Jersey cousins visit the Floridians

Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy flew down from New Jersey to Florida in late July for a brief vacation trip and to visit with Nanette and Courtney in Palm Beach Gardens.



The travelers had just two full days to enjoy some of the sights and to catch up with the Florida branch of the family, but had a fine time doing so.

The main point of interest, of course, was the new home of the Loggerhead Marinelife Center, where Nanette is executive director.

Read the full story here or here.

"Fluffy" a hit at Harry Potter book party

Andy was in costume as Fluffy, the three-headed dog, at a late night party leading up to the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at a central New Jersey book store July 20, 2007. He won honorable mention in the costume judging and drew the biggest cheer from the crowd. His mom made the costume for Halloween 2004; this photo is from that date. The costume is a bit short on Andy now, so this was probably its final appearance.

Xander's photo galleries and videos

Webmaster Dan says:

Because it's not clear what will happen to our original Birch Street Web pages when Google discontinues its googlepages service, I'm starting to move some content to other places. To begin with, I've taken the photos of Xander that fill two Birch Street Gallery pages and put them into online albums. (The date on this post, July 18 2007, is when the most recent photos were originally added to the web site.)

Click to watch the slideshow, or click twice to go directly to the album and see larger versions.





And here are some early videos that were on Birch Street TV:

Xander Stands!

Sent by Marie and Brian 7/31/2007: "Here's a video we took of Xander learning to stand. He can stand for a few seconds on his own without holding on. Enjoy!"

Xander kicks!

Video from November 2006

A birthday celebration marked by lucky 7s

Lorraine, known to many of us as Mom or Grandma, celebrated her birthday on the 7th day of the 7th month of the 7th year of the millenium. She and Dan/Dad/Grandpa are summering in Noyac, and went out for a celebratory dinner with daughter Kathy and grandchildren Genevieve, Vivien and Patrick. They dined at the Oasis, formerly the Inn at Mill Creek.

Genevieve writes: "The food was delicious and everyone enjoyed watching the sun set while we ate. At dessert, they brought out a candle for Grandma (stuck in her Banana's Foster) and we all sang happy birthday. Grandma made a wish and blew it out!

After dinner we went back to our house and watched fireworks that were being set off in honor of the Fourth of July (and Grandma's birthday!) It was a very fun night and everyone enjoyed themselves."

Anniversary on the Hudson

Dan and Julie celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary July 8, 2007 by taking a dinner cruise on the Hudson and East River and around New York Harbor. The three-hour tour (really!) on Spirit Cruise on a balmy evening made for a very pleasant mini-getaway.

Coincidentally, they met friends from Fanwood who were taking the same cruise with their two daughters to celebrate the older girl's 17th birthday. It's thanks to them that we have these photos taken on board. In the one at right, the (blurred) background is Brooklyn, in the approximate area of the neighborhood where they lived when they got married lo those many years ago.

Selling "the camp" on the lake

Pat completed the sale of her vacation house on Saratoga Lake in June 2007:

"Well, it finally happened. 19 Fathom Drive (my camp) has been sold. YEAH!!!!!" Pat wrote on June 24. The closing was set for the 26th.

"Thanks to all of you who have kept me in your prayers. They worked. It really hasn't been on the market all that long (since March), it just seemed that way. Selling a house can be a very nerve wracking experience. I'm glad it is over. I know the people will tear it down and build a new one -- it should be fun to watch. I live nearby so I can check on the progress once in a while."

Our 2007 Grads-at-a-Glance

Spring of 2007 saw an amazing number of graduations among the various branches of the family connected by the Birch Street Web.

Check out our
"Grads at a Glance" page for a quick look at all the grads and links to their schools.

Or find links here to full articles and photos.

Genevieve's studies focus on museums

After graduating from Cornell University's College of Arts and Sciences, where she majored in art history, Genevieve will be continuing her studies in the fall at Tufts University near Boston. She will pursue a Master’s degree in History of Art and Museum Studies, with a focus on Islamic Art.

“My main interest is in areas of interaction between the Islamic and Mediterranean world during the Medieval period, particularly in Sicily, and how the art and architecture of those regions relates to trade relationships,” Genevieve writes.

She will be studying with a professor who is an expert in the field, Eva Hoffman. “I've read many of her articles during my time at Cornell and I liked them,” Genevieve said. “She's a well known figure in the field of Islamic Art history, and I feel really lucky to have the chance to work with her. I also met with her when I went to visit Tufts in March and she's really wonderful and friendly.”

Tufts School of Arts and Sciences offers two art history M.A. programs. Genevieve chose the one that also leads to certification in museum studies “because it will give me the opportunity to have an internship at a Boston museum, which I'm excited about.”

Last summer, Genevieve was an intern at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. While there she recorded a podcast about the museum’s collection of Assyrian reliefs. To listen to her audio tour of the exhibit, click here and scroll down just a bit to the “College Intern Audio Feature, then choose to download the file or just listen to it as streaming audio.

Moving up -- to the Jersey side

Kevin received a promotion and his new post means a change in scenery. As of June 5, 2007, he has been commuting to Fairfield, N.J., leaving Manhattan behind.

