A long, long, time ago...

I posted regularly to this blog. My Ph.D work has really kicked in and I rarely get the time over here. Plus, facebook is so easy to post to, it makes it harder to come over here and do long form, more personal writing.

Since January, I have been involved in a cover band, called the Crestview Kings. It has been a great experience. We played out to a packed house in May. We have several gigs lined up. I have completed almost all of my Ph.D class work. I am in the running for the coordinator position at my work.

Lara has kept her job secure for another year. The kids have done great in school. The girls enjoyed another season of soccer. Carl applied and was accepted into IMSA, the Illinois Math and Science Academy. He'll start in the fall, which means our baby will be leaving home soon. It's hard for me to wrap my mind around it.

We were nearly flooded out of our home in May, during the flood in Metropolis. The water was once in a lifetime high. I'll get back to you with pictures later.

Again, way too long...

Sorry, family and friends, for not posting very much on here. Over the Christmas break, I will go through photos and events and list them out here. Merry Christmas everybody!

Fall Soccer

The girls have really come into their own playing soccer.

Labor Day

Here is a sampling of our Labor Day Parade. The girls are getting the candy. I took video of the band---Carl marching, and Lara one of the parent boosters. Below is the photo slideshow.

The Springfield State Fair

In August, we traveled to the Illinois State Fair in Springfield. We went initially because we were taking the kids to see Cheap Trick and Blondie, but unfortunately, that got rained out. However, we did spend the day at the fair on Saturday, which was great.

After the fair, we dropped Carl off with Grandpa. They camped out and then Carl got to experience a shoot with Grandpa outside of Springfield. He is a natural shot.

What I did on Summer Vacation...

The Pughs, as part of Cub Scout Pack 101, just got back from a wonderful trip to the Chattanooga Aquarium and camping at Harrison Bay State Park. Here are some pictures. Yeah, I know, we said that we would have some Alaska pictures up by now....but Lara is in charge of that!

The recent storm...

Hi all. I haven't had time yet to post the Alaska pictures. However, here are some photos of the huge limb that came down out of our tree in the backyard after a storm in June.








Since then, my band played at a local infamous party, Craig and Roberta's 4th of July bash. We had a blast. Check out my band's page, or my facebook page for pictures and video.

A Busy Month....

A quick summary: Carl went to scout camp, and was inducted into the order of the arrow. He and I went up to Mt. Vernon and continued to play some D&D. I have taken and completed a very intense but good summer class. Lara, the kids, and Dee have taken a long-planned vacation to Alaska to visit Tanya, Rick and Suresh, and they are having the time of their lives.

When I get more than a free moment, I will post pictures.

Memorial Day Weekend

Hello all,

We had a great weekend so far, with our friends Mike, Susan, Joe, and Molly coming down to play a fun game of Dungeons and Dragons with the Pugh kids. We grilled out and stayed up way too late. I'll post some pictures of Carl's graduation and the kids in the next day or two.

Sorry about no updates lately....

Here is the quick update on family news....sorry I have been so long between posts. I have been working feverishly each weekend on papers for my Ph.D. classes, and it simply takes me a long time to churn these things out, so literally, everything else has to wait until I'm done. Well, I'm done!

Here are some pictures:

Maggie, doing great in soccer this year!
On the prowl!

Carl's Band Performance, and accepting his award for First Superior, and sticking the award to his shoe.

Carl, receiving several school awards, including Beta Club, Scholar Bowl, Honor Roll, Match Club, and Music. He was recognized for winning the Region wide Math tournament, and setting a new record for the number of problems correct. Nerd power rocks.

His awards, including Scholar Bowl, Math tournament, First Superior on saxophone, and the several school awards.