More summer fun and music with Gerrit and 28

Saturday was another busy day for Gerrit in his roles as Minister of Fun (a.k.a. Recreation Coordinator) for the Town of Dennis and Rock Star in the band Twenty-Eight.

The day began with the town's annual Sand Castle Contest on Mayflower Beach. One of the most impressive creations was this volcano, complete with dry ice to simulate steam emitting from the crater and the "lava pool" at its base.

That evening, Twenty-Eight played the final show of its Summer 2014 Reunion Tour, at The Sand Bar, a waterside pub.

Conveniently, Saturday was also the night for a fireworks display on the beach near the Sand Bar -- "so we had a perfect view prior to the 28 show," reports Tish.

Learning to use the force at Jedi Academy

How's this for a summer class? During his visit to Disneyland in California this month, Xander enrolled in an introductory course at the Jedi Training Academy.

At the conclusion of the course, Xander received a certificate declaring him "a padawan, a student devoted to the ancient training of the Jedi knights."

Xander meets an old friend in L.A.

Xander greeted old pal Pooh Bear during a visit to Disneyland this week. Xander and Marie are in California visiting Marie's mom.

Hard-working musicians at Band Camp

Chris, Stephanie and their fellow musicians in the Hilliard Darby High School Marching Band have completed a week of Band Camp at Heartland Conference Retreat Center in Marengo, Ohio.

Rehearsals continue at their school this week, where classes begin next week. Their first football-halftime performance is on the 29th.

This is saxophonist Chris' senior year, and clarinetist Stephanie's freshman year.

Friends & family celebrate Nanette's birthday

Family members and long-time friends gathered at Nanette's Shelter Island home on Saturday to celebrate her birthday just a little bit early.

Daughter Courtney was visiting from Florida. Nanette's brother Larry was visiting from Boston (on a rare break from either teaching at Boston University or traveling the world). Brother Emory, who also lives on Shelter Island, joined the party along with his friend Robin, on holiday from New Jersey. Cousin Dan and his wife, Julie, also trekked out from Jersey for the occasion.

Many of Nanette's friends were in attendance, including some that she has known since her teenage summers on the Island and some from her Florida days.

All enjoyed a fine feast and an absolutely beautiful summer evening, with a nearly full moon rising over the cove behind the house.

Courtney records the event

Shelter Island pals

Courtney took this photo of the "super moon" the following evening.

Squeezing in some summer in Noyac

On a quick weekend visit to Noyac, Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy spent a pleasant evening dining out and then visiting at Kathy's summer home before she headed back to the city.

"This shaped up as the only weekend this summer when all four of us could get out to Noyac together," writes Dan.

"Although the weather was dreary, the rain mostly held off, and we were able to visit some of our favorite spots."

As a bonus, Christine's friend James, who was on his way from New York to Rhode Island, took a little detour to join the gang on Sunday afternoon. Christine introduced him to the wildlife on Jessups Neck, where he learned to feed the chickadees.

Side note: Scallop shells, which had seemed to grow scarce on the shores of Noyac Bay for a number of years, are abundant again, presumably reflecting a scallop resurgence in the bay.

Stephanie joins Christopher in HS Band

Going into her freshman year at Hilliard Darby High School, Stephanie is joining her brother, Christopher, as a member of the school's award-winning marching band. Christopher, a senior, plays saxophone, while Stephanie plays clarinet.


Their season has already begun: They spent last week in Band Camp at the school, and boarded buses Sunday to head to "away" band camp at a retreat center. The school year begins Aug. 19.

Stephanie is sporting a new hair style, after donating 12 inches of her locks to Beautiful Lengths, a partnership between Pantene and the American Cancer Society that provides wigs for cancer patients.

Balloons and rock-n-roll at Jersey festival

Julie and Dan, along with Christine, Andy and his girlfriend, Shannon, once again enjoyed a visit to the annual Festival of Ballooning in Readington, N.J., on Sunday.


Under hot sunny skies, they watched an afternoon concert by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, still rocking their hits from the 1980s and still making new music as well.



Then came the balloon ascension - always a fun sight.

Dozens of balloons took part, filling the sky and drifting off to come down in nearby farm fields and neighborhoods.

This year, many of the balloons seemed to have trouble maintaining altitude, and some of the larger ones never lifted off.

We speculated that the hot, humid air make it difficult to generate enough of a temperature difference inside and outside the balloon to get a good lift.

A notable exception was this very large, three-faced balloon depicting the see-no-evil, hear-no-evil and speak-no-evil monkeys.

A big day on the Cape: Running and rocking

In this great photo taken by her son, Gerrit, Tish crosses the finish line Saturday after completing the 3-mile walk portion of the the 37th Annual Dennis Road Race.

Gerrit, as recreation coordinator for the Town of Dennis, organized the event, which included the walk, a 5-mile race and a 1-mile kids' fun run.

"I visualized kicking cancer with every one of the 7,000 steps that I took," Tish posted afterward. "I discovered that this was an empowering experience. It was hot, sunny, and the hills were tough, but I proved something to myself. I hope that others that are fighting this battle will be inspired."

The event was a big success, with 646 registered participants. And that was only part of the busy day for Gerrit. That evening, his band, 28, put on the latest of its summer concert series at the Lost Dog Pub in Orleans. A fan posted this photo on Facebook.

Brennan, Shauna-Rae welcome baby boy!

Brennan and Shauna-Rae now have a son, and Brooklyn has a baby brother!

Great-Grandmother Pat writes: "Here he is, the latest addition to the family! Brennan Alexander was born July 22, weighing 8 pounds, 4 ounces and measuring 22 inches long."

Shauna-Rae, Brennan and Brooklyn, who's now two-and-a-half, have been living in North Carolina for a little over two years, as Brennan is stationed at Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Base.

Catching up on earlier news: 

Shauna-Rae graduated in May from Craven Community College.

Below, Shauna-Rae poses with Brennan after the ceremony on the school's New Bern, N.C., campus.

Here's a photo, also from this spring, of Brooklyn flying a kite with her dad on a sunny day at a park near their home.

More travel photos: Paris and Versailles

Here's a selection of photos from the second part of the trip Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy took to London and Paris in late June and early July.

Paris:

Versailles: Palace and gardens

See photos from London, Stonehenge and Bath in previous post

Photo album: London, Stonehenge, Bath

Here's a selection of Dan's photos of highlights from the visit he, Julie, Christine and Andy paid to London at the end of June.



Coming soon: Photos of Paris.

Marie, Brian and Xander welcome Hans

Hans has joined the family.

Marie, Brian and Xander welcomed this kitten to their home in late June. It looks like Hans and Xander are already fast friends.

Family gatherings on 4th of July weekend

Lisa, Doug and Rebecca were among members of Lisa's extended family who gathered at Conesus Lake for a Fourth of July weekend party.

Meanwhile, on Shelter Island, Nanette and her daughter Courtney (visiting from Florida) hosted a party that seemed to blend Independence Day with Mardi Gras. Guests included Kathy, Genevieve and John, Vivien and CJ.

Chris marches in July 4th parade with HS Band

Ready to march. Chris on sax at right.

Christopher and his Hilliard Darby High School Marching Band took part in the town parade on the Fourth of July.

Panthers on the march

For more photos - plus a video clip - click here.

A quick tour of London and Paris

Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy are back home after a very busy and very enjoyable eight-day visit to London and Paris. It's going to take some time for Dan to sort through hundreds of photos to properly show the highlights, but here are just a few quick selections.

Christine and Andy at Stonehenge

Buckingham Palace

In front of the gardens at Versailles