My Turn

I don't have pictures of a new bike (or newly painted bike) to show, in fact I have no pictures because where I have been working this week it is against regulations to take pictures. But I feel obligated to write a post, even though I have absolutely no idea what I am going to write about.
As a little background on the no pictures, this week I tagged along with some of my Soldiers to 1st CTC's Certification Exercise down in Miesau. Now for most folks, Miesau does nothing to excite, but for the ammunition world outside the states, the world revolves around Miesau, which is the home for the Ammunition Center Europe. I'll be quick, as this is rather boring to all but me. In short it is an area about 20 square miles filled with bunker after bunker of things that go BOOM!! When I was asked by Higher what my plan was for my Soldiers was if there was an explosive event, my answer was "ummmm, run away? If you're not vapor already." In reality the danger is fairly low, and the training was excellent.
So now that the boring part is past, I have to complain for a second. I enjoy the army, I like my job despite the occasional frustration but there are some things that drive me nuts. One is Power Point, the Army has decided at some point that life did not exist, things did not happen, and questions could not be answered before Power Point came along. Telling where the bathroom is? PowerPoint slide. Plan to eat lunch? PowerPoint Slide. Nap time? PowerPoint slide. You get the general idea. While I in no way shape or form tolerate or support Terrorism, if they managed to crash PowerPoint, I wouldn't complain too much.
The other complaint is what is called the Army Writing Style. Yes, we have a manual and standard for everything, including the number of multisyllabic words a sentence should contain and mandating the capitalization of such things as Soldier. It all conspires to create writing that is aimed at an 8th Grade education, which is about what we can honestly expect out of some Soldiers. Now most of you reading are from New England, and let me assure you that our 8th Grade must be very different from the rest of the country, because this writing style would have been beneath even the special education rooms in 8th Grade here.
I digress, by which I mean that I still have nothing to write about. Love to you all, I promise a better post sometime soon.

Some things are worth waiting for!

Almost a year after the movers wrecked the paint on my favorite bike, I finally have it back. Fresh from the paint shop at Marinoni in Canada, here he is. Words cannot explain.

Just one more reason why riding in Germany is just more fun!

So yesterday, Miller and I built up a 29er frame that had been sitting in the bike dungeon for the last couple years. It is nothing special, just a Motobecane frame with a beefy Surly rigid steel fork and some other sturdy yet heavy parts on it. Nothing could make this bike light, so I didn't even really try. In absence of a chain tension-er (yes it is a single speed) we threw on an old Ultegra derailleur until we could make it a bit less ghetto fabulous. In short, this bike is a beast, but man, is it fun! When we finished it, we took the taxing walk across the lawn to show it to our fellow bike guru, Joe. This is dangerous, as when we show him some cool new bike part, it is usually just a matter of time before he gets some bike envy, and ends up with another bike, hence his new Cube 'cross bike! While showing him the new rig, we decided that although it may be dark, muddy, and rainy, a night ride was in order to take my steed through its paces. In short order, we ran across the lawn to go get into our bike gear, eat some of Carmen's (Joe's wife) awesome salsa, and grab the lights for a night-time adventure. After meeting back up, we started out on some of our usual trails. After a couple wet-root induced wipe-outs (I don't feel bad, Joe's son, Alex, wiped out in almost the same spot, he is five years old though!), we all were really enjoying ourselves. Riding at night is super fun, as it always feels like you are going so fast, simply because the range of your lights does not allow you to to look too far ahead on the trail, like you would during the day. We bombed around on the trails for a while until Joe and I switched bikes for a while so I could rock some full suspension glory while he tried out my fully rigid 29er. At this point, like a horse to water, we were taking the trail back home, when we decided we were far too parched to continue. We needed some refreshment before we could make it the last mile home. We stopped at Jalisco's, our favorite Mexican place for some Zoigl. Luckily Joe is good friends with the bar tender, as he allowed us to bring our bikes inside, as we didn't have any locks with us. Refreshed and happy, we made our way back home. A very good ride, with good company and good beer. What more could anyone ask for!

