Pubs, Grubs, and Sports Hubs

This Saturday morning, Grandma and Grandpa, and Uncle Joe and Aunt Christine headed to a pub of our own! We went to The Scottish Arms in the central west end of St. Louis.

Grandma and Uncle Joe wore their Everton blue to support Everton who were playing a match during our brunch. The food was great, and so was the beer. We'll have to be the judge, Maddie, but Aunt Christine and Grandma had quite a delicious burger that just might rival Burgerac's Burgershack.

 

After brunch, we decided to hit a few of our favorite sites around town since we were already out and about.

We had a look around the home of the Blues and picked up some Winter Classic gear. And since said Winter Classic will be played at Busch Stadium, we stopped by Ballpark Village and the Busch Stadium store as well.

It's a shame we'll miss Sarah being so close up in Chicago. We can't wait to see you all again soon. Missing you guys, from Missouri!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game!

This past week, Aunt Christine's work took everyone to the Cardinals' day game. She was more than excited to spend the work day rooting on her Cards.

Unfortunately, they got stomped by the Cubs. As the season closes, it's not looking great for the Cardinals to make a long run into the post season. But playoffs or not, she sure enjoyed the view, and a "home" plate of nachos!

Trails For Tails!

Last weekend, Aunt Christine put on a booth for her company, Nature's Variety at the Trails For Tails 5K and 10K at Frontier Park in St. Charles and Uncle Joe, Grandma, and Grandpa all came out to help!

Uncle Joe is creeping around the right side

Uncle Joe and Grandpa ran in the 10K. Miraculously, they both broke the Miller curse, and both finished 3rd in their age groups, earning a shiny little medal.

Them winning medals had absolutely nothing to do with Uncle Joe working with the timing company that timed the event:)

Aunt Christine was busy handing out free samples of pet food and talking to all the dogs and dog owners that came to the event. Grandma joined Aunt Christine and was a huge help at the Nature's Variety booth. We also picked up lots of great giveaways at the other booths for Pearl, Sapphire, Gulliver, Bantry, and Scooter. Two years ago, Aunt Christine met this guy at the event, but he was apparently busy at the World Cup of Hockey this year. What a loser...

Aunt Christine with David Backes while he was still with the good guys

There were so many dogs! Maddie and Henry would have loved it. They even had a charity kissing booth where you could pay and a puppy at a booth would give you puppy kisses. Everything was for Five Acres Animal Shelter, so it was a great event for a great cause. We all wish you could have been there. Miss you guys!

So What's New

SO WHAT'S NEW?

                                                       Does it look like we're happy?

                                                      For some reason your Grandma
                                                            thought it would be fun to
                                                       dress us up using different scarves.

.

                                                          Does this look like fun to you?

                                             
                                                                 Grandpa and Joe
                                                             did a 10k fun run and
                                                     each came in 3rd in their age group.

                                                          Pirate Charlie

                                                           Pirate Tommy

                                                      This is poor Pearl on a night
                                                            when Sapphire refused
                                                      to let her share the bigger bed.


Still need help on this blog thing.  Can't seem to remember how to post pictures from one week to the next.  Hopefully I'll have some photos to share from my next trip.  I think the fishing trip is a no go.  Bobby was hoping for a few more family members to attend.  Sending a few goodies to you by way of Zac. 


                                                       Miss You All!!!

This week

So, this week there are around 7000+ American flags on Art Hill, each flag representing someone lost since 9/11 in the War on Terrorism.  Grandpa stopped by on his way to the zoo yesterday and took a few pictures.  Each flag is identified by name, and picture.  Very moving.  And oh, by the way, no one was sitting there observing them; all standing.

This is from near the Art Museum looking back down Art Hill.

Sapphire seems to be doing much better.  In fact, she took over the whole bed up in our bedroom.  So, Pearl, who isn't as raw on her belly as she looks in the picture, tried to fit her big butt on the little brown bed, but "spilled over" onto the extra comforter from our bed.  They were both pretty comfy....I think Grandma tucked them in before I got there.

Sunday was a big day at Savers....50% off all clothing for card carriers, which, of course, includes Grandpa.  For just over $17, he got a sportcoat, two sweaters, an aloha shirt, and a tie.  London will never be the same with this fashion statement.

Grandpa visited the Country Club with his buddy this week, and Grandma followed for dinner.  We also talked with our neighbor.  I told him of Henry's "trade" to the UK Hockey.  Also talked about some of the Winter Classic and Blues 50th activities coming up.  He also told us he was lucky enough to have played in all the original six NHL stadia.  He said only Chicago and Boston kept dogs in their buildings overnight to keep out varmints of all species.  That's about if for now from here....

