Henry's Parents' 5th Anniversary

Auntie Kels took on full-time Henry duty for 2 days and nights while Mommy and Daddy (aka Kelly and Luke) took off for Vermont to celebrate 5 years of wedded bliss.

Our actual anniversary (August 2nd) was spent with Henry, touring the Lexington and Concord battle road (after all, love IS a battlefield...)

Henry particularly enjoyed the picnic lunch on the battle green. We decided to save the lessons of bloody warfare and struggles for independence for his NEXT visit.

That night, our celebratory dinner consisted of fine Moscato d'Asti wine (our favorite) and BBQ. A strange combination, perhaps, but tasty nonetheless!

The following weekend, we celebrated our quint anniversary with a little getaway. For Luke, this meant disc golf. (Please see Luke's website, disctrips.com for those pictures. Since this blog is created by me, Kelly, you won't see many disc golf pictures here.) ;-) For ME, this meant that we would eat our way through our trip, balancing my love for fine food with Luke's love for not going broke.

Our first eating stop, The Fabulous 50s Diner. Luke's choice. I had a helluva hot dog and some sweet potato fries. Luke ate burger #1 of the trip.

In addition to his quest to play disc golf in all 50 states, Luke is also hoping to see the top 100 private colleges through our travels. We peeked in on Dartmouth during what was perhaps the most beautiful afternoon ever. No, this is not a photo from their admissions packet, WE took this! Gorgeous!

Following our brief stay at Dartmouth, we went to the Queechee Gorge. It is an amazing view and we took a trek down into the canyon.

The obligatory "New England Covered Bridge" photo. Our light was waning, but it was picturesque, no doubt!

The next day, we went to the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park. It involved a farm, a mansion, and a large wildlife area for hiking. Located right outside of the GORGEOUS town of Woodstock, VT, it was a perfect destination.

Hanging out with the "cow-kitties".

We hiked to "The Pogue" a pond tucked on the side of a "mountain".

Then we continued on to the top of "North Peak", overlooking the town of Woodstock. "Picturesque" doesn't even BEGIN to describe it. Absolutely gorgeous. It was the most quintessential, peaceful New England town I could ever imagine.

On the way back down, Luke chose the "Precipice Trail". I did not know it was called this when we began our descent. Even for Colorado Mountain-climbing Luke, he was surprised to see GUARD RAILS along the trail! That, combined with the extremely muddy conditions we came across in some areas made me glad to make it down in one piece.

After Woodstock, we headed to Grafton, a historic, small, sleepy town in southern Vermont. The historic inn there has hosted such famous people as: Henry David Thoreau, Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Woodrow Wilson.

Don't be fooled by the events calendar. Far less was going on than it seemed like. We decided to embrace the sereneness of the Inn, and go with the flow... We tried tennis (evidently the first people in years to request balls and rackets), ate dinner at the inn and people watched the other guests, and played an after dinner game of chess. No television caused us to miss the Olympics, but, hey, we were experiencing tranquility.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip, planned by my dashing and thoughtful husband. We have been blessed with five amazing years, and can't wait to see where the next five will take us!

Kirstin's Visit to Boston!

We were so lucky to have Kirstin (the beloved maid of honor from our wedding and the one who introduced Henry's mommy and daddy to one another) come and visit us in Boston. Unexpectedly, she was able to stay for a prolonged visit. We had a blast, and Henry loved having another "Auntie" around.









**NOTE: Though there is not a blog to commemorate Kelsey's arrival in Boston, we must note the important addition to "The Boston Andersons". No, we did not have another baby (who arrived at age 21 and 5 foot 9 inches tall), but we do have another Boston Anderson here. Welcome, Kelsey, and we're excited to include you in "Henry B and The Andersons"!


Kirstin reads a story to Henry.

Auntie Kelsey and Henry play in a box. This is Henry's "cheese" face!

We decided to head to downtown Boston for some official "tourist" activity. We all enjoyed the subway, followed by a run through the rain to catch the famous...BOSTON DUCK TOURS! We had a quack-tastic time, and learned a lot about the city, too!

Kelsey enjoys the Charles River.


Henry did NOT enjoy the duck tour. He divided his time between Mommy's and Daddy's laps crying each time the boat/bus accelerated.

Hopefully Kirstin can bring John along sometime soon, or maybe we'll all trek down to Florida! Such fun!

Some proof that Henry is adorable...

...Just in case you weren't sure! :-)

Thanks for looking!

Granny Marie's Visit and a Wake up call!

