Happy July 4th

Uncle Sam at the Pittsfield parade. A year ago we saw a picture of Jeffrey proposing to Melodie on the 4th!

Lots of news. First off, happy birthday Andrew; happy anniversary Andrew and Lur. We talked to the birthday boy who said Jen and Miles were able to stay in the hospital a week but all checked out and came home in fine health. Andrew on the other hand hurt his back again.

Speaking of anniversaries, we heard David and Paula had a good trip to Stratford Ontario to celebrate their 40th. Stratford hosts Shakespeare festivals all summer long.

And Annie has a big birthday coming up. Did we tell you we saw her? In China?

Got to give that girl credit. She has figured out the most complicated, most foreign place I have ever seen. She's speaking the language, moving around the city like a native. And it us one tough, fast, huge city. But extremely interesting, rich in culture and history and an exploding economy. Annie showed us around, gave us a tour of Chinese sites and culinary diversity. She and her friend Greg have rich lives, exciting jobs and a nice circle of friends. We have pictures! And stories!

One of the big heroes of our trip was Peter who got up at 5am to take us to Newark airport and then stayed up til midnight to pick us up at the end of the trip. And all he got was a hat and a Rolex watch. Does it still work? We saw Janet who joined us for a Fathers Day supper. And that was after a Fathers Day brunch the day before with Joe and Margaret in Washington.

Another hero was Grandma who let us use her pad to store what remained from our move out of Bethesda and park our cars and our tired bodies both before we left and after we got back. Grandma is well but still has trouble with her eyesight.

And then we fought our jet lag and drove north. We're almost there. The construction is winding down. Yesterday we turned on a kitchen faucet for the first time in three years. We have a screened in porch.

And we have boxes. Our shipment came this Wednesday and we started the long unpacking process. John and Marilyn came over and helped us place and rearrange furniture. That means heavy lifting!

Lots to do before you all come for Grandma's birthday. But we did go up to Jiminy Peak and confirm rooms. I'll send details via e-mail.

Well, it's a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Think I'll unpack some boxes.

Love from over here.