Happy Veterans' Day

Firstly, I just want to start this post by wishing all veterans who have served in all capacities a happy Veterans' Day. We should not forget though, that although we may use it as a day to thank and remember our veterans, it is also a day to mark the ending of the first World War. On this day, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met in peace to lay wreaths to remember the many Soldiers and civilians that died in that horrible conflict. This action gives us all hope that currently waring peoples such as those who are fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, may someday remember this conflict in a more peaceful time. Please pray for all Veterans, both of the past that have made the ultimate sacrifice and for those around the world who currently take up arms so others do not have to.

Work....

So there is not all that much to post about. Miller is gone right now to go welcome the forward part of his element home from their 12 month deployment. I on the other hand am very busy with a change of command inventory among many other things like ranges and Soldier issues. I came home from the field last week, but have had no to time to rest! Both Miller and I will be super busy these next couple weeks. We are looking forward to the Holidays coming up (even though we both have to work on Thanksgiving night!). Ma and Pa will be coming to Germany for Christmas, which will be very nice, yet it will be different not being home! We will really miss all of you back home though. We are so busy, but hopefully will have time experience some of the holiday markets and the such. Sorry for the short post, but I am so very tired, so I will be turning in early. P.S. The above photo is a silly picture of the company leadership. Yes, I am the one getting the "wet willy."

When Jaks' Away. . .

Well for first, the mouse definitely will play. By play I mean that Barbara escapes daily (I wish I knew how) and goes to live under the chair in the bedroom for a little. It is an annoying habit, but as of yet I still have not found the avenue of escape. We shall see. Winter has started to arrive, as it has been snowing on and off for the last several days, without any significant accumulation but a sure sign of things to come.
Jak is in the field for 9 days, so I am temporarily living the bachelor life style. Work is busy, so bachelor life style tends to consist of eating dinner, chasing the cats around for a little, and doing random things that need to be done around the house. Exciting to say the least.
Our brewing is going well, the Belgian Ale is bottle conditioning, and is probably ready for consumption, I am just waiting on Jaks' return to try it. We made a Irish Stout which I bottled last night, a Pumpkin Ale on Sunday that is now bubbling happily away in its' secondary fermenter, and an Apfelwein that I just made last night. The biggest problem not, other than not sounding like drunks, is the waiting.
This weekend promises to be pretty exciting, as the Cyclocross World Cup is coming virtually to our doorstep. Chris and Joe (our riding buddies) and I are heading to Plzen on Sunday to watch the races, which should be truly amazing.
I guess this isn't the most thilling report on our lives, but hey, boring can be good sometimes.

4 Day

One of the hidden gems of being stationed in Germany is that once a month we get a 4 day weekend. This gives an opportunity to relax a bit, travel some, and generally take a quick breath before going back to the deep end. In our case, we used this weekend to ride bikes, climb an Alp, brew beer, make cookies, fix furniture, clean the house, chase cats, and generally do a bit of everything.
Yesterday Jak and I hiked up the Hoher Fricken, mainly because the name is fun to say and half way up there is a cave called the Frickenhollen. It was a fricken good time and absolutely beautiful, if a shade too vertical for our joint's tastes. The trail starts out on a kid's path, with questions here and there about trees and the like. It was a nice easy way to start, but it got even better. The first kilometer of the trail is through a gorge with waterfall after beautiful waterfall. Fricken awesome! From there, the trail does the very normal thing that trails do in the Alps, namely went straight up. Via a series of switch backs in short order we were high above the valley floor with views one way to the Zugspitze which was getting the first snows for the season and the other way out on the plains leading towards Munchen. It was stunning, and the weather was perfect. For the first time this year we were able to hike in pants, which was a welcome change from our normal au-natural adventures. Just kidding, we normally hike in shorts, but there is something very nice and reminiscent of home about hiking in pants. We both were trying out some new gear, which was very successful. After much searching we had gotten Jak some mountianeering boots which she tried out with great success, and we both wore our new packs which did not destroy our bodies like the one's we climbed the Zugspitze with.
The only catch with the hike was that we were literally hiking between storm fronts, with the rain of the previous 3 days about to give way to another several days of rain, so we had to hike quickly to make sure we had time if the weather socked in. We managed to get most of the way up before the clouds started to roll in and as rain started to darken the horizon we decided that discretion was the better part of valor and headed back down. Many amusing slips and two pairs of burning quadriceps later, we made it back to the car with plenty of time to gas up, eat some Subway and head back home. I love living only 3 hours from the Alps, though we are definatley jealous of those stationed in Garmisch where we were hiking, that must be the best posting in Europe. The only disappointment of the day was that the Frickenhollen proved impossible to find.