Like Uncle Joe said, Grandpa helped out for International Vulture Awareness Day at our zoo.  Most other zoos also had events; maybe you went to the one in the London Zoo.  There were lots of things to do, mostly for kids:  coloring games, vomit toss, a vulture nest for pictures, and an ol dame dressed up like a farmer telling a story about Fred the vulture.  I think I was there because I was the oldest buzzard they could find.

This is the wingspan of the Cinereous Vultures, my favorite at the zoo.  It has a nine foot wingspan.

They had some vulture food there too.  Kind of hard to see, but some zoo visitors were surprised that vultures ate little bunnies, rats, etc.

The old buzzard that was telling stories is on the left.  She had to be loaded to do that.

Another view of the buzzard queen.

They even had a vulture dance/rap.  The guy was pretty good; in real life he's a janitor at the zoo. 

This is supposed to be video of the vulture rap.  It downloaded ok, but wasn't playing; maybe you can make it work.

These pictures are of the cinereous vultures.  I know Maddie and Henry have seen them.   They are named Boris and Natasha.  I'm told that when Boris adds a stick to their nest, Natasha picks up and puts it somewhere else.   Hmmm....

So, that's the report on Vulture Awareness Day.  More later...

Off To Market!

Here in the States, we're celebrating Labor Day weekend. Uncle Joe and Aunt Christine are enjoying a three day weekend, with Monday a day off from work. Grandma and Grandpa never have a day off from their current jobs of being Pearl and Sapphire's caretaker and publicist.
To kick the long weekend off right, Grandma, Aunt Christine and Uncle Joe went down to Soulard Market in downtown St. Louis. Grandpa spent the day helping spread the word about his fellow buzzards, as it was International Vulture Awareness Day. He'll have more to say on that later.

Soulard is one of the oldest operating farmers markets in the United States, and with the temperatures cooling a bit, the market was hoppin! Hundreds of folks were pouring in to pick up all their fresh produce and meats for a weekend full of grilling and greens. Watermelons are in season, and boy did they have some whoppers! Henry would have been in heaven. Speaking of Henry, the chicken fingers were super fresh...

The chickens were laying fresh eggs, and they had bunnies, ducks, and goats for sale as well. Aunt Christine was beside herself, and wanted to bring them all home to a better life. We agreed that they were selling them only as pets, and quickly moved on to the cauliflower section.

After a lovely stroll through the market, we gathered up all the proper fixins for a great dinner. Unfortunately, dinner was still nine hours away, and after seeing all that fresh veg, we were a tad hungry, to say the least. Right down the road from Soulard Market is the Anheuser Busch Brewery, as well as the Budweiser Beirgarten, so we stopped in for a quick beer and a bite.

It was no fish n' chips or shepherd's pie from the pub, but it certainly hit the spot. Great grub, and the weather could not be beat.

After we were proper full, we drove over to Cherokee Street to check out a few shops. We saw some cool artwork, bought some art supplies, and we spent a good while looking through some old books. Grandma and Aunt Christine, of course, lost Uncle Joe. He has a tendency to wander, especially around old books.

We were a bit worried in the book store when the scent of burning paper reached our noses. Turns out it was incense they were burning, perhaps to deter the mosquitoes that were floating around the endless shelves of books. It didn't work. Uncle Joe managed to get mosquito bites, even in an antique bookstore. With his poison oak just now healing up, he can't seem to catch (or scratch) a break.

After the morning's excitement, we were all in need of a nap. We all went home, each grabbed a pup, and cuddled up for a comfy late summer nap.

As the cool evening rolled in, Grandma really got things cooking. Literally. She grilled up some tasty pork steaks, fresh rice, asparagus, and cauliflower. We sat out on Grandma and Grandpa's back porch, poured a few beers, bourbons, and diet cokes, and had a great time.

The times were good, so the evening of fun rolled on in to the night, and with the "Miller Bar" still open, we had a few more locals elbow up to the porch stammtisch. Nora and Fred stopped by, and we talked about our globe travels, from Branson to Fripp to London to Reykjavik.

The night carried on long enough for Aunt Christine to snap a picture of Uncle Joe putting together this very blog post. How meta.

The theme throughout the day and night was talking about your European adventures, and how much we miss you guys. We hope you guys have a great weekend, and we can't wait to hear more about the kids' school, Sarah's work, and Mark's adventures. Take care, UK Millers!