Back Up Your Numbers . . .

Every once in a while, we hear in passing conversation something unique, something original, something hysterical, or perhaps a combination of all three at once.  If you live in my house, you'll hear this everyday...  Our third daughter Genevieve is a one of a kind who has the sass to back it up... Today while riding in the car with her sisters, the following conversation took place:

Gev:  Mommy, why do I have to take a nap but they don't.
Mommy:  Because you are four and your sisters are six and seven years old.
Gev: Well, that's NOT FAIR! Why can't I be six or seven?
Mommy: Because your sisters were born first.
Gev: (Huffing) Well that's it girls!  You're just going to have to back up your numbers!  (Then I can be six and then seven too.) 
Grace: It doesn't work that way Genevieve, you can't go back in time.

BIG enough for ice cream

Gev has taken control of the game.  She won't let her BIG sister have the rings.

THEN AND NOW . . .

Sometimes you have the opportunity to re-create photos taken from the past... today I did just that... I hope you like it...

THEN...

NOW...

When Angels Cry . . .

Sometimes, even the angels cry . . .

Sit Back and Put Your Feet Up for a While . . .

Happy Father's Day to all my fellow Dad's!  I took this shot today as we celebrated Father's Day at the Lake. . .

Image of the Year. . .

 Perhaps my favorite image of the year. . . right place, right time. . .

In the age of Facebook and Twitter, it was only a matter of time before the world learned the identities of the kissing couple from that now-iconic photo of the Vancouver riots.
About 24 hours after photos of the smooch was passed on through emails, IMs and blog posts, the Toronto Star and the CBC are reporting that the boyfriend and girlfriend in the photograph are Aussie bartender Scott Jones and Canadian college student Alex Thomas, who was injured just before the picture was taken.
The papers report that Jones and Thomas have been dating since Jones arrived in Vancouver on a "working holiday." They attended Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, which the hometown Canucks lost 4-0 to the Boston Bruins, and then somehow found themselves between the angry rioters and charging riot police later that night in downtown Vancouver.
The famous aftermath, as captured by Getty Images photographer Rich Lam:

So how were Jones and Thomas ultimately identified as the unlikely "make love, not war" couple of Vancouver's embarrassing night of injury and destruction?
It probably won't surprise you to learn that Facebook was involved.
Though Scott's sister Hannah first identified her brother to an Australian news network, things really started taking off when  Brett Jones, Scott's father, posted the following update on his Facebook profile on Friday morning from the family's home in Perth, Australia.
(Note the funny response from Scott's brother, Ryan.)

Brett Jones now says the couple is being besieged by media requests from outlets around the world. All, of course, are interested in knowing the circumstances that found the couple smooching as cars were burned and windows were smashed around them.

But despite some of our initial assumptions, the kiss seen 'round the world wasn't the product of a riot-fueled, uncontrollable passion. Brett Jones instead notes that Thomas was injured and his son was coming to her aid. An alternate angle taken from above shows other bystanders later attempting to help Thomas and Jones.
Combine that different angle with Brett Jones' story and it certainly dispels the rumors that the couple had intentionally staged the photo.

"They were between the riot police and the rioters, and the riot police were actually charging forward, and Alex got knocked by a [police] shield and fell to the ground," Brett Jones told CBC News. "[Scott] was comforting her and gave her a kiss to say, 'It's going to be OK,' and the photographer just took the shot at that moment."

Jones' mother Marie said she immediately knew it was her son in the picture because "he doesn't have a lot of clothes with him and he always puts on the same thing."
So where do they go from here? The good news is that Jones escaped the incident unhurt and Thomas only suffered a bruised leg. The bad news is that Jones is scheduled to leave Canada soon and head home for Australia after a trip to California. The Jones family says that Thomas plans to visit California with their son but that the couple's future after that is uncertain.
UPDATE: Jones and Thomas spoke with the Toronto Star:

Thomas said this morning that everything happened so fast that there was just massive confusion all around. "I was trying to understand what was going on. The photo was definitely not something we expected to happen," said Thomas.
The couple is leaving in three days on a trip to California, before Scott heads back to Australia. Thomas said the response from her friends and family has been overwhelming.
"When I saw that picture I couldn't believe it and then I looked at it more and realize it's quite artistic and really something beautiful."

Breakfast at the Chop Shop . . .

I thought I'd enter a quick post to showcase the "new do" for the summer.  Every summer my wife brings the girls to the salon for a haircut.  It is the high point of their summer and they eat up their time in "the chair".  Although I tend to like a longer hairstyle, I can't help but smile at the beautiful "bobs" as they bounce all around my home...

Post breakfast play. . .

Luci was upset that she didn't get a "bob".

Kickin' off Summer. . .

Remember when the sprinkler was NOT for watering the lawn. . . I do.

Luci liked the sandbox better.