Granny Marie was lucky enough to have foot surgery and some free time, so she came to Boston for some baby-therapy. Well, maybe she wasn't lucky in having to have the foot surgery, but we were lucky she had the time to come visit!


Our wake up call is that we NEED to take more (and better!) pictures. Luke thinks this would be best remedied by purchasing a SLR camera. I think that it would help if I ever got to touch the camera, at all. Ha ha.

Anyway, here are the few photos that document the visit.

Henry LOVED having his Granny around. She played with him, read to him, took him outside a LOT, and he had a ball! One thing she did (that mommy tires quickly of) was take him outside and follow him around the yard, as he walked in circles. Here he is, on one of his many marches around the house.

On Saturday, we decided a trip to the beach was in order. Mommy researched, and we found the perfect place. It was lots of fun, for all! We hope to go back again soon.

On Sunday, we went to Harvard for the afternoon to check out where Daddy works and to see the famed "glass flowers" of the Harvard Natural History Museum. They were quite interesting.

Much moreso than the flowers, Henry loved looking at the stuffed animals (a different kind than he is accustomed to at home).

While Granny was here, we stuffed ourselves silly with good meals. At one such dinner, Henry had "had enough" of adult conversations and grown-up food. He was being a typical toddler in that situation, and mommy was about to send him off to bed. Granny handed him an ear of corn, and he WENT TO TOWN! Evidently, it only takes 8 teeth to eat corn off the cob.

Thanks for visiting, Granny! We all had a great time! Come back soon!

The 4th at the Lake!

For Luke's 29th year, my 9th, and Henry's 2nd, we all headed to Nebraska for some good, old-fashioned 4th of July fun. This year required a little more effort, being that we had a longer way to travel. It took us 2 buses, a train, a plane, a family minivan pick-up, and a rental car, but we made it!

Here we are, the Lemmers family. This is (by far) not all of us. When it all begins with a family who has 10 children, there are bound to be a lot in subsequent generations... I think this represents 6 out of the 10 children and only about 1/4 of all grandchildren...

Henry watches the choo-choo and the parade that loops around the lake on the morning of the 4th. He was mostly excited by all of the ba-ooooooos that he saw. (Balloons.)

Henry and Daddy take a golf cart ride. GCRs (as we like to call them) are by far my favorite part of going to the lake. I admit that I enjoy the quiet 1:1 or 1:2 ratio of the rides, amidst the 40 or so people who hang out at the cabin. Henry also enjoys them! I think he's a bigger fan of the wind in his face rather than the quiet.

Henry and Great Grandad play a game of pinball. Unfortunately for Grandad, this was the only way Henry would hang out with him. I think it's the beard. Maybe daddy needs to grow one in order to condition Henry to think beards are okay.

Henry loved being on the water. So precious!

We summered in Connecticut this weekend...

You know you've "arrived" when you begin to use the word "summer" as a verb. No, we have not won the lottery or come into a large sum of money, but we certainly felt like we had! Our friends, Hillary and Rob, have a wonderful place that they call home in southern Connecticut. Their neighbors are mostly the uber-rich, people who have second homes in this gorgeous corner of New England. We were hosted by truly expert regional guides to geography, cuisine, and local pastimes. It was a wonderful weekend - kudos to our hosts!

The view from the backyard. Serene!

Luke relaxes in the hammock. See how peaceful it was?

Our hosts, Rob and Hillary. Even they seem relaxed, while showing us a good time!

Henry doesn't desire relaxation or respite. Here he is "working" hard, pushing the stroller around the farmers' market. It is very serious, important work.

One of the local sights is the Gillette Castle. Built by the actor who played Sherlock Holmes on Broadway in the early 1900s, this castle was his retirement home. As the architect and designer, Gillette paid attention to every detail. The woodworking alone is amazing. I love finding regional gems like this! Who knew it was even there?!? So neat.

The Gillette Castle view of the Connecticut River. A "must-take" photo. :-)

Henry explores the grounds with his high-stepping march.

After Henry's nap (our guides were incredibly attentive to the needs of a one-year old!) we went to local swimming hole. Author's Note: I fully realize that most people who post pictures of themselves in their swimsuit on the internet have a much better body than I... For the sake of this blog and its archive of Henry's adventures, I am sacrificing my own cyber-image. Please don't judge, and be sure to wear your sunglasses while looking at this photo.

Post-swimming, Henry lays back in the hammock with some of daddy's discs. This picture makes him melt.

Our family, about to depart from our weekend of fun.

Here she is, our quintessential hostess. Many thanks, and keep enjoying the scenery for us!