The Doxeys Welcome You!: We Must ... Extend .... Summer!

Eliza Kate. Do they come cuter? I mean, of course we are hugely biased, but Liza's little personality and looks are blossoming.

Sure, she's fiesty (who wouldn't be with Nate and John as brothers?), and has her moments, but she is a dearly loved peach of a girl.

Nate Must Have Removed an Article of Clothing from John as this Wave Hit. Details are sketchy, but evidently a stretchy swim suit is maxed out at about 3 feet. Blame it on excessive chlorine over the summer, blame it on the power of the waves, cast blame where ye will.

You see, THIS is the real reason the ocean is salty, and therefore foamy...to cover a man's nakedness in a potential moment of embarrassment.

Caroline + Seagulls + Ocean = Entertainment for Mom & Dad Call.
Whenever Mom and Dad Call come for a visit, Half Moon Bay seems to be a perennial favorite stopping point. Who doesn't love Half Moon Bay? Dan likes it as he pines away in the hapless confines of his office b/c it makes everyone else that goes there so happy.

Tradition...Tradition! Care-Care and Liza LOVE going to the beach with Mom and Dad Call.

Both girls are supremely articulate (relative to Latte and other living creatures) so it's no surprise that they have a penchant for fearlessly and confidently conversing with adults. Then again, Mom and Dad Call are two of the most easy people to talk to, on any level, in Spanish or English, on the western hemisphere.

John "Got Worked" at his first Football Practice. Nate and John are both in the PJFL on the Colts. Their coaches are dead serious, hard core football coaches. They don't take crap and demand a lot in practice. To set the tone for the intensity and hard work they expect for the rest of the season, the first practice was a beast. Some kids cried, others threw up. Nate and John just worked through it. John was wondering, "Why am I on a team of 11-12 year olds?"

Nathan Also "Got Worked" at his first Football Practice. I wish there was some way to bring you to one of their practices. I could sit there all day and watch these guys confront the reality of football--the need to be more aggressive, the need to suck it up, how to respond when you get chewed out by the coach, who they look up to on the team, how hard they try to push it when they can't seem to go anymore. I love talking to them about the differences between Soccer, Basketball and Football. They are amazed at how important "position mastery" is in football vs. soccer and other sports. Nate plays the X wide receiver, and John plays Noseguard on D and Left Guard on O. Nate is a brutal, brutal downfield blocker, as the Colts are 98% a running team. He makes DBs have long days.

The 40th Peach Torte We've Made.

Not really. Dan turned 40 and instead of the traditional birthday pancakes, peach torte was the order of the day.

The Delta with Dave & Crissy Palmer. When people want to go to "the lake" to go waterskiing here, they go to Del Valle in Pleasanton, or to "The Delta" which is near Discovery Bay. Think a wide, freshwater waterway with lots of boat slips, bass fishing and great watersports. Our good friends the Palmers have a place on the water up there, (it's where Dave grew up waterskiing) and they invited us up to wrap up the summer in a fun way.

Four Wild Boys Getting Ready to Flip.

They Have No Idea What is Coming.

They Start to Notice The Speed.

Then, They Flip!

Four Girls on a Leisurely Stroll. The girls loved riding in the tube behind the boat. Caroline is quite a swimmer, with a life jacket so she really got into it.

Oh What You Are Not Seeing Here. You may note that Liza and Dan are a little wet in this shot. As Dan was getting into the kayak with Liza, he flipped it three times in a row...with Liza already in it. In Dan's own words. "Getting into a kayak off of a dock is a bit different than on shore!"