Walking through the woods to work and back has been a gift that keeps giving.
Photo by Hugo of dad looking critically at the older kids, probably
We packed up the wagon and picked up Huey from daycare like this.
This is Huey's 'cation face.
We stopped in Bavaria for dinner and ice cream.
We stopped in Salzburg the first night.
Mom and the kids went to bed and dad went out for a brief photo walk.
One family rule is you can jump on beds in hotels if they seem sturdy enough.
We had to explain the eternal yet futile struggle for permanence.
Statistically probably half of the people who put these locks on the bridge are probably broken up, divorced or dead.
Dressing your kids as Von Trappes is always an option.
Travel ice cream is always a double-edged sword. You can use is as a threat for hours, but then when you make good on your deal with the devil, your kids are all sugared up and chocolate-faced.
Nice to see the cafes open again and the people watchers out.
There are a couple of noteworthy castles just off the Autobahn in Austria.
We made it to our Airbnb in Slovenia, which had a great garden for a backyard.
It's important to carve out some grown up time. "Family trip" and "vacation" are not the same thing.
The inside was clearly a Slovenian family farmhouse where the parents lived in it as long as they could.
The grape vines growing out of the ground and then lining the deck that overlooked the entire backyard were a fabulous touch.
The kids were mostly in it for the lake swimming at Lake Bled.
That early-afternoon, post-swim glaze.
The food was overall mixed, but when it was good, it was fabulous.
Some restaurants had lakeside views. Others, views of old guys playing chess.
Walking home up a hill is best if you've had a hearty meal.
We met a friendly night cat and had to give it lots of pets.
The authorities don't allow motors on the lake so dads can show off rowing skills.
The old lake church is built on the only island in Slovenia. Early on it was a settlement.
The parents agreed that the church had the best ice cream on the trip.
The old mechanical clock in the tower still functions.
The menfolk went to visit the castle and the ladies went paddleboarding.
We stopped by Soteska Vintgar on the way out for a dad-enforced hike.
The kids quickly found the enthusiasm due to natural wonderment.
The hike from the end was a few kilometers long and often unshaded. The kids lost their enthusiasm quickly but held it together because they were promised ice cream.
Fun fact: By most measures, Slovenia has the lowest or among the lowest levels of income inequality.
Back in Austria we blazed by endless farmhouses.
The autobahn goes through tunnels so long that they have to tell you which way is better to escape in case of trouble.
Don't dream your life, live your dream!
It was some good fun blazing through the alps in our vintage BMW listening to the same few pop-trance-CD's in the 6-disc changer in the back. There are worse experiences.
This would be a great place to have a job working on power lines, like these guys.
Stopped for gas west of Salzburg.
We were happy to meet the cats at our airbnb.
We let the kids watch nature shows to wind down.
The soothing decor in the bedrooms helped.
Our Austrian host had two cats and one of them was particularly good.
Visited a castle on the way out. It was so-so. Everyone was ready to go home at this point.
The kids are getting old enough to get their own fish sticks.
First day of 4th grade in German school.
Hugo and dad like to hunt for mushrooms and snails during walks to and from school.
Jeffrey tends to go hardest on the pump tracks. We found a new one in the area.
Hugo has a near-nightly airing of grievances when it comes to what he wishes to eat and not eat.
Jeffrey got a trip to the go karts for his birthday. He didn't care for the kids being aggressive and ramming him. By the time he was ready for a second run, kid time was over.
So we went to the Mercedes museum. They took one look at our car and gave us VIP parking.
Our elderly neighbor gave him a few lego sets he'd been keeping in their original boxes with instructions inexplicably since the late 80's.