We love days off!

These past couple weeks have been very busy for us at work, as I am planning a field exercise which starts on Tuesday, and Nate has been dealing with some rather interesting Soldier issues. I have also recently (meaning on Thursday) found out that I will be double hatting as XO (my current job) and taking Second Platoon as a PL. This is great news, although it means a ton more work. I will love having a platoon again. The rest of second platoon is down range at this time, but will reintegrate as soon as they come back in a couple months. This means I am next in the shoot for deployment, which I could not be happier about, as with being XO, I would have almost no change of deploying. My fellow PL, Ted will be leaving for Iraq in a couple months, but I am next to deploy hopefully when his platoon gets back. I am pretty excited to be faced with some new challenges of working with a new platoon. Not too much is new on Nate's end, but he continues to enjoy his job as a Rear Detachment commander. Although things have been busy, they are moving along just fine.
Last night, we had a great cyclocross ride in the dark. Around dusk, we set out to ride the trails with some lights. We saw some deer (which means that Nate saw some deer, while I saw dark jumping blobs). Other than that, the ride was uneventful. We are truly enjoying the rainy and cool fall weather. The colors are not nearly as good as at home, but the trees are pretty nonetheless. Although we have no racing planned for this weekend, last weekend we raced a time trial on a very hilly course. Nate raced on his fixed gear, suffering in style. I took my TT bike for a spin. We didn't win, yet didn't finish last, so things went well. We also got schooled by a guy with one arm....well, it didn't hurt that he was on a 5,000 Euro bike....Anyway, out to adventure! We will write soon.

Ouch!

Jak and I ride rather regularly with our friends Chris and Joe, who in normal life are Captains Myers and Patterson of the MP Brigade. While we would not normally advertise hanging around MP's (Military Police), they are wicked cool and fun to hang around with. After many attempts, they finally got us to go to a race with them this weekend down at Hohenfels. This area is normally known in the military community as an area in which to conduct miserable training (MSG Surratt sank a tank there), but the terrain is perfect for Mountain Biking. Considering it was the USAREUR championships this weekend, we really could not pass up the invite to ride. Kind of like Jak cannot pass up the chance to criticize my grammar and spelling as I write this. Anyway, long story short, we went down and Jak, Joe and I raced. Chris was out with a pulled back, though we are sure this is just a symptom of him being old and a West Pointer (Sarcasm). The course was a 3.5 mile lap that went down some awesome single track, went up a God-awful climb, wend down an even more awesome single track featuring a giant hole (more on that later) than took a long fire road climb to the start area. In the women's race, Jak did 5 laps of that and managed to fall into the giant hole only once! Despite the short detour to the center of the Earth, Jak took home the win in the Open Women category by a comfortable margin. In the men's race, I started off with the leaders before realizing that the leader was a 19 year old German prodigy on a 16 pound bike who apparently does nothing but train and inject EPO. Soon after that realization, my legs exploded, spraying the surrounding area with shrapnel and killing many of my opponents. Not really, my legs did explode and propel me back to the middle of the pack. By lap 3 my legs had come back to me, and by lap 5 I was back up higher in the rankings, crossing the line just in time for the German Prodigy to lap me for a second time as he won. This lapping coincided with my finishing my water and Nutri Grain as a hard bonk set in, leaving me to complete the remaining two laps with visions of Coke and Sugar Plums dancing in my head. Don't ask me where the Sugar Plums came from, or even what a Sugar Plum is, I was just really hungry. Though my body was now against me, I managed to finish with a respectable 3rd Place in the Men's Open, though many of the Master's smoked me. It was a great time, and Joe rode an amazing race to get 5th in the Masters, smoking me as well in the process. Much fun was had by all, and we retired to Grafenwoehr to consume large quantities of Mexican Food.
On Sunday, Operation Home Brew reached its second critical phase as we racked the beer into the secondary fermenter. We sampled a little and it tastes good, even though it has another week until bottling, and another week after that until normal drinking. At the risk of courting disaster, I think we may have a pretty good beer on our hands.
Throughout all of this, Aaron Burr was having a rare attack of well-behavedness. We are required by law and his threats of continuing cuteness to add this picture.

