.

Out of June... into July

We spent the last weekend of June on Theodore Roosevelt Island on the Potomac River. I wasn’t even aware that there was a memorial for him until Ted told us about it, so we figured we’d better check it out. It was basically a little island on the river accessed by a foot bridge. Other than a few water fountains and a statue of Roosevelt, the island was mostly forested with a nice trail around the perimeter and a restroom filled with creepy Daddy Long Legs. I made a quick stop in the bathroom, because one of these fellows looked at me and leapt from the wall to chase me out. Needless to say, I ran screaming out into the woods. Otherwise, the island was great!


It was extremely humid at first, but then the storm clouds rolled in and cooled it down considerably. We had just a little luck that day, as a Florida-like rain fell on us just as we were getting back to the car.


Wave to Teddy, Paul! No, not Uncle Ted... that old bronze looking dude over there!

"Alike for the nation and the individual, the one indispensable requisite is character." Paul is quite the character.

"Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground." Sound advice from Teddy.

The island was a little swampy with some lizards and strange dragonflies, but this cool wooden path ran most of the way through it.

Mom and her boys, always together... and occasionally I get to hang out too!

Yet another good weekend adventure here for the Maryland Sellers. And now... we head into the chaos that will be DC on Independence Day. Somewhere around 750,000 people may be down and around the National Mall... and we're thinking it's a good idea to join them. We may not think that afterword, but it could be a once in a lifetime event, so wish us luck! And Happy 4th of July to you all out there!

If only every day was Father's Day...

Why can’t everyday be like Father’s Day? Why can’t that feeling go on, endlessly? Oh if every day, could be just like Father’s Day, what a wonderful world it would be! That’s how that song should be. Everyday should be a day where Dad can lay on the couch watching one baseball game on the TV, and another on the internet. A day where Mom doesn’t harass Dad to sand and mud drywall on the ceiling, or mow the grass or make a blog post or something. Well, Father’s Day is over, and it won’t come again for some time. So this morning I put up drywall mud, now I’m making a blog post, and later I’ll probably have to mow the grass. Oh well. Here is what we did on Father’s Day.

Paul and Dad hitting the greens on a sunny Sunday afternoon. What could be better? We went up to the Severna Park miniature golf course to play a round.

I'm Tiger Woods! I'm Tiger Woods! Well, probably not, but we would take the Nike contract.

The hole is your home, ball! Go to your home... you like your home, ball. Go to your home!!

The following day, we went up to Great Falls National Park on the Potomac river to take a hike through the woods. It was a beautiful day, though a little humid, as can be expected.

Adam's usual view. The path was not exactly "stroller friendly" and was actually a little difficult to navigate at times, but we survived.

Adam was not too bothered by it, though a few times I almost tipped him out, trying to four wheel it over some boulders in the path. Anyway, we had a good time, and a successful, fun Father's Day 2010. Until next year... now I should probably go mow the grass.

The Boy is 3

Paul turned the big three years old a week or so ago. He’s almost over the hill, contemplating retirement and what to do in his golden years. He has trouble getting out of bed in the morning, he keeps forgetting where he left his cars, he’s getting my bald spot, his hearing is almost gone… every time I ask him to do something he says, “What?? What dad??” He’s an old man, that Paul Sellers. Here are a few pictures from his birthday.

A huge thanks to everyone who sent cards, gift cards, and cold hard cash! Paul's been going to Target and spending it all to fill the house full of even more toys that he can scatter around.

We're sorry Paul, you can't spend it all at once, and you can't use it all to buy cars... due to the fact that you already own more vehicles than GM.

And a big thanks to Aunt Kelly for buying the creepy looking tarantula. She can always be counted on for wonderful gifts. We're excited that Paul's cousin Brooke is having a birthday next month.

It's time for some serious 3D chalk drawing! Paul had me cover the back patio with sharks, crabs, whales, and a race track for the cars.

Sporting the Big Brother/Little Brother shirts. Adam was not too keen for taking family photos.

A family of four, and the boys are growing up already! Next thing we know it will be Adam's birthday... but hopefully not too soon. So thanks again to everybody who sent a card, sent a present, sent an e-mail, sent a telegram or a fax, made a phone call, or just thought of Paul on his big third birthday!

Just a day at the beach...

Monday marked Adam’s first trip to the beach! Paul, of course, has actually been to a few beaches in his time, but it’s been a while. We headed up past Annapolis to Sandy Point Park on the Chesapeake Bay. It wasn’t exactly the ocean, but the water was warm, the sun was shining, and the sand was burning hot, so it felt like the beach!

