Kira's school choir performs

Kira's school choir performed this afternoon at the "Dickens on Cypress Creek" event at The Forum on Cypresswood Drive.

Here's a good profile of Kira with her choirmates just before the performance began.

Singing!!

The choir in the setting. It was lovely. (Kira's at the left.)



And a video --

From Halloween

Kira decided to be a geisha this year, but really didn't want the white face paint. It was enough to get the red paint on her lips! Her hair went up beautifully, though, and stayed put amazingly well!


Parker - no surprise!! - dressed as an Army guy, wearing his dad's jacket and boots (which he hadn't put on yet when I took this photo)!


Both kids had a great time. They went around neighborhoods near home first and then I drove them to my neighborhood. Kira had to have a second basket for her loot!

Austen was with the high school band at their last marching band contest of the fall. Afterward, he went to a Halloween party at a friend's house.

Everyone was very happy! We do like "happy"!!

Even the lake is overflowing!

The creeks have 'riz!

Here is only one of the creeks in this area, but it's at least 10' or 12' above normal right now, after all the rain we've gotten in the past couple of weeks. It's impressive!






After Hurricane Ike last year, it was much higher than this! The footbridge in the first and third photos was completely under water after the hurricane, so you can figure out how high on that stone wall the water was, too. It looked as if the trees along the creek banks were drowning, poor things.

Friday night football in Texas!

We've been to only two games this season so far, but Austen and the KO marching band have been to all of them, of course!

None of the photos I took worked (flash doesn't do well out in the open after dark!), but here's a video from last Friday night's game:



The band and crowd were really more animated that this video indicates. I'm amazed they were since the team did so badly ... all night long!

Memorial Service for Dad

UPDATE ON SEPT 29: My dad's ashes will be interred tomorrow, September 30, at 11:00 am PDT. I'll be observing several minutes of silence about then, but in Central time.
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Riverside National Cemetery, near March Field, is where my dad's memorial service was held on September 17th. His ashes will be interred there soon. It was a full military service: gun salute, the playing of "Taps," and folding and presenting the flag. The cemetery's flag was at half-staff in his memory that day, too.

To my Dad -- Jan 1918 - Sept 2009

My dad passed away late Thursday afternoon, Sept 10, 2009, and I want to post a couple of really good photos that include him. One of these days, I'll find more, but these are our favorites at the moment.

In this photo, taken in Nov 2005, he sits at the left, and he has family all around him. He loved his family! And that little grin ... his own grin, as if he were sharing a secret with someone!


This is a photo of my dad and mom around Christmastime in 1984. This is one of my favorites, too, for all the obvious reasons!


And here is a poster that the neighborhood children made for my mom:


We all love you, Dad.