WOW...It Simply Is Not Possible

I know it doesn't seem possible to you either, but Katelyn just turned 18!!!  Where has the time gone?!  I don't think that this is real . . . I mean that makes us older, too.  Yikes!  Well, even though it doesn't seem real, it is, and she's the one happy about it!  She's finishing up high school - it's her senior year - in her third high school, and she's registered to vote!!!  She's also got her permit to drive, and when she's done enough practicing, she'll have her license . . . no way!!! (She's already got a car to drive, so she's set . . .) This is certainly an exciting time in her life.  Hopefully, we will keep you posted with all the changes . . . sorry I've been absent from the blog for a while. 

Happy Birthday, Katelyn!!!!!

Family Time

Well, we've returned from our "tour" of Germany, and here we are with the family in Oklahoma.  You can see everyone thanks to the timer feature on the camera - but there is no one to see our smiles.  Oh well . . . you got us all - even Chris . . . just not Scarlett and Antenna!  Nice way to come back to the good 'ole USA.

ENJOY!!!

The Scarlett Scoop

Well . . . there hasn't been a scoop on Scarlett in a while, and when I was going through Kate's pictures for Prom, I happened upon these that she has taken over the last year.  Hard to believe that Scarlett is already 15 months old.  She's as cute as anything, but only much, much bigger.  I can already hear the oooohhhs and aaawwws over the internet . . . yes, I can!!!

ENJOY!!!

Pretty for Prom

Well . . . it's that time of year . . . PROM!  Katelyn decided that she wanted to go with a few of her girlfriends.  She picked out a beautiful dress . . . made plans for dinner . . . and then headed out for an evening of fun.  Didn't she look gorgeous?!!!

Katelyn, Lyndalya, Amber, and Desiree

ENJOY!!!

Versailles

The last pictures of our trip to Paris . . . We spent part of a day at Versailles.  It is funny that it used to be a palace out in a country village . . . of course now, it's a palace in a suburb of Paris.   For the most part, we found it to be opulent, crowed with rude, pushy tourists and really, really in need of dusting!!!  I would say it was our least favorite destination.  But most importantly, we can say we've been there!

Mac and Katelyn with some of the tourist behind them.  

A chapel built inside the palace.

What they call the "Hall of Mirrors".  We didn't even realize that we were in with mirrors because it was so dusty.  I can see that in it's day, it was beautiful, just not now.  :o(

Mac, Katelyn and Tanya.

ENJOY!!!

French Fun

   You know, we did HAVE to eat at McDonalds at least one time while in Paris . . . I mean, McDonalds DOES have FRENCH fries, after all!  :o)     

                                                                                  

                                                              Mac posing on the Seine River.
                                                       

Mac got a cool Paris yo-yo at the Eiffel tower.  He learned all kinds of tricks . . .

Here he shows the "walk the dog" trick!

             Mac and Katelyn show off the artwork that we bought from this "artist".  We thought we were buying from the person that created these.  We got a fantastic deal - really amazing . . . only to find out later that we had been been the "victims" of a scam ARTIST.  They really were very, very inexpensive . . . something they we can frame and they can have in their apartments or dorms, or whatever . . . you know, something they picked . . . just sad that we realized that it really wasn't his work!  Oh well, it's a great story.  We were the perfect victims . . . we thought we got over on him, and it was really him that got over on us!  Ha!

A view of the Eiffel Tower with the replica of the Statue of Liberty in the middle of the Seine River.

Katelyn poses with the sticker that was placed on everyone in our group that went to see how perfume, real perfume is created.  She was just too cute, not to take this picture!

ENJOY!!!

Notre Dame Cathedral

What can one really say about the Notre Dame Cathedral?  It is an amazing church!!  Beautiful, ornate, and always something different and new for the eye to see.  I only wish we had more time to spend at this site.

ENJOY!!!

The Louvre Museum

Okay, so here you have it . . . Most of you know that I am NOT a museum lover . . . I'll go, but it's just not my thing.  It's not that I don't want to learn and see new things - it's just I'm quickly bored.  I figured that since John and I had gone to The Louvre the last time we were here, I had already checked that box . . . BUT I certainly did want Katelyn and Mac to see it all for themselves . . . (well, not ALL . . .)!!  When we got the opportunity on our tour, we decided to give it a whirl . . . and that we did!  Here are some of the highpoints of our trip to one of the world's largest museums!!!  (By the way, it IS the world's most visited museum . . . so now the kids can say they've visited it!  Yea!)

