More X-mas photos from Longville

Bea got a nice doll from Gran and Papa.  She quickly wrapped it up in a blanket (like she does with all of her dolls).

Here's Bea with that squirrel again.

Jack and I got a chance to shoot a few doves.  Here we are plucking a few of them into Gran's cleaning bucket.  I think I will be completely gray within five years.

I had a great time time shooting doves and recruiting help for the plucking.

Much to Gran's chagrin, we transformed her porch into the base camp for our temporary hunting operation.

Bea finally got a chance to get acquainted with some of her uncles.  Here's Brian trying to steal a bite from her cheese...

...and Scott wrestling with her...

...and all of her coffee-drinking uncles (and dad) hanging out on the porch.

Maggie was so excited to set out some cookies and IBC root beer for Santa.

The girls had a great time with their cousins, especially Alice and Audrey.

Christmas morning was fun for everyone.  Bea took some time to inspect the gift area before playing with her new toys.

Maggie had a great time distributing everyone's presents.

Finally, we took a few hours to go catch some catfish at the local Mennonite pond.

When all was said and done, we had a great visit, and look forward to visiting again soon.

Christmas Trip

We're on our annual trip to the Gulf Coast to visit relatives. We left the house at 4:30 AM and, by 9:30, we were ready for a stop in Blythesville, Arkansas, for some breakfast at the local Hilton/diner. Here, Bea discovered an old piano while we were waiting for our food and she quickly wove together this masterpiece:

After arriving in Louisiana, I had to take a quick trip to Jupiter, Florida, for a job interview at the Scripps Research Institute. Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to enjoy the 5 star resort that I stayed in, but I at least woke up early enough on the morning of my interview to see the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean.

The interview went fairly well and I should know within a couple of weeks whether they are going to offer me the job. I am still waiting on word from the University of Michigan. They were supposed to make a decision by Christmas, but "administrative delays" have pushed the decision date back to the end of January. I am also waiting to hear on an interview at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, as to whether they are going to invite me for an on-site interview. I had a phone interview last week that went pretty smoothly, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I will make sure to keep all of you posted.

After my interview, I had a nice, relaxing flight from Jupiter-Atlanta-Lafayette through several thunder storms and this very tranquil car ride from Lafayette to Longville (to the tune of 25 mph on the interstate):

At Gran and Papa's, I finally had a chance to decompress from my recent job interview and I filled the time getting some blood on my new shotgun. I clipped this fox squirrel in one of the large pine trees near the house. I'm sure Roux will be sad, but Bea sure was excited about it:

I think Bea thought the squirrel carcass was one of her babies. Anyway, she was so enamored that, later on, she asked to the squirrel to dance with her.

This girl definitely has no fear of animals (just ask Suzi the guinea pig). To the delight of the girls, Santa Claus showed up Christmas morning. Between Papa and I, we will have many more pictures of the ensuing fracas, but for now, I'll leave you with a video of Bea on her new rocking horse.

This is how Bea eats her cereal.

I don't remember Maggie being this messy.