LaCombe Chronicle News - LCN: July 2007

Playground a huge hit with William Noel

Momma...thank you so much for my playground - I love the pool. It's the perfect place to cool down on hot summer days!

Oops...I've been splashing a little too much - I better get more water!

How did you know that I wanted a starfish? This is the perfect pool accessory!

I think I'll play with my dumptruck until I get hot - then...I'm hitting the pool!

Oh my gosh - I'm in kid heaven - there's just so many things to do in my playground.

Tractors, dump trucks, and shovels...oh my!

Arriving in style at my new playground! Wow! Thanks for the ride Grandmommy and Grandpoppy!!

Playground Opens at LaCombe Property

What happens when my Daddy has a free weekend, you say? Well, he builds me a custom playground in our backyard. Mommy and I helped the ol' man too. I hope you'll come visit me - we can splash in the pool, climb to the top of a rock wall, then slide down a slippery slide. Then we'll retire to my house for a refreshing drink of lemonade.

C'mon Daddy - let's get this mulch unloaded quick so we can play!

Hmmm...I had better check out every feature of my new home before I take possession from the builder.

Just installed my front door - I hope the red color is not too flashy for the neighborhood.

All the structures are installed - now...if we could only get some landscaping delivered.

Daddy - thanks for getting the materials for my home and playground. Would you please install them in the backyard?

OK, Mom - let me show you how to use the saw one last time. Daddy, you should watch too!

OK, I think this space should be sufficient to support my leisure needs.

Labels: LaCombe, Little Tikes, Playground

DML goes to KL

David recently traveled to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on business. The journey was a great experience professionally and personally. The people were very friendly and welcoming - I look forward to returning to see more of this country and the Asia-Pacific region.

Kuala Lumpur, commonly referred to as KL, is the capital and largest city of Malaysia. KL's climate is equatorial (pronounced hot and humid). I was surprised to learn that Malaysia is a young country - declaring its independence from the United Kingdom in 1957. There are currently 27 million residents of Malaysia.

The green line illustrates my 24 hour journey from NY to British Columbia then on to Hong Kong and finally KL.

The red line represents my 34 hour trip from KL to Tokyo (with 9 hour layover) then on to New York.

Arriving at the hotel after a harrowing ride in busy downtown KL. So many of the residents drive scooters - they weave through traffic on the bumpers of cars and buses.

This struck me as odd - I had to place my hotel key into a slot in the wall to power my room. Remove the key...all power goes off in 5 seconds. Clever...but it took some getting used to.

One night we were treated to a typical Malaysian dinner and performance.

Malaysian dancers performing a beautiful dance. The music was very festive and the costumes were colorful.

Trying my hand at shooting a dart from a blowgun...note the dart on a fatal path to kill my prey...the wild balloon.

I toured this Hindu Temple in KL and learned about Hinduism, Hindu customs and folklore.

Ganesh - the son of goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva. According to popular Hindu myth, Parvati created Ganesh from her own body to protect her when she bathed. One day while bathing, Lord Shiva (Parvati's husband) returned home to find Ganesh standing guard in his home. Shiva became enraged and beheaded the boy.

Goddess Parvati was furious of the beheading and demanded Lord Shiva to restore life to their son. Shiva instructed his troops to bring the head of the first animal they found. Ganesh was restored to life using the elephant head.

MY last day in KL was a treat - I enjoyed touring the Petronas Towers - popularized in the movie, Betrayal with Sean Connery. The 88 floor towers are the tallest twin towers in the world. I traveled to the skybridge connects the two towers. What a spectacular view!

David with Norwegian colleague Paul Martin.

Whale and dolphin sculptures at the base of Petronas Towers.

Lions, Tigers, Bears... Oh My!

Our "little lion" posing with a real lion!

This was our first weekend all together in several weeks. Inspired by the outfit Aunt Cindy gave to William, we decided to take a little safari and visit a small family zoo in New Jersey. We drove about an hour to Space Farms and Zoo so our "little lion" could see some of his favorite animals. We saw bears, lions, tigers, bison, lemurs, deer, snakes, ponies, goats... and others.

Space Farms has the largest private collection of North American animals, in their natural surroundings in the United States. The zoo also has many exotic species from around the world. Space Farms is internationally famous for their bear and lion cub breeding programs. There is also a museum of antique cars and other modes of transportation -- covered wagon, Teddy Roosevelt's burl walnut carriage, antique sleds, motorcycles, etc.

We had a picnic afterwards -- shrimp pasta salad, organic grapes, blueberries and strawberries, and homemade whole wheat oatmeal and organic raisin cookies (Daddy made them and they were so YUMMY!)

Family photo with Mr. Lion

Feeding the deer some corn that we purchased!

Swinging like a big boy!

Daddy fed the HUGE bears animal crackers... and the bears caught the crackers!!

Happy Independence Day!

July 4th was a wonderfully relaxing day! Daddy made his special whole wheat blueberry pancakes, -- wow!! Because of the rain, we had an indoor family picnic consisting of grilled hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans, and a "red, white, and blue" dessert -- oatmeal cookie crust topped with a cream cheese layer and raspberry puree then garnished with blueberries and white chocolate drizzles! Yummy! We watched the Yankees game, took a family nap, and then made a batch of biscotti! So much for relaxing!

We hope you had a wonderful July 4th!

Going Home

William was exhausted after our Mississippi visit. In fact, he had an upset stomach and fever for our journey home. FUN!! However, when we boarded the plane in Memphis on Sunday, the pilot picked him up and put him in the cockpit! William also got a trading card with the DC 9 on it! He held it the entire way home... whenever he wasn't napping! Usually, he would have been thrilled to be in the cockpit, but he was a bit under the weather!

Grandmother's 99th Birthday

William's Great-Grandmother, "Miss Anna" as she is affectionately known, turned 99 on Saturday, June 30, 2007. The Covington Clan along with friends and other family members gathered on this unusually hot Mississippi afternoon for a fish-fry in her honor.

William played and played with his cousins. He had a wonderful time, but late in the afternoon he just gave out!!

Playing football with cousins Christopher, Evan, Ethan, and Lee (not pictured).

Finally, I got the ball!! It was hot out there!

Sitting in the shade with cousin Becky and her son Lee.

Stopping for a brief moment with Paw Paw and Maw Maw... William didn't want to stop running long enough to take the shot!

Toward the end of the party, taking a break with cousin Anna.

Super Fun Moments

William had such a great time in Mississippi -- he played the entire time! He is going to be bored now in NY!!

Maw Maw and I have a secret handshake.

Power Rangers - Unite!!

"Helping" Paw Paw fill the pool after we moved it!

Uncle Noel and Cousin Lee Miller visited and shared popsicles with us!

Aunt Cindy arrived from Atlanta and helped William blow bubbles early Saturday morning.

Mr. Independent ... trying to blow bubbles!

Running in circles and acting silly with Uncle Eric

Cousin Christopher "taught" William to play the piano -- Christopher is quite accomplished and William tried to mimic what Chris did! Adorable!

Playin' in the Pool

After the thunderstorm passed, William donned his swimsuit and played in the pool! Then, he dried off by playing on the lawnmower, "ac-tor" (tractor) he called it!