"I have been working for Lanier Worldwide in Manhattan since July 2006, but with the merger of Lanier and Ricoh, Inc., I received a promotion and moved to the corporate offices for the Northeast region, where I will be the Manager of AR, Billing and Collections for the Northeast," Kevin writes. "While I will miss working in the city, I am looking forward to my new position."

Visiting in Texas

Dolores and Hugh have recently returned from a trip to Comanche, Texas, where they visited Dolores’s sister Norene and her husband Alan.

Read their account here and see a gallery of their photos here.

Christine earns Silver Award

Christine and seven other members of Troop 441 received their Silver Awards at a ceremony May 29, 2007. Read the full story of the award and the project Christine and two of her friends did as the final step toward earning it.

Cape Cod update, Spring 2007

Owen provided this update in late May:

Gerrit, who graduated May 5 from Nichols College, is looking to get into the field of sports management. On the side, he and four friends from his home area on Cape Cod make up a band called "28" that has been playing regularly around the Massachusetts/Rhode Island area. You can check out their music, photos and other information at their Web page.

Elizabeth is a 6th grader and is very involved in ballet through the school at the Academy of Performing Arts in Orleans, Mass.

The family took a recent vacation trip to Charleston, S.C., and Owen promises to send along a picture or two when he gets a spare moment.

FLASHBACK: 2006 - Touring California and Arizona

Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy made a memorable trip in April 2006 to California and Arizona.

We arrived in Los Angeles on a Friday night, they spent Saturday at Disneyland with Marie & Brian, Dan & Eyvonne. Here are a few photos from that visit.


(Click once to see slideshow, click again to go to the album for larger views.)

We all got together again for breakfast the next morning, then parted as M&B and D&E headed back north to their homes and D&J&C&A headed east to Arizona.

The drive took us across the Mojave Desert to Kingman, Arizona. Next day we took a scenic ride along old Route 66 and reached the Grand Canyon shortly before sundown.

It's easy to take terrific photos at the canyon, but no picture can capture its vastness and its breathtaking beauty. It really is an amazing sight.

Other highlights of our Arizona tour were a volcanic field outside Flagstaff, the cave dwellings in Walnut Canyon, and the red rock formations around Sedona.

Here's a slideshow of over 60 photos from Arizona - and even that is fewer than half the photos Dan took!


(Click once to see slideshow, click again to go to the album for larger views.)

Christine & her Girl Scout troop appear on CBS-TV

Girl Scout Troop 441 traveled to Manhattan to join the outdoor audience of the Early Show on CBS-TV Friday, May 25, 2007.



Christine was on-camera three times -- twice very briefly as the camera panned the crowd, and once for several seconds in the background as one of the hosts stood was speaking. Above is a video clip that captures those three moments, and below are still images.

Read the full article and see the freeze-frame pictures.

Update from Saratoga, Spring 2007

Pat writes:
We have all been busy. Mary graduated from the "Saratoga Leadership Program" which is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. She then ran for the Board of Education. Although she didn't win (there were 6 candidates) she did very well for a beginner with 960 votes. Better luck next time!

In sports... Brennan has been playing AAU basketball and averages about 18 points a game.





Shannon is on the YMCA swim team and will be cheerleading for Pop Warner Football in the fall.





I go to a Pilates class on Mondays and Osteo Prevention class on Wed. and Friday.

I went on a nice trip with my "Red Hat Society" friends to the Shelburne Museum in Vermont May 23. It was a perfect day for walking around the grounds. A good time was had by all.

Patrick receives confirmation

Patrick received the sacrament of Confirmation on Sunday, May 6, at Our Lady of Fatima parish in Yonkers. Patrick and 34 other young men and women were confirmed by Bishop Ignatius Catanello.

Patrick was sponsored by his sister Vivien. His parents, Ted and Kathy, and his sister Genevieve attended, along with his grandparents Ted and Celestine and his Uncle Dan, who is also his godfather.

Double digit birthday for Christopher

Christopher celebrated his 10th birthday on May 5, 2007. As part of the festivities "he had a couple of friends sleep over Saturday night but there was very little sleeping on their part," reports his mom, Cathy.

Shown here in his current school portrait, Christopher is a busy guy these days. In Cub Scouts, he's a 2nd year Webelos, getting ready for the move up to Boy Scouts. "We have lots of camping trips coming up this spring," Cathy says.

"Also he is playing saxophone in the school band and continues to take piano lessons. He was also in the chess club at school this year." Christopher is an avid reader, and enjoys TV and computer games in his spare time.

Talent showcased at school art shows

The Scotch Plains-Fanwood (N.J.) School District Art Festival was held April 25 at the high school. Two pieces by Christine were shown, both stemming from art class assignments: The drawing above, of a dragon made from pencils of various sizes, and a self-portrait incorporating words and phrases of self-description.

The next day, April 26, Towson (Md.) High School held its own exhibit of student work in fine art and photography from the art department. Each student mounted a portfolio of his or her work for display. The show filled the entire gymnasium. Lizzie, a senior, took a first prize for one of her pieces. Grandfather Hugh writes that "Grandmother Dolores was particularly proud. She was also very impressed with the overall quality of the work."