Bouldering The Tree

Got rock shoes?  We gotta pad! 

(For Optimal Viewing - Click the Slideshow, then "Full Screen")

Jeanie and I scouted Joshua Tree last Sunday for fun boulder climbs in the 5.6-V0 range.  First we hit Cap Rock - The Hatrack, French Roast, White Crack, Four Corners, and then we paid homage at the Graham Parsons Memorial Traverse.  From there we hit the Manx/Asteroid Belt area, which features The Womb, Manx Boulders (including the freaky topout at Thingamajig), The Asteroid (Jeanie sent Ceres, I sent Retro), and Interceptor Boulder, where we chilled with some young gym climbers who were both hyped and humbled by the challenges of J-Tree monzogranite just like us.  We proceeded to show each other a few things on the wall!  From there Jeanie and I were compelled to cap off the day by visiting the House of Horrors, where we found The Real House, a peaceful hidden spot which is comprised of a 6-foot wide vertical crack between two granite mountains.  In there we tested ourselves on Walking Mexican Down The Hall, and scampered up between the walls to peer deeper into the mysterious natural enclosure.  We came out of the day transformed - eager to share the natural wonder of Joshua Tree to anyone who will listen!

Grace's First Karate Competition - The JKO National Karate-Do Championships

Congratulations Grace for competiting in your first karate competition - The 39th Annual JKO National Shito Ryu Karate-Do Championships!

(Click on the slide show and then click "Full screen" to get the best effect.)

Congratulations to Grace's friend Gabby for medaling in Kata,

and to Tabitha and Michael for their great efforts!

Special thanks to Hanshi Minobu Miki for his mentorship and encouragement.

Grace is very happy to be part of the Japan Karate Do Carlsbad Dojo.

http://www.jko.com/

Tropical Paradise - North Shore, Oahu

Our Big Family Vacation 2011 was to the North Shore of Oahu, and we had an unforgetable time!

Grace at Del Mar Beach Sep 2010 - Princess Idol

Great and gutsy performance by Grace at the Wildcat Nation Friday Night Princess Idol Throwdown at Del Mar Beach. 

Yeah Gracie!

ECDS Jog-a-thon 2011

Grace ran 19 laps in the 2011 Encinitas Country Day School Jog-a-thon, First Grade edition!

(For Full Screen click on slideshow, and click "Full screen")

Proceeds for this year's Jog-a-thon will go to help Etheopian children receive life-saving surgeries.  Grace raised over $300 for this worthy cause.  Thank you for all of you who supported her - Grandpa Booth, Aunt Susan, Auntie Evy, Ian, and Valeire, Granny Fanny, Jorge, Auntie Beaner, Aunt Jeni, Aunt Kristen, Aunt Kelly, and several awesome Heron Circle neighbors)!  We are quite proud of her and the ECDS effort!

Air Grace!

Way to go!

Our 10th Wedding Anniversary!

Hey, our 10th Wedding Anniversary is October 7, 2010!

RIGHT MOUSE CLICK HERE, OPEN IN NEW TAB, THEN CLICK SLIDE SHOW FOR FULL SCREEN EXPERIENCE 

As a part of the celebration, I've posted a slide show that focuses first on Grace as a baby.  Everyone comments on how Annika looks like her big sister as a baby, so now you can decide for yourself! The rest of the slide show focuses on pictures from 2005 and 2006 with an emphasis on our beach walks and trips.  Below are some clips from our Sequoia trip when Grace was two...

Greg's Top 10 Memorable Times Together

Our Wedding / Honeymoon

Our Engagement Weekend

Our Big Night Out - Kane

Camping Ostrander Lake - Yosemite

Moving into Portage House

Grace's Birth and Taking Her Home

Buying / Designing / Moving into Heron House

India / Amsterdam

Thailand / Cambodia / Korea
Annika's Birth

We have always loved the beach!

One last image - Grace and Cousin Zach jumping on the bed, 2006

Dear V,

Thank you for the most wonderful 10 years of marriage. 

I treasure our relationship and I affirm our vows. 

Let's dream our greatest dreams, 

and with conscious attention and love, 

our dreams will come true.

Love, Greg

Announcing Annika Kaylee Porter!

We are so blessed to share the news of the arrival of Annika Kaylee to this world July 3, 2010, 8:04am. Ask us the story because we love telling about it!

Coming Soon: Her First Days Slideshow!

The Beginning of a Love Story!

Grace's 6th Birthday Celebration at Encinitas Country Day

For a girl who always wanted to be five, Grace sure did enjoy her 6th Birthday celebration with her kindergarten friends at ECDS. Mrs. Maggie and Ms. Gaby were truly wonderful teachers for Grace and her class is such a great group of kids. It just feels that Grace has some friends for life in this bunch.

Credit V for the excellent outdoor photos. Grace, you can scarcely fathom what a wonderful year this will be for you.  (Click on the Slideshow then Click "Full Screen" so you can see the shots close up.)

Our Winter Trip

After Christmas we visited the Stricklands at their new home in Texas...highlights involved telling them about the Pea in Vivi's Pod, and a trip to freeze with the Grinch who Stole Christmas....

then headed east to visit Evelyn and Susan's families!

Porter Campbell Strickland McFadden Venick Holiday Party '09

Merry Christmas from our many families that come together as one...we are so blessed.

Buena Vista Athletic Club Annual Smackdown '09

This year's annual BVAC Smackdown was, as usual, a blast!

The fishing was bountiful for the Boyd / Porter boat on Friday, with a virtual limit by 11am!