I'm Finally Writing One!

So there are times (cough all the time cough) when a husband relies on their wife. Recently, if you can count a post a month as recent, I have been relying on Jak to keep you all in the loop as to our lives and adventures. Finally, I am taking the reigns for a little of the ride and writing myself!

Okay, so what things are new. . .I am now the rear-detachment commander for the 23rd Ordnance Company, so it is nice to finally be back to the fields I belong in, which is awesome. We are selling my car to make way for what will hopefully be a Land Rover Defender. It is not going far, our neighbor and MP riding buddy extraordinaire is buying it off of us. But the most important change is that Jak and I finally broke down and started brewing beer. When we were home we had gotten the kit and all necessary equipment and tonight we brewed! It was a lot of fun, really easy, and we didn't destroy the house, cause the fire department to show up, or cause any international incidents. On other sides of the fermenting yeast fronts, Jak has been baking up a storm to support the bread side of our bread and soup diet. I am considering checking the Kukla and Fifield lines for any mixing of Goldsteins to possibly explain how amazing her Challah bread is. Her beer breads are equally fantastic, and the cinnamon raisin bread is to die for. We have to limit ourselves on the bread intake for fear of totally defeating the diet part of this whole plan. It is awesome.
We are also finally taking a step or metaphorical pedal stroke back into the competitive arena with a mountain bike race this weekend and in a couple of weeks the beginning of our Cyclocross season. At this point, I really don't have much else to say than to send our love and to promise to write more.
Tchuss!!
Nathan and Jak

Bread and Catnip

No, I did not make a catnip bread, no matter how much the cats would have liked it! This weekend Nate and I had a relaxing time (we went to bed accidentally at 7:15 on Friday night) getting chores done and riding our bikes. After falling asleep reading very early on Friday evening, we awoke about 12 hours later to some rigorous house cleaning. After a busy week with very little time at home, it was some good stress relief! This allowed me to spend some much needed baking time as well, whipping together a beer bread with some home-made brew from our friend Ted, a co-worker of mine. Being exciting folks that we are, we moved on to raking leaves, and pulling out the plants in our garden that were either on their way out, or just plain not going to make it after the first frost. We had a relaxing dinner with Ted and Ashley at our favorite Chinese place (much cleaner than back home!). Our Saturday ended with watching some documentaries from the library (if you haven't seen it, see National Geographic's "Ambassador: inside the Embassy")
Sunday was a far more exciting day, complete with some catnip crazy cats. I recently purchased the pair a new litter box online, and decided to get a couple toys too while I was shopping. The litter box (Booda Cleanstep Dome) has been great for keeping out pet odors and has decreased litter tracking by a ton! It has a neat little stairway too, that looks like the cats are boarding a space shuttle and not going in to do their business! I digress... anyway, I gave the cats this little flashy lizard catnip toy, and holy moley, it was so funny. As soon as the hubby gets home (he was stuck in a 4 hour Stau today and is still trying to make it home from the K-Town area) I will post the video and pictures I took. While watching the cats be truly funny, I also had time to whip up a Challah bread. I was amazed how well it puffed up, yet remained surprisingly moist! I may be a loser, but I truly enjoy baking bread, and Nate truly enjoys eating them! Luckily for us, prior to gorging ourselves on bread, we had ridden a few hours with our friend, Chris. Anyway, I shall end this disjointed post. I love you all!

