So much has been going on this summer, it's hard to errr... summarize it all. Ha ha.

Elliot turned 4 at the end of June! We took him for a ride on the Duck Boats, which was his choice. We were both skeptical, having seen these atrocities motoring around the city. BUT, we were so mistaken about these things, and their insane drivers. It was one of the coolest things we've done in Seattle. Elliot and Lia had a blast!

Nicole went on a 4-day trip to Chicago for some tango workshops. This gave me time to make some real progress on the garage workshop project! I also got to hang with some of my friends and have some party-time.

But we missed mommy a lot, and made her a really cool welcome home sign. The kids had fun painting the letters, and we hung it for her over the front door.

We also had an awesome visit from Oliver, who drove across the country on a road trip, stopping here along the way home. We spent some time swimming on the lake, and visited the Kubota Gardens.

Summer is finally here.

-Rob and Nicole

Two parts "DJ", three parts "comedian", 1 part "crazy", and 5 parts "awesome"... we can only assume these drivers (performers) pass through a rigorous screening and try-out process, because they're amazing. If you're in Seattle, ride the ducks if for nothing more than the drivers' performances.

On his birthday, Elliot chose to ride a Duck Boat. A wise choice, and one he didn't regret!

These boats take to water like errr... ducks?

Elliot scopes out some of the local tourist sights from his Duck seat.

Nicole and Keryn at Elliot's 4th birthday party.

Nick and Kelsey! Wow, Nick really has grown up since we started this website!

Lilly Patenaude ponders, "Cake or ice cream or cake and ice cream"...

Mom cuts the cake, signalling the start of cake-carnage.

On Father's Day, dad gets to cuddle with his favorite kids.

Aqua Bus ride to Granville Island in Vancouver.

Chris keeps lia safe from the storm as we ride the Aqua Bus to Granville Island.

My buddy Matt Sammons and I went to see Ferry Corsten DJ at the King Cat theater in Seattle. Lots of jumping up and down, good for the hamstrings. (Mom was away in Chicago taking a bunch of tango workshops, kids were up at Grandma and Grandmpa's, YAY!)

One of the few sunny days this "summer" gave us a chance to have a picnic on the lawn!

"This letter will be blue..."

"This letter will be dark greeen..."

One of my latest projects: converting the completely useless wall of bare studs in the garage to a totally kick-ass workshop!

After a few weeks of trolling craigslist, I found these insane welding tables. They were custom made for a motorcycle fabricator who closed his business and needed to get rid of them. 1/4" cold rolled steel tops and 8 feet in length each for a total workspace of 16' x 30", I was more than happy to take these off his hands!

Super Bubbles!

Elliot goes for this swan-dive off a rock at the Kubota Gardens.

"Dad. You're sitting right on my launching area. Please move, Dad."

"Grandma, run faster!"

Bamboo Boy's mission is simple: to terrorize unsuspecting visitors in the Kubota Gardens with his unique primal shriek-attack.

Nothing like a little improvised slide-slip-and-slide!

"Aww, look how cute I am. Can I have an iPad?"

(Too cute for captions)

The Duck Boat: a vintage WWII amphibious landing craft serving as a tourist party vessel for more peaceful missions.

Lia scopes out the scenery from her seat aboard the duck boat. We're trying not to think about children wearing no seat belts and being driven by a borderline psychopath who's also a comedian.

Holding Elliot's hand during the ride. I looked down and saw his hand inside my own and realized once again how cool it is that he wants to hold my hand. I think it's one of the best things about being a parent, such a simple thing but when your kid takes your hand, it feels so good.

Birthday Party Time! Jacqueline and Nicole take a break from the scavenger hunt madness to smile for camera boy.

Brian and Lilly open another "hint letter" at Elliot's 4th birthday party scavenger hunt.

William zeroes in on the fairy house.

The cake! A real chocolate cake by request -possibly Elliot's biggest birthday wish of all.

"Wait I get to keep this turquoise straw hat AND I can eat this chocolate cake? Seriously?"

"MMMMMmmmm yep -this is real chocolate cake!"

Nicole and Lia check to see if I'm still "following" them.

The floating houses near Granville Island.

Speaking of hamstrings, here's Matt Sammons attacking a huge block wall. This is how excited he was before the show.

Gabriel and Dresden, the opening act at the King Cat theater.

"Yo Dad, put the camera down, it's time to eat!"

"Mommy's gonna love her "welcome home" sign!"

The finished sign, waiting for Nicole's return from 4 days of tango workshops in Chicago.

After my cousin Peter helped me connect the lines to the main panel (Thanks, Peter!), I ran a dedicated 20 amp 110v line for all the regular power tools. Alongside this, I ran a dedicated 30 amp 220v line for the MIG welder! It all runs under the sidewalk and into the garage through a 1" buried conduit.

After finding some good cabinetry, shelving, lighting, etc. I modeled everything to scale and tried different configurations. This was nice because I could make changes and see them without actually buying anything, or moving stuff around. This is the final plan...

Speaking of green, Lia tests out the grass, which needs to be mowed badly.

Oliver goes for this insane foot grabber move.

Lia tries on Elliot's hat.

Elliot races the Grandma/Lia combo team.

Bamboo Girl's mission is also simple: to support Bamboo Boy in his mission with her unique back-up shriek attack.

Lia takes a dirt bath while we do some gardening.

"Elliot better not get an iPad before me."

(Too cute for captions)