Minute Man National Historic Park

We checked out Minute Man National Park, a several mile bike/walking bath that hits a lot of important historical landmarks along the famous Revolutionary War towns of Lexington, Concord, and Lincoln, Massachusetts, this past Saturday. Many portions of the path mark the initial skirmishes of the Revolutionary War in 1775. Pictures:

Along this now-peaceful stone wall, shots were fired which started the Revolutionary War.
Drum & Fife Musicians playing outside an old tavern.
Max sitting up like a champ.
Sophie's definitely going through a climbing phase.
Claire & Max on the boardwalk.

Date Night

My idea for one of those "Priceless" Mastercard commercials based on my own personal experiences from tonight...

Babysitter for four hours: $60.
Pair of movie tickets for you & your wife to see the latest "Star Trek" movie: $22.
Outstanding curly fries & hot dog combo at the movie theater: $8.
Spending an evening without having to listen to either of your 2 children crying: priceless.

Speaking of the little buggers, here's a closeup of Max (wearing one of Sophie's hand-me-downs...hence the pink hearts on the hood of his jacket)...


...and a video of Sophie playing "cache-cache" (French hide-and-seek) at Fort Warren from last weekend's exploration of the Boston Harbor Islands.

Day Trip to Boston Harbor Islands

We spent the day visiting the Boston Harbor Islands--several dozen islands which are a quick ferry's ride from the Wharf area in downtown Boston. We explored two small islands: Georges Island (site of an old fort also used as a prison for Confederate soldiers during the Civil War) and Spectacle Island (relatively close to Boston with great views of the city and a small beach). Here are some pictures of the days' fun (but exhausting) events.

Fort Warren at Georges Island.
Claire & Max check out the old bakery at Fort Warren.
Sophie being swallowed up by a hole in the grass.
View of Boston from Spectacle Island Beach.
Max is smiling 'cause he can kind of sit up by himself now!

Kid Pics

Max & Sophie in the kitchen.  Today is Max's 6 month birthday!

Sophie making a fashion statement by wearing sunglasses upside-down.

Happy Sophie.

Kidney Humor

The Kidney Blocker 2000 evidently isn't perfect. So much for the altruistic kidney transplant.

Celtics Lose Game 7 & Max Tries In Vain To Eat His Fist

Well, I was a bit bummed that the Celtics lost Game 7 yesterday to the Orlando Magic, and are knocked out of the playoffs. Then I realized that they probably would have been utterly decimated by the Cleveland Cavs, and began thinking about how great of a playoff run they had this year. Ray "Jesus Shuttlesworth" Allen clutch 3-pointers! Multiple OT (and Game 7) classics! Game-winning jump shots by Glen "Big Baby" Davis! Triple-doubles by the amazing Rajon Rondo! Robert Parish-like performances from big man Kendrick Perkins! I'll remember this team for awhile.

Most of the weekend was spent in the hospital so there's not too many adventures to report. I'll leave you all with a video of Maxime trying to swallow his own fist while making Chewbacca the Wookiee noises.

HUP Men's Club Boston Reunion

Last night featured an epic gathering of the founding members of the Hospital of University of Pennsylvania's Men's Club--the same group which brought you the Annual Mustache Competition, the Annual HUP Bowl--as fate (and Cardiology meetings) brought the five of us together in Boston. From left to right: myself, John Evans, Matt Ortman, Dave Portnoy, and Jeff Zaidman.

Sunday Walk

Took a great walk on a windy yet sunny Sunday. Went over the locks in Charlestown into the North End & to Quincy Market, where I caught up on my comic book purchases and Claire ate a lobster roll, one of her favorites. We took an alternative way home--the ferry, which was surprisingly convenient. And Happy Mother's Day to all moms out there, including my own.

Where Will Amazing Happen This Year?

I am totally into the latest batch of commercials for the NBA Playoffs with the theme of "Where will amazing happen this year?" It's just a simple slow-motion black & white clip of a famous playoff moment with cool piano music playoff in the background. I never get tired of watching these. Here's an example of a Tim Duncan video.



In looking for other examples online, I came across some great parodies. Here's an homage to Teen Wolf that's great.

Time Machine

Some new pictures of our trip to Florida over a month ago recently arrived courtesy of Grandpa Rick's camera. I like looking at these pictures because they are so bright and sunny! Here's some of the good ones.

Best of the Rest

Here are some of the better pics from our recent Chicago trip to visit the fam.

I'm Gonna Get You

The cousins Henry & Sophie enjoy a thrilling game of chase...I had to stop recording when Sophie made a bolt for the door...

Lincoln Park Zoo Pics

On Monday we went to the Lincoln Park Zoo with the gang. The most popular spectacles included the gorillas, the monkeys, watching the cows get milked, and riding the kiddie train. Here are some pics.

Two moms & their kids (minus Max).


Baby James & Baby Gorilla.

Welcome to the Monkey House.
Okay, I know it's not the zoo, but Chicago is one of the few places where one can spy cows walking up the side of a building.

Long Weekend in Chicago

The bad news: my beloved Grandpa Milton recently passed away at age 96.

The silver lining: it gave my family a good excuse for a family reunion in Chicago over a long weekend. We stayed at my sister Cathy & brother-in-law Tim's new house in nearby Evanston.

Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Some great old pictures of gramps.
My nephew Henry is very proud of his brand-new bike.
Claire & Maxime at the memorial service.
Uncle Tim, my nephew James, and Sophie mid-watermelon.
More pics to follow in the coming days...