Family Portraits and Favorite Pictures - 2013

This year began with several basketball games for Andy.

Of course, it's time to Andy's birthday in early January.

We had a nice time at Harper's Ferry in the end of January.

February brought a new arrival to our family, Tank.

Lexi is having fun playing volleyball, even if it was just the time between games goofing around with friends.

Nancy enjoyed a quick visit to Missouri

Andy had a lot of fun with his CYA basketball team, although they lost in the first round of the playoffs.  Andy and his friend, Tommy, were voted to the all star team.

Alexa has sure enjoyed volleyball this season with NVVA.

Tank has become our hiking buddy, although his limit is about six miles as Nancy learned when he stopped at the side of the trail and took a nap about 6.4 miles into a hike at Manassas National Battlefield.

Andy and Tank had a lot of fun with a snowfall in early March.

Tank busted on the furniture.

We had fun seeing Jaclyn at the start of spring break.

We headed to Sunday River, Maine for spring break.

Andy had several pictures chosen for an art display.

Here is Lexi with her friend Dani and then Heather.

We had a lot of fun with Grandma Pat's visit and a trip down to the Cherry Blossom Festival.

Here is Lexi at a volleyball tournament the next day

Here they are after winning a tournament.

Andy is sure enjoying having Tank around.  Yes, they are both asleep and snoring under the dining room table in this one.

Too bad we never have exciting pictures of Andy playing soccer.

Here is Andy, Charlie, Tommy and Zach at a Nationals game.

Here are a couple more from the Memorial Day weekend tournament

Over Memorial Day weekend, the boys went for a hike in Shenandoah.

Here are some more pictures from one of Andy's soccer games.

Steve and Andy really had a good time watching the US Soccer Team.

Steve and Andy enjoyed their hike in Shenandoah so much, the whole family went back in early June.

Lexi has sure made some good friends, and she sure enjoyed volleyball and her coaches.

Here is Andy at Lees Corner's Western Day, and with his teacher, Mr. Houser.

Here are the kids getting ready to fly to Omaha on the last day of school.

With the kids gone, we got to play a little.  Here is Nancy kayaking at Wye Island in Maryland.

and Tank playing at Lake Fairfax

... and playing in Bull Run

... or just enjoying a walk around the Mall.

We all really enjoyed a week in North Carolina on Emerald Isle with Nancy's family.

August began with Andy's first soccer tournament with his new team, the Fury.

Afterward, we headed to Philadelphia and Independence Hall.

The kids were pretty happy to see Tank again, and vice versa.

The end of summer came too quickly.

The fall began with a bigger scare than we care to contemplate, as Steve suffered a seizure that revealed a brain meningioma, which is a tumor of the lining of the skull that was putting pressure on his brain.  His was a 3.1 x 3.1 x 3.4 cm mass.  Fortunately, the neurological surgery went as well as could possibly be expected and the prognosis is great.

Here is Andy heading off to the first day of school.  Alexa "managed" to have to run to the bus and got away without a picture.

Tank is getting more and more adventurous in the water.  Here he is in a pond on the other side of Fairfax County Parkway.

Nancy is ready for her interview.  Just love this quilt from Dee.

Lexi is having fun with her CYA Select Volleyball team, especially as several friends from school are on the team.

Here are some images clipped from a video of one of Andy's soccer games late in Septermber.

Here are some images clipped from a video of Lexi's first CYA Select volleyball game.

Here are some more pictures of Andy playing soccer.

Here are the kid's school portraits from this fall.

Lexi really enjoyed her birthday party.

Even Tank was ready for the party.

Christmas was a blast with so many family members here.

We enjoyed a trip to Colonial Williamsburg after Christmas ...

... and the Marine Corps Museum.