Memorial Day

Memorial Day means different things to different people, but in Indianapolis it means one thing: The Indianapolis 500.

On Saturday morning we went to the parade. My company's corporate offices are along the parade route in a restored Gothic revival building that at times has been the headquarters of the company that made both Gatorade and Pork and Beans. The company provided reserved seats and lunch and the kids had a lot of fun watching the parade.

Most of the time they were mesmerized by the parade, looking a lot like this:

Because of floats, bands, racecars, horses, the entire starting lineup of the Indy 500, celebrities, and of course, giant balloons like this one (my favorite):

After the parade, the kids thought it was a lot of fun to dance around in the middle of Meridian Street.

After the parade, we headed down Meridian to Monument Circle. Tori, of course, was always ready with a pose:

The boys on the monument, looking toward the Indiana State Capital.

Tori with the entire monument and Chase Tower in the background.

Joey with his best impression of the Obama 'gazer' pose (except for the smile).

Once again, Tori ready for a pose:

Then, even though we aren't particularly "race fans," we decided to head over to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to take a look around. They have the track open quite a bit during the month-long lead up to the race. Even on the day before the race we were able to check it all out.

The boys from the infield, looking toward the bricks:

And in the seats, looking down toward the bricks, winner's circle, etc.:

And in nearly the same spot, looking back toward turn 4 and the rest of pit row:

Joey doing his best impersonation of Helio Castroneves:

Candid shot of Tori babbling about something on the way home:

And the boys reading their Indy 500 Hot Wheels magazines they were given by an IMS worker:

It was a lot of fun, and we definitely caught onto the excitement in the city for the 500 (even if the event is still blacked out on TV--seriously, what year is this?).

The rest of the weekend we relaxed together as a family, spent some time with friends and reflected on what it means to us to be American, how lucky we are to live in such a great country, and how thankful we are for all of the men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom.

Happy Birthday Charles William

Today is our #1 son's 7th birthday. We're so lucky to have such a good boy in our lives. It's hard to imagine what life was like before he came to us, but we're sure glad he did.

This year we finally relented after two years of saying no to a "friend party." He decided he wanted a Star Wars party and this weekend we found ourselves with 14 kids terrorizing our house.

Apparently, kids that age don't sit down very often.

The Death Star piñata (actually, a basketball piñata spray painted silver)

Stick the lightsaber on Luke.

And then today we had the family party. Charles was happy to see his donut cake.

Excited even.

And of course, Tori is always there with a random pose.

And now, in honor of Charles' birthday, here is a photostream of his first seven years.

Mothers Day

Joe made sure I was well taken care of yesterday for Mothers Day. It started out with beautiful flowers and breakfast in bed. Then after church we had a little Mothers Day party with presents and a homemade Peanut butter cake with three candles, one for each of my children. They even sent me on a scavanger hunt to find one of my gifts. They made sure I got a good workout in by sending me up and down the stairs from the basement to the top floor looking for clues. The clues finally led me to the fridge that's seldom used in the basement, inside were porterhouse steaks and ground buffalo meat waiting to be put on the grill. The food was all so yummy. Joe did a good job of making the kids feel included in the prep work. In fact when we got to church I realized Charles didn't have his glasses on. I asked him where his glasses were and he said, "I was just so busy doing Mothers Day stuff all morning that I must have forgot to put them on." I had a super Mothers Day and am very blessed to have a husband that helps me out and makes me feel so appreciated.

The great dinner Joe and the boys made for me

and

One of my gifts that I am very excited about.

Tickets to.....

Exploring Indiana

Sunday we had a Stake Conference (a conference for several of the LDS congregations in our part of the city) that allowed us much more free time than our typical Sunday schedule. We took advantage by setting out to explore the countryside north of Carmel and ended up in Lafayette.

The drive through the farmland was a great one; it was a beautiful day and the earth seems to be waking from its long winter's nap. Trees are blooming and a few farmers have already plowed their fields for planting. Let's just say we are downright giddy for spring, summer and fall in the Midwest. Here's to hoping that these three seasons can compensate for the 'other' one that will remain unnamed.

We had fun driving around and exploring Lafayette. We took a few pictures along the Wabash river and at the train station, then headed home for a popcorn movie party to finish watching the Sound of Music (we had watched the first third of the movie for our weekly Family Night a while ago). The boys enjoyed the movie a lot, which made me proud, and I thought the whole time about how soon I could get back to Salzburg.

Here is a link to the pictures: