Christopher Rides His Bike

Christopher started off the summer with a really big goal...To learn to ride a two-wheeler! With a little over 2 weeks of almost nightly practice with Daddy, Christopher is now able to ride his bicycle by himself from a standing start. Stephen's also been doing a lot of practice with his new big boy bike he got for his birthday. He asked that we take off his training wheels too; but we told him he needed to wait a little longer.

The Graduate!

In June, Christopher graduated from preschool at Childtime Learning. He got to march in with his classmate, say the Pledge of Allegiance, and sing songs.

Then he got his diploma from his teacher Ms. Shannon.

Mommy and Daddy are very proud of their graduate, and are very excited to start the next adventure, Kindergarten, in August.

Rome - Final Post - Pompeii

Our day trip to Pompeii didn't quite go as planned. Our semi-private tour was cancelled so we had to reschedule for a more traditional bus tour. The tour also included a stop in Naples. We only had a few hours in the ruins in Pompeii, but it was amazing the detail and colors that were preserved in the frescoes and floor tiles. The burial of the city occurred back in 79AD and was not seriously excavated until almost 1750. A lot of the structures were still recognizable. Such as market stalls, the main forum, baths, and amphitheater.

Rome - 4th Installment

We visited St. Peter's Basilica a few times over the 10+ days we were in Rome. We were able to schedule a visit to the Necropolis in advance and we got to talk to a Swiss Guard at one of the gates. (Even in the stripped uniforms they are impressive) We also spent one afternoon touring the Vatican Museum. We didn't get to see everything, but as much as we could in one visit. We also went back a few times to see the Piazza and Basilica lit up against the night sky.
The scale of the Basilica is amazing. It has the largest interior of any Christian church, holding over 60,000 people. The sculptures and artwork that decorate it are of a scale to match. Bernini's Baldacchino is almost 100 feet tall. One of the chapels to the right of the main entry also holds the famous sculpture by Michelangelo, the Pieta.

Rome - 3rd Installment

Part of the reason we ended up in Rome to begin with was that Michael wanted to see some of the statues and buildings that were part of the setting for the movie "Angels & Demons". Unfortunately some of the things we wanted to see were under renovation. For example the center fountain of the Piazza Navona, The Fountain of the Four Rivers, was closed and blocked off for renovation until October. The Piazza del Popolo was full of equipment and stages for "Roma 2020", a rally to promote their next Olympic bid. And the Chigi Chapel was closed for renovations. But we did get to see other monuments that you would recognize from the movie. I should say that their "real-life" history is more of a recommendation to see them than just their use in a movie setting.

Castel Sant'Angelo
This is another great example of adaptive reuse by the Romans. Originally the Mausoleum of Hadrian, it was later used, mostly by the Vatican, as a fortress, a castle, and now a museum.
The pictures below show the architectural changes as you work your way up through the passageways. From left to right: A curing, ramped corridor constructed as part of the original mausoleum. A stepped corridor transitioning from the lower original portion to the "newer" sections of the fortress. Finally a very detailed coffered ceiling from the upper levels that were used as a papal fortress and residence. The remaining two photos show the exterior of the structure were you can just make out the remains for the original rough mausoleum.



Chigi Chapel
As I mentioned above, the center piece of the Chigi Chapel was draped off for renovation, but the remainder of the chapel as well as the rest of the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo was available for viewing.


Ecstasy of Saint Theresa
This is the center sculptural group in a set in the Cornaro Chapel of the Santa Maria della Vittoria. It was sculpted by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

Trevi Fountain
This is the largest Baroque fountain in Rome. The fountain and its details were amazing in daylight; but were breath taking at night. A traditional legend holds that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome. The night we visited, there were people everywhere trying to through coins over their shoulders.

Rome - 2nd Installment

It may be that the Romans were the first to practice the concept of "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." Michelangelo reused the ruins of the Baths of Diocletian to house the unique Renaissance church, Basilica of Santa Mariadegli Angeli e dei Martiri. The shot above is from an interior 3 story courtyard where you can see the original brick work.

No trip to Rome would be complete without a stop at the Coliseum. It appears to be one of the many archaeological sites of Rome that will forever be a work in progress.

Some portions of the Roman Forum were left very much intact. The detail to be found on the reliefs is extraordinary, and it is mind boggling to think what the forum must have looked like during its prime.

The scale of the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine, also part of the Forum complex is just amazing. And this view is only of the side aisle. You can see at the top of the arches that the central aisle went even higher.

Also in the same area as the Roman Forum, is the Trajan Market. Sort of like the modern day shopping center it housed more than 150 shops and offices.

And of course, just for the boys, some pictures of Roman Firetrucks. This was taken in one of the internal courtyards of the Vatican.

Birthday Boy

Yesterday was Stephen's 3rd Birthday. He survived his first trip to the dentist in the afternoon, and was able to enjoy his new "big boy" two-wheeler bicycle after dinner. Although he was quick to point out it wasn't a two wheeler, but a four wheeler. Two big and two small. And he's quite right.

Stephen was also excited about the present Christopher got for him, a track to race their monster trucks. (Don't you just love Stephen's Alfalfa hair? It was bath night...)