Kate's 1st professional photo shoot

So last week SWMBO tells me that she is taking Kate to a new photo place at the mall. "You can do 5 outfit changes, and they take 60-odd different poses, and then you can pick one and get a full package of photos for just $10."

Rrrriiiiggghhhhhtttt.....

But we were in need of some good four month old photos of our little angel, so how could I possibly say anything other than "sounds like a great idea." Needless to say the resulting photos were awesome, and needless to say it didn't cost us $10. But all things considered it could have been much much worse. :-) I got an email shortly after the shoot with a link to the pictures that Beth had uploaded. I'll include Beth's captions here in bold. Her captions have this photo shoot nailed.... (Follow any of the links to see more photos and captions on Picasa.)

After all, I can hear Kate saying "I know I am cute."


"I can fly" is definitely the way to go with this little angel...


"Look out I am TROUBLE" I have nothing further....


"SWEET BABY" Yep, no doubt about it.


And so that brings an end to what I shall refer to as the "Look! We can get daddy to give us anything we want" photo series. How can I possibly resist....

Who Dey!!! (ok, besides freakin Cleveland....)

OK, let me start this by saying that this posting should have been done a week ago for the Monday Night home opener against Baltimore. A game where the Bengals came out fighting and managed to claw out the big W against a division rival. That made these pictures of the kids even cuter. And then there was this weekend against the Browns. A game my father-in-law went to and sat in the Dawg Pound. A game I quit watching as it became apparent that our defense was on the team bus sitting outside Paul Brown Stadium wondering why nobody was in Cincinnati for the game. But phooey on them. I'm not letting them spoil my fun. Check out how cute these kids are. Surely the Bengals can pull together the rest of the season and make it all worthwhile. hmmm....

So that aside, here's the boys showing off their Palmer jerseys and the cutest little cheerleader you've ever seen.



Owen's happy holding his sis, but perhaps Patrick and Kate had a premonition about the Cleveland game?


At least I know I'll be able to smile for the rest of the games with these two handsome football fans, and a cheerleader that's as cute as a button.

From 2007 Who Dey ...

Click the picture above to see a few more pictures of Palmer's and the Ben-'Gal'. Its off to Seattle with the Bengals to restore the roar. Then back to Cincy for a Monday night showdown with the Patsies and their video cameras. WHO DEY!

Our Kindergartener heads off to school...

Its hard to believe that this little guy (taken a month after he was born)...


...is now 5, and on August 30th headed out for his first day of Kindergarten. Patrick was all set bright and early, and very excited about heading off to ride the bus to school.


Once the time came, he was out the door and on the move to get to the bus stop.


Looking awfully handsome in his new school outfit and backpack, and excited about the new adventure....


And after a short wait for the bus, off Patrick goes to start another chapter.


Mom and Dad both held it together and resisted the temptation to follow the bus through neighborhood and all the way to school....although I was somewhat relieved that I passed it on my way to work as it was leaving his school so I knew he had made it off the bus. So far, he seems to be enjoying school, loves riding the bus, and is even enjoying (more or less) doing his homework. They sure grow up quick.....

More pics on Picasa.

Vacation Part Deux

After a great week in North Carolina with Beth's family, we decided to break up our trip home with a stopover in Virginia to see Uncle Mike and Aunt Betty Ann and their new house. As Mike said in his blog the boys did some on-the-fly childproofing to help Mike and Betty Ann prepare for their lil' bambino. Kate even helped by testing out the exersaucer and stroller.

In addition to all that fun, the boys got to play on the swingset in the backyard and wander through the "forest" behind Mike's house. As they were playing, there were 3 deer that came wandering through the backyard to check out a salt lick the neighbor put out. The boys got to do some up close and personal nature watching....



We also took the whole gang out to play mini golf at the "Perils of the Lost Jungle", which it turns out is rated one of the top 5 mini golf courses in the nation by Newsweek or something like that. From the price, they obviously thought pretty highly of themselves, but I have to admit, it was a pretty impressive course. Here's both Linegang clans getting ready (all 7 1/2 of us!) to start our 'expedition'.


Kate was along for the ride giving Mike and Betty Ann's stroller a test run.


The course was filled with animatronics, so every hole had monkeys or alligators or other 'perils' waiting around every corner. Our favorite sign though was on the 18th hole. Hard to know whether the bigger danger for "volcanic activity" comes from Owen....


Or Kate, who by this point was a very cranky baby seester...


Anyway, a great end to our vacation. We really enjoyed hanging out at Mike and Betty Ann's. And Mike, from a childproofing perspective, the combination of bubble wrap, packing foam / peanuts, and the grabber toys.....probably not a good long term idea. :-) Cheers!!!

Oh, and as usual, more pictures on my Picasa gallery.

Family vacation in North Carolina

We had a fantastic time in mid-August with a week long vacation in Rodanthe, North Carolina on the Outer Banks. In a sight that would be common through the week, we started out with a beautiful day, and the boys following Aunt Debbie out to the beach to enjoy the scenery.


The condo we had was great, right on the beach, and with a nice pool. Baby Kate even got to enjoy her first swim. We tried heading out to the beach with her later in the week, but the wind and blowing sand was a bit much for her. She was content to be the center of attention in the house and on the decks most of the week.


Uncle Greg and I managed to have a little fun, much to the chagrin of others, tossing our empties into the pool. They were retrieved though, and a couple were left out by accident. Later on Owen noticed that the local insect population had discovered the empties, prompting the line: "Is this why they call it 'bug' weiser?" Yup....that's my boy....


Lot's of fun throughout the week. We had a mini-golf trip at the request of the boys. Yeah, 3 kids under the age of 6 in the blazing sun in the middle of the afternoon....sounds fun, eh? A boat ride, kite flying, some surf fishing, and lots of relaxation. A few of us even managed to sneak in a fishing trip, catching a fresh fish dinner for the whole gang.



We had an awesome time. Click on the link or the picture below to check out the whole album with lots more pictures.

From Vacation at t...