Of course, the main reason, I believe that most people come is for the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci.  I may be wrong, but that's what I think anyway . . . here it is in all it's glory.  Smaller than you'd think it would be . . . and certainly protected.  By real people and then glass over it to stop the flashes that people refuse to turn off.  We also posed with the Venus de Milo . . . another of the famous highpoints of visitors!

ENJOY!!!

Arc de Triomphe

Well, here we are at the Arc de Triomphe . . . one of the most famous stops in Paris!!! It certainly is a site to see!  It is amazing that there are 11 roads that come into that traffic circle that the monument sits in the middle of, and we didn't see one accident the entire time we were there!!!  (Or when John and I visited the same spot 20 years ago!! . . . Don't worry, though, I'm sure there are quite a few accidents there.  ??? 

  The Arc de Triomphe is a monument for those who have fought and died for France.           They also have the Tomb of Unknown Soldiers there from World War I. 

ENJOY!!!

Paris

Well, here you have it . . . Paris!!!  I won't say tons about it, because it doesn't need much being said . . . Katelyn and Mac hadn't been to Paris, so we finished off our spring break with a trip to Paris, France.  Friends from Carlisle, PA came for a visit, and this was our first stop on their 10 days with us. 

Today the picture highlights will be the Eiffel Tower and all it's majesty!

 Tanya, Mac and Katelyn show off their tickets to the top!

 "Smile and say formage!!!"   . . . (Get it???  cheese?!?) 

 Zillions of signatures . . . so, Mac and Katelyn add their names to the mix!

 Tanya - she's like a long, lost sister . . . You may remember seeing her in the pictures of me visiting friends when I visited the states for the Army conference.  She's a wonderful friend!

The whole group of us . . . Sheila, Lydia, Mac, Katelyn, Tanya, and Mark.

Sheila and Mark are friends of Tanya's and I also got to be friends with them the year we lived in Carlisle. 

ENJOY!!!

An Update!

Just wanted to give everyone an update on the Cox Clan!  So . . . my dad is doing better.  He has been moved to a rehab hospital and is getting quite a bit of physical and occupational therapy.  Thank you for your prayers . . . and please continue to pray for his recovery.  By the way, Mom is also getting stronger and stronger everyday since her twice hospital "incarceration" right before Dad's surgery.  Needless to say, they've just been hanging out at hospitals for the spring!!!  As for our family here in Germany . . . we've also had the sick bug . . . Mac is "surviving" Mono  . . . you got it - the kissing disease!!!  He had a fever for 15 days . . . and was very, very, very tired and had the sore throat that comes with it.  He had to miss lots of baseball, and even had to miss school.  (Of course, I don't think that he saw that as a problem!)  He, unfortunately, had to be here while we were packing out.  It's nice that most of his energy has returned, and hopefully he will get stronger and stronger everyday as well.  :o)  We plan to fly to the good 'ole USA on June 10.  We'll go to Altus for a few days and then get to San Antonio on the 14th of June.  We'll try to keep you updated as things might change.  Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

That's about it from here. 

(Next blog entry . . . back to the trips we've been on!)

ENJOY!!!

The Rock!

So . . . while in Malaga, we decided to take a road trip to see The Rock of Gibraltar!  Since we did this trip all on our own - well,  with three families, I mean . . . we decided we could make arrangements to go to the Rock of Gibraltar and see Monoco, Africa, etc.  Of course, the day we picked was probably the ONLY day of the year that winds came from the east.  When that happens, we were told, the rock gets "socked in".  Needless to say, we weren't even able to look across the straight of Gibraltar and see Monoco!  It was cool, none the less.  It's still a British Territory so everyone speaks English and they use the pound as money!  We took a city bus from Malaga - about 1 1/2 hours away since we had to make multiple stops.  We then hired a taxi van that tooks us all around to see the sites.  We saw a caves . . . military forts . . . and monkies!!! It really was a neat day . . . even without seeing Africa!

  ENJOY!!!