Laid back... does it get any better than this? Probably not.

Ahh... bring some of that sand over here so I can eat it and rub it in my eyes!

A natural born Floridian... still and always.

The water was not exactly crystal clear, but it was warm... and full of Maryland Blue Crabs!

Oh yeah, well that's not so bad, is it?

Wait no!! No it's bad!! It's real bad!! Get me out of here!!

It was definitely not Jacksonville Beach, but it was as close as it gets up in these parts. Paul had a great time digging in the sand, splashing in the water, looking for sharks, and just enjoying the sun. Summertime is here!

Gettysburg, PA

Last weekend, after leaving Hershey we stopped by the battlefield at Gettysburg on the way back home. We’d been there a few years ago, but they had built a brand new visitor’s center since then and it was pretty impressive. If you’ve followed this blog for any time then you know that we’ve visited pretty much every Civil War battlefield in the area, which has been a few. Gettysburg, being the most important battle in the war, is by far the best one to visit. Here you can see the High Water Mark of the Confederacy, a stone marker that displays where the war turned around, and the farthest point the rebellion made toward success and a new nation. Lee is still a hero in the south, sometimes referred to as Washington without the reward, but it was here that his army that had always fought outnumbered and against the odds, ran out of luck. It’s been almost 150 years, but it’s still powerful to stand here and see where so many people marched across these fields under fire, knowing they were going to die. If you ever get the chance, even if you don't have any interest in the Civil War, there are plenty of interesting stories and things to see here.


Maybe someday they'll want to visit this place again, or all of the other places we've taken them when they're too young to remember it. But when they're old enough to appreciate it, we won't be able to afford it.

Paul got this Bee hat thing at the Pennsylvania welcome center. I'm still not sure what the bee has to do with Pennsylvania, but here he is looking over the monument at Devil's Den, a bunch of large boulders where some heavy fighting took place.

A short distance from here General Pickett launched his infamous assault on the Union line across this field. When you see how far it is, you have to wonder whether you'd be able to do it. Almost a mile of open ground, under heavy artillary fire and bullets raining down.

This marker denotes where Lee rode out to meet his returning troops after the failed assault.

We had to inform this Southern boy that this is where the Confederacy ultimately lost the war. He didn't take it well. He still gets upset about his state's rights and the dirty Yankees interfering with his way of life.

Adam Michael, being a Northerner, was satisfied with the outcome. The Union was preserved!

We stopped to reflect with Honest Abe about the famous speech he gave here. I could have easily spent an entire day riding around and reading all of the signs, but a quick drive around the battlefield was all we had time for today. It was a beautiful evening though, perfect weather and all. And there's definitely some beautiful country up there, open fields and farm land. I'm sure we'll be back sometime, maybe when the boys really are old enough to be excited about it. If that's something they get excited about someday... but hey, I would be!

Mmm... Chocolate.

Becky convinced me last Sunday to take a drive up to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania near the capital city of Harrisburg (which I wouldn’t have known was the capital of PA), and to the town of Hershey. Back in the day, Mr. Hershey thought it would be a good idea to make chocolate out of cocoa beans like they were doing in Europe, and he built this factory in Pennsylvania and then built the town around it for all of his workers. It was similar to being near Disneyworld, where Disney owns everything and Mickey Mouse is everywhere. In Hershey, even the street lights are shaped like Hershey Kisses. The factory is still there, along with Hershey Park and Chocolate World, with a bunch of chocolate themed things to do. We took the free tour, and got some stuff in the gift shop. Paul enjoyed himself, Adam mostly just slept. As usual.

Inside they had a chocolate tasting tour, some 3D show, the "factory" tour (which wasn't the real factory, but still fun), and Paul got a chance to be a factory worker.

Everybody needs a little chocolate bar every now and then, like this!

Times are tough in this economy, we gotta put this kid to work. He looks thrilled about it. Now that he's got experience, we're filling out applications for him at Nike and Reebok working on the assembly line.

What Mom? What? How do you want me to pose? I already did what you wanted. I'm standing here. Just take the picture. Just take it and let's go.

Well, I guess you're never too young to have a chocolate Hershey bar.

Overall it was worth driving up for. I've gotta say the Coca-Cola plant in Atlanta was a bit more fun, since you actually got to see real Coke being made, but it also was $15 a piece, and this one was free (or at least the things we did were free). So we had a good time anyway. Now, if only I could find out where the Mountain Dew plant is...