Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu

Photo#1: Village with Machu Picchu mountain in the background. Machu Picchu meaning "Old Mountain."

#2: Looking down on Wayna Picchu. Means "New Mountain"

#3: Flowers around the village

#4: View from the TOP of Wayna Picchu. A very difficult climb, but worth the view.

#5: Food storage "warehouses" at Machu Picchu.

From the top of our highest vista: Abra Salkantay at 15, 253 ft above sea level.


The same, except to prove I actually MADE IT!
A single shot of one of three avalanches we were treated to while at our summit.
Machu Picchu: The whole village with Waynu Picchu in the background. Yup, we climbed that peak too.

Llama and Alpaca farm just outside of Cusco. Llamas come in all shapes, sizes and some with dredlocks!
Weaving a beautiful Peruvian Alpaca masterpiece.

Heading to the start of our Inca trail trek. Salkantay peak in the background.

View from base camp night #1. Also my birthday. It was beautiful and COLD!!!

Around town in Cusco. Notice the baby llamas in their jackets.

A beautiful, happy baby on the street in Cusco. Llama keepers in traditional garb.
A view from outside of Cusco at Ollantaytambo.


A child near Pisca ruins with his baby lamb. The faces of locals are often chapped by wind and sun. He was gracious enough to pose in return for a pen and pencil.

Biker Babe Returns

Anyone else think the saying couldn't have come at a better time??!! Nor can anyone disagree that this says it all. I can hardly believe that some persons (who shall remain nameless) made me give up something that I really loved...riding. This t-shirt was given to me Wednesday as I re-joined my old friends at Hooters to kick-off our Memphis Bike Night ride and it is my new favorite. My friend DaNeille not only gave me the tee but she also let my use her extra bike for the evening. I realized it had been a VERY long time since I had ridden...but it didn't take long to get the skill and confidence back!!! Her extra bike is a Honda 750 and just my size. Her bike is the red one parked next to mine in the photo. This t-shirt is a new one in her line of mostly female biker shirts that she shares with her girlfriend, Shelia. Anyone interested needs to check out their website. http://www.mcgwear.com/ The group of more than 10 left Hooters and traveled on down to Southaven, MS for dinner. After we rode on to Beale Street in downtown Memphis where on Wednesday nights hundreds of bikes of all makes and models line both sides of the narrow street and the partying is in full swing. Since I have a strict, self-imposed policy of never drinking and riding, I was able to really let the atmosphere sink in. It was loud, obnoxious, and I think downtown visitors to Memphis probably couldn't believe what they were seeing. We struck up conversation with a journalist from Austin, TX in town covering the Issac Hayes funeral...since this is a family blog I'm unable to quote him verbatim, but let's just say, he was LOVING IT. After a little time at the Coyote Ugly bar watching girls dancing on the bar (many of who should NOT have been dancing on the bar), we headed back east and I got home well after midnight. My advice for those of you who have been thinking about getting a bike, I say do it. For those of you FEMALES who are thinking the same...I say GO FOR IT and buy your gear at Motorcycle Girl Wear! Life is getting good again. Thanks, DaNeille!!!!

Love, Karen

Old Friends and New

A week or so ago, I visited Cathy, Jamie and the boys in Connecticut and got so much more. After 20 years, I managed to spend time with not one, but two high school friends. Heather, who was my BEST friend drove down from New Hampshire with her wonderful boys, Nicholas and James. Eric and his kids visited from just down the road. While all together, we conferenced in a couple more old friends, Tom and Tom. What fun! Amazing to see each other after all these years. We've promised to get everyone together for a small reunion of our close buddies and I am very much looking forward to it!!
The kids, as you can see, found that their new friends were great!!! They found common ground with the Wii, Nintendo DS, and swimming. The house was loud, bustling and I wouldn't have traded it for the WORLD!! I haven't really been able to find the words to describe how blessed I feel to have be reunited with my dear friends so we could reminisce and remember the old days during this time in my life. It appears it was truly meant to be. And I CANNOT wait to see them all again. We won't ever lose touch again. Thanks Heather, Eric, Tom and Tom for joining me. All my love, Karen

Beautiful Biltmore

I recently had the chance to visit America's Largest Home...the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC. If you haven't been, it is definitely a MUST SEE!!! The grounds, gardens, and vineyard are NOT to be missed.

A Little More of Paris

Joie de Vivre

Hi Everyone. As you can see, Charlee and I crossed the big pond and headed to Paris. The trip was a gift for a job well done in finishing high school. An eye opening experience for anyone! My little girl braved elements unknown and took the city in stride...making her mom of French ancestry PROUD! We had such an amazing time. There are so many memories to share but I can't begin to capture them all. Taking the stairs to the 2nd level of the Eiffel Tower was pretty wild. I couldn't walk for three days afterwards. Getting up close and personal with the gargoyles perched atop Notre Dame...WOW! Being invited to coffee with a few of the portrait artists at Monmartre...PRICELESS. We made new friends, saw new things, and ATE like it was our only job. But in France, you should do as the French...and boy did we. Berets off to Charlee who has begun her life of international travel. Bonne chance

A Week of Graduations

This week, Charlee from high school. Here's a few photos of Charlee's big day. Next week, Charlee and I leave for Paris. We are SOOOO excited. More pictures from the City of Light!!! Love, Karen

Charlee Heads to Prom

Seems like May is going to be all about Charlee. Tonight, I met Melissa, Mike and Granny Gran to take prom photos for Charlee. She was beautiful as usual! Her date, Caleb, uh, yeah...he's a knockout! They make such a great couple, don't you think. Caleb is Casey's (Charlee's friend in red) twin brother. Casey's date was Army ROTC cadet, David. Aren't they just fabulous looking? They did all the pinning of flowers and corsages and everything. It's all charming. I had MAJOR flashbacks to prom oh, about nine million years ago. Keep an eye open for blogs, in a few weeks we'll be celebrating graduation after that, Charlee and I leave for Paris. We're counting the days. Enjoy the photos.

Love, Karen

The Other Side of the World...

A few photos from my trip to China in February.

Peyton's 1st Birthday

Can't wait to get the comments for this post...but it's worth it. On Tuesday, our little girl turned one year old. Since you only turn one once, we did it up for her. Her cake was specially made
by someone in California and shipped to us. We celebrated a little late since we were in Maine until Wednesday. As you can see, Peyton did really well with the whole thing, including the hat and bandana. Once she got the idea that the cake was DOG FRIENDLY, she was completely engaged in the process and was beyond focus, as witnessed by the picture. But I think she enjoyed the clean up more than anything...because she NEVER gets to stand up on the table. Attending the party were her brother, Petie, and sister, Jessica, both who agreed that dog cakes are AWESOME.

Yes, I understand that some of you think we're obsessed with our puppies, and you would be correct and that's ok. We love our babies.
Since we don't know the real birthdays of our other babies, we went with what we knew. Thanks for entertaining our illness. Enjoy the photos. Love, Karen and Peyton