where I talk with my inside voice
We did a overnight campout at Roaring Spring Ranch. The place is beautiful — it’s about 2600 acres that is owned by one of the families in Noah’s Cub Scout Pack. The kids got to ride horses, go on a hayride at night, and hike through the woods. The ticks were unbelievable, but it was still a good trip.
Yeah, I had never heard of it either until last fall when Noah and I went camping with the Boy Scouts. Then Noah told Dixie about it and they bought the game for Noah’s friend Graham for his birthday. At that point, Dixie became obsessed with it, even though she had never played it. Then it turned into a trip...
Noah had his annual Pinewood Derby race in Cub Scouts today. He didn’t win, but I was proud of all of the work he put into building his car this year. I can’t believe he only has one more year before he moves onto Boy Scouts. It doesn’t seem that long ago that he was a Tiger.
We enjoyed our first snowfall of the year today. It was probably less than an inch, but it was enough for the kids to get outside and build some mini-snowmen, and have a ball, and for Dixie to get a few great shots of the birds. Photos are up in my album.
It was time for our annual Minecraft marathon, where we spend the better part of a day immersed in our “world” building things. They say Rome wasn’t built in a day, but I built a Mayan pyramid! It is on an island far to the west of my kingdom, unspoiled by the whimsical constructions of my children. I think that...
Hey, what do you know? The kids got Legos for Christmas this year. Even though this is the first year they no longer believe in Santa, it certainly doesn’t diminish their enthusiasm for the little plastic bricks. This was a big set too – almost 2500 pieces – but they did a good job working together. Noah was also happy...
I tested out my new quad-copter’s camera while the kids enjoyed a late summer day paddling around the lake.
We spent a long weekend in Chicago doing all the touristy things. Photos are available in my album, but here’s a quick video of the highlights. The kids had a blast, and keep asking when we’re going to go back.
I’m pretty proud of our little boy. His skills on the piano are getting better and better, and he nailed his rendition of the classic American folk song at his recital. Good job, Noah!
What started out as an impulsive addition to my son’s list of Christmas presents, has morphed into an addictive and all-consuming passion for crafting. I’m of course talking about the insanely popular video game for the PC called Minecraft. I must admit I didn’t fully grasp what the game was all about before I bought it. But after watching my...
This is our eighth annual Pipes Family Christmas card! Can you believe it? We let the kids take over this year, and they want to wish you the merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years!
We just got back from two weeks in Great Britain. We took a Trafalgar tour that took us from London, through southern England, northern Wales, the Lake District, and finally to Edinburgh, Scotland. We saw some amazing sights and some truly beautiful scenery. The weather was perfect and the people we met on tour were great. It was an awesome...
Two years ago, I took Noah to his first baseball game, and now he is playing coach-pitch himself. Here’s a quick video of a hit he got in his last game of the season. Dixie took some good photos too. We’re very proud of our little slugger.
We have welcomed four new pets into our home. Here’s a short video of them. Be warned: this video contains weapons-grade cute.
Noah’s first visit to see the St. Louis Symphony was, appropriately, to hear the music of John Williams, complete with characters from Star Wars in the lobby of Powell Hall. We’ve been talking about the instruments of the symphony in his music class, but he really enjoyed seeing them in real life. And I enjoyed watching his reaction. I also...