The golf produced some amazing moments of skill and cunning - pretty sure Boyd took the cup Friday night but the memory is shaky.  Gosh, can't seem to remember who won Saturday night either!  (Must not have been me!)

Smalley rocked the Poker table Saturday night, watch for his 6 high straight in the slideshow...

Until 2010...

Beach Camping with the Gohls!

Now Tracy, you ok having your name in lights? OK, good.

We love beach camping with Scott, Tracy, Zayne and Allegra...so when you get TWO sessions in together in one month, - wow - that has to rock!  And it did. Heck they loved it so much we might even get them out next year to do it again!

 Couldn't you just put these pics on your wall?

Gohls, if you send your pics I'll layer 'em in! 

Sequoias!

(Click on the slideshow for a fuller screen view. )
We love the Sequoias, and this year we were part of a five-family stomp with Lodgepole as our base camp.




Sequoias are majestic!

We all love big trees!

Kids in the Meadow

 Snow in June, are you kidding???

See, the snow melted, no big deal!

Thanks Adam and Celica for setting this one up!!!!

Del Mar Fair

We had "the best time ever" taking Olivia and Grace to the Del Mar Fair this year! So many favorites...feeding goats, cow, and calf, pig races, pony rides, deep fried cheeseburgers, chocolate ice cream sundaes, the hypnotist, the super slide,
Ferris wheel,
Starship 3000!!!,
that wacky ride Olivia and V loved, super swings, the roller coaster, balloon popping...all in one trip! We can't wait to take Olivia and Zach next year...that's our wish!

Grace is Five!

Grace wanted to be five years old ever since she found out what a birthday was. So her fifth birthday was a major milestone that had been in the planning for quite a while. She decided her 5th would be a Hanna Montana birthday party back at age 3! Valencia did a wonderful job in the planning and organization, and the party was a great success!

Grace and her best friends Demi, Corey, Victoria, Kimberly and Haley

Happy Birthday Grace!!!!! XOXOXOXOXO Mommy and Daddy

Angkor Wat

In January, we flew to from Bankgok to Siem Reap
to explore Cambodia's amazing Angkor complex.


Greg and V at Bayan Temple, Angkor Thom.

This vast temple network was built by Khmer empire between 802 and 1327 AD. King Suryavarman II (12th Century) commissioned the main Angkor Wat complex as a dwelling for the gods. Indeed, "Angkor Wat is a built as a miniature replica of the universe and represents an earthly model of the cosmic world" with the inner chambers representing the gods' heavenly domain. No mortal was permitted to live on the site of these sacred stone temples, until years later when Buddhist monks were granted responsibility for maintaining the grounds.

The interior courtyard of Angkor Wat, adorned by celestial dancers.



Bayon's smiling stone temples canonize the august age of the Khmer.



As a fellow blogger put it, "The hypnotic and timeless allure of Angkor continues to be a tremendous source of national pride for Cambodians and the Khmer people. Angkor not only defines what it is meant to be Cambodian but also serves as the spiritual core of of what has historically been an oft maligned and beleaguered nation; a nation that has also proven, time and time a gain, to be nothing short of resiliant."




Bayon's bas-reliefs feature historical events and scenes of daily life.




The ruins of Ta Prohm have been overtaken by Silk-Cottonwood and Strangler Fig Trees

Thanks for watching!
(Say leave a note and say hi)

Sacred Southeast Asia

We want to thank Jan, George, John, Jennifer, Shane, Barbara, Rachael, and Dan for helping us make our trip to Thailand and Cambodia possible. Also, props to Collins and Langer for the encouragement and tips. Thank you "Angel", 'Phon, and 'Da for sharing your country with us and for your friendship.

(Viewing hint: To view a full-screen version of Sacred Southeast Asia, click the Slide Show, then click on "Original View" toward the upper-right corner.)

Reclining Buddha, Wat Pho, Bangkok, Thailand




6pm Monk Chant, Teak Temple, Chiang Mai, Thailand


Bayon Temple, Angkor Thom

The Vietnamese Boat People of Cambodia

Our guide Pahn suggested we visit Tonle Sap, Cambodia's "Great Lake", and we're so glad that we did. Cambodia honors three seasons; Winter, Summer, and Rainy. The Great Lake swells during the rainy monsoon season, and those who live along the lake (generally the Khmer, native Cambodians) and on the lake (generally Vietnamese) adjust my moving their homes in concert with the lake's edge.

Read more about the Vietnamese Boat People here.

We visited these "villages" during the dry season, and as such a road that had been underwater only a week prior was being used to move Khmer homes in toward the receding shore. The Vietnamese have it easier, it seems, as they simply connect their house boats and mozy into deeper water.

This slideshow tells a tale of two peoples that we can only begin to fathom. Slides two through ten show the Khmer people who live on the banks of the river; the remaining slides show the floating village of the Vietnamese...the Khmer and Vietnamese villages are adjoining but have very distinct characteristics.

Boating through the village feels like this.



Watch a house boat family moving to deeper water.



This is the village set at the high water mark of the Great Lake.

Click here for another traveler's description of the area...

Thanks for viewing!

New Year's Eve In Bangkok

V and I flew in to Bangkok just in time to celebrate the New Year...we dined at Eat Me, an ex-pat type place with live jazz, then scooted off to Bed Supperclub to ring in the New Year...you can check the photos and a few vids here...

The Countdown at Bed! (I tried to video our kiss...)

Bed Supperclub (Dark, but you can hear what it's all about)


Happy New Years, All!