July 4 - john and joyce are inviting their International Officer family from Fort Leavenworth to celebrate the Fourth with them. Shigeo, Mayumi, and Tamon are from Japan.

July 19 - The "kids" fly in every morning and evening for breakfast and dinner. They bring their friends along. This morning there were 16 ducks at zenpond with another 10 flying overhead determined to land and have breakfast too.

joyce and john took a trip to Petosky, Michigan to meet up with 15 other family members for a week. Here is a preview of one of the pictures taken on the way home at the Anderson Japanese Gardens in Rockford, IL.

john and joyce drove from Overland Park to Milwaukee on Saturday, July 9 and stayed at a hotel near the brand new Lake Express ferry. They only got a couple of hours sleep before waking up at 3:30 AM. The Lake Express ferry is a victim of their own success. The only available time john and joyce could cross Lake Michigan was 6:00 AM. There is a 45 minute security check, so they were at the ferry at 5:00 AM. They had booked the last car opening before leaving home. To see more about this amazing, new, high tech ferry go to their web site at www.lake-express.com. The ferry travels at 39 miles per hour and is smooth. One could be standing in the middle of his.her living room and feel more motion ... after a few drinks :-) Here are some photos of their crossing: