Mary took on the monumental job of putting a patio in our backyard – replacing a large concrete pond that was there when we bought the place.

Toward the end of last summer I rented a jackhammer and broke a hole through the bottom of the pond so that it wouldn’t fill up with water through the winter.

Later, we hired a guy to completely break up the pond and remove most of the concrete.

Several weeks ago, mary began digging up the area around the pond and removing large boulders that were buried there. She then found a bunch of nice flagstone on craigstlist, which we went to pick up in a convoy of small trucks. (thanks Jacky and Joseph!).

Then we hired a guy to do a professional install of the flagstone (which he had to do over once due to quality issues).

But now it is in and lovely – ready for some serious beer and bbq this summer.

Baxter’s got so many words these days, and he’s starting to put them together into 2-4 word phrases. Mostly demands for food, attention, subservience, etc. The first few photos show him making and asking me to eat Soup. Soup is one of his favorite things these days. Liquids are either aqua or soup. The second batch show him lying on the floor saying, “night, night” to himself. There are also a couple of fish-eye lens shots. Neato!

On the way back from Puerto Vallarta for Christmas, we stopped in the Bay Area to spend time with Family and Friends for a couple of days. Here are some pictures of Heather, Randi, their amazing cat, CHG, and James. And. Baxter, of course.

Another amazing year at the coast! Can’t wait until next year.

Here are some pics of Bax’s 2nd Birthday. Check out the rockin choo-choo cake.

After years of construction in San Diego, my brother Dave  got his sail boat dialed in and embarked on his no-timeline journey into southern waters. 

His first stop would be Puerto Vallarta, and since it was around Christmas time when he planned to be there, he suggested that he rent a condo as a gift to the family so that we could join him for the holidays.  The family came to a rare, unanimous decision that it would be so.

It turned out to be the right decision.  Perfect weather and an amazing condo made for an unforgettable holiday in the sun.  Easter in Costa Rica?

Some pictures of Baxter in Seattle and San Jose around Christmas 2009.

Some choice shots of the Bax and friends in Barce and London.

Toward the end of our stay in Barcelona, Megan was kind enough to sort the logistics on taking the train to a small wine region about two hours train ride outside of Barcelona.  The town we visited there, home to an early 20th century wine cellar, was named Falset.

Equal parts quaint and Orwellian, Falset was fun to explore.  The trip – both the trainride and the tour of the winery – was a highlight of our stay in Spain.

I think this is one of the 7 wonders of the world.  If not it shoudl be.  Words cannot begin to express, and pictures just scratch the surface.  Seen it twice now and it always leaves me in awe.