Brownie Eats in California

Uncle Mike was off to Berkeley, California last week for a work trip. He and Brownie spent most of the time in the hotel so there wasn't much in the way of sightseeing. Just down the block was a really great hotdog restaurant though!

Later in the week, Brownie and Mike shared some sushi. Brownie had such a hard time with the chopsticks he ends up getting a little sauce on his paw!

Hopefully next trip there will be more to see. Brownie recommends taking Alaska Airlines rather than American though. The seats have just a little more leg room.

Brownie goes to Seattle

Aunt Jeannette and Uncle Mike recently took a trip to Seattle to attend Jeannette's friend Jessica's wedding. It was a great time and Brownie got a lot of pictures taken.

There was a big pig made of beads in the hotel lobby!

On the second day there, we call went to the Seattle Aquarium to see the fish, otters, and seals. These clown fish live among coral for protection.

That night we went over to Chris and Emily's apartment where Brownie got a picture with their sumo wrestler statue. Isn't he funny with the hat and glasses on?

Jeannette and Brownie are looking over the menu at Duke's Chowderhouse. The seafood out west is really really good.

We finally made it to the wedding reception and Brownie almost got eaten by this big metal fish!!

After escaping the fish, Brownie helped out by setting up the name cards for everyone to get when they arrived.

Mike and Jeannette got to see at the first table since Jeannette was in the wedding. Everyone had a good time at the reception.

On Sunday, we took a trip out to Snoqualmie Falls, about 30 minutes east of Seattle.
We always love it when we get a chance to go to Seattle, so hopefully we can make it back again next year. Where will Brownie go next?

Summer Projects

It was a beautiful day out so Uncle Mike decided to take some pictures in the yard and of a couple projects he's working on.


This little oak tree was grown from an acorn that fell from the tree at Grandma and Grandpa's house. This year it started outgrowing it's little fence so Mike upgraded it to a new little white picket fence. Can you see Brownie hiding behind it?
Grandma helped pick out these purple flowers when she was visiting. They're growing inside of an old apple tree stump.

Brownie's hiding in the butterfly house that Mike is making for Grandma. It's taking a really long time!

This is one of Mike's other projects. What do you think he's building?

Brownie Goes to North Carolina!

This past weekend Brownie went with Uncle Mike and Aunt Jeannette to North Carolina. (Have your mom and dad show you where North Carolina is on a map.) Mike and Jeannette were going to Bald Head Island off the coast to see one of their friends get married. In order to get there you have to take a ferry. Brownie waited for the ferry with them:

There are no cars on the island so to get around everyone drives golf carts. Our friend Joe that was getting married rented a golf cart that looked like an expensive car:


Later that same day, we made friends with a crab on the beach.


The next day we visited "Old Baldy." This is an old, unused lighthouse on the island. Lighthouses are tall towers with bright lights in the top that help guide ships along the coastline.


We climbed all the way to the top of the lighthouse to see the great view. Brownie is looking over at the marina where the ferry dropped us off on the first day:


Mike, Jeannette, and Brownie had a really nice, relaxing time on the island.

Grandma and Grandpa visit Mike and Jeannette

If you remember, Uncle Mike hurt his pinky finger so Grandma and Grandpa went to Champaign to visit and help out. The cat post needed to be wrapped with rope, Grandpa and Jeannette took care of this while Brownie supervised. He's down there in the shadow.


Here's a closer look of Brownie helping out with the hammer.

Shortly after that, Grandma was outside transplanting a plant. She's really good at it, so Brownie just sat close by and watched.


Mike really appreciated everyone helping out and hopes everything is going well in Quincy.

St. Louis

Uncle Mike and Aunt Jeannette took a short trip to St. Louis last Thursday and took Browning along for the ride. They didn't bring the camera but were still able to take a couple pictures with their cell phones.

Brownie was riding in Mike's shirt pocket all evening, here he is in front of a fountain outside of Union Station:


This is the view from our hotel. You can see a community garden right outside, Union Station on the right, and the St. Louis Gateway Arch all the way in back. Ask your mom and dad about the arch!

Front Hill Removal

Today Mike and Jeannette had someone come out and remove the hill in front of their house. Brownie made sure to get a photo taken on top of the hill beforehand. He looks so small!



Is Brownie allowed to operate the bobcat???


Mike and Jeannette are so happy to have the hill gone. Brownie is in this picture too, but he's tiny.

Wolfram Research

It was Jeannette's turn to take Brownie to work. She took a LOT of pictures, but here are the highlights.


On the way to the office, Brownie made sure to wear his seatbelt.


This is Aunt Jeannette's desk at work, she's much more organized than Uncle Mike.


This is Cat the receptionist, she's really awesome and was willing to share her donut with Brownie.


Wolfram is a pretty fun place to work. Look at all of this neat stuff!


It's not all fun and games though. Jeannette put Brownie to work making copies.


Wolfram has offices all over the world, so they spend a lot of time on conference calls talking with other groups.


After all of this work, Brownie needed a drink so he headed to the break room for a soda. Uncle Mike took note that the soda fountain doesn't have any Dr. Pepper.

Working with Uncle Mike

Brownie went to work with Uncle Mike today. He started by riding along in Mike's backpack.


In this next picture, Brownie is trying to help Uncle Mike work.


After that Brownie took some time to hang out with the other stuffed animals in the office. Can you find him?

Arrived Safely!

Brownie arrived safely this morning. It was a very long trip and he was tired so he decided to take a nap with Diesel.