So it's been a while!

Alright, we appologize for the length of time since we have last posted. Not too much has happened. Nate got a new job working for 23rd Ordnance Company, where he is the rear detatchment commander. We spent some time hiking, most notably climbing the Zugspitze, the tallest mountain in Germany at about 10,000 feet. That was miserable, but not every hike can be a good one! We went home to NH and the other New England states for a bit where we hiked, ran, and generally enjoyed the North Country. We spent time visiting family and friends in the flatter regions of New England before heading back over to Deutschland. The cats enjoy having us home again and it has been nice to settle back into life here.
This weekend has been spent doing many things which include a ton of baking, walking, and cyclocross riding. We completed our first sourdough bread from a starter we made as soon as we returned home. Although I would count myself a bread specialist when it comes to baking, I had yet to delve into starter doughs. It was a success, as was the brown sugar raisin loaf, and the Sam Adams beer bread (surprisingly sweet and buttery!). We have also been spending time preparing our meals for the week, as we have taken a page from my mother's book and gone for a soup diet. Miller purchased a new cookbook with all different varieties of soup, and we have been enjoying experimenting with them. The only failing I could see in this plan, is the only way I can eat soup consistently is with a large amount of home-made bread as a side. We will see how it works. We have been enjoying the early fall weather to ride our cyclocross bikes on all of the dirt roads and farm paths in the area. We will try to keep everyone update more frequently!
Love,
Us

Another Please. . .

Pilsner Urquell
4.4%ABV
Its been a bit since I have reviewed anything, especially a beer. But what was given a passing mention yesterday deserves a bit more comment. Pilsner Urquell, or Plzeňský Prazdroj as it is called in Czech is probably one of the best things to come out of Czech since, well, 1842. It is the original Pilsner style beer, and obviously all other Pilsners owe their lineage to this beer. Originally an attempt to have some sort of beer that could compete with the Germans, it has done just that (despite being brewed first by an imported German Brewmaster) and is one of the best beverages I have consumed in Europe. Forget all the other Pilsners you have quaffed, this is the real deal and has all the refreshment they do with a bit more bite which balances out perfectly. It is the Leatherman of beers, it drinks well when it is hot or cold out, goes with darn near anything, and the only complaint I can have against it is that it only comes in those annoying 1/2 liter bottles around here. Even Jak likes it, and for those of us who know her normal palate of dark and complex, it says wonders about that sharp bottom fermented taste to say that she likes it too.

Czech Please

Okay, so any foray into the Czech Republic demands corny jokes, and it is only fair to pass them on. Considering that Czech is only 40 minutes from home, it is easy to czech out the sights. This last weekend Jak and I, along with several other officers from our battalion decided to spend a bit of time in Prague. It was a bit late for the Prague Spring, so our experiences may be lacking, but the Prague Early Summer is probably more enjoyable for all.
The first impression when you drive into Prague is, ummmm, did I really want to come here? Is that guy selling his kidneys? Or crack? Or is it two for one buy a kidney and get some crack Saturdays? It is probably all three, but once you lock your doors and hit the older part of the city it is much nicer. The Czechs do not share the German insanity for cleanliness, but it is slightly comforting to see some graffiti and see hobos peeing behind bushes in the park. Jak has an extended philosophical discussion about the post-Soviet impact on Czech, Miller is rather more concerned on where Slovakia went. In all honesty she is quite right, there are some of the telling signs that occur from a country that is continuing to emerge from the old days (read almost 30 years) of a command economy into the burgeoning arms of capitalism. At exactly the wrong time. Perhaps the global downturn is less reflected here, in the land of cheap everything, more in the quality rather than the quantity. Goods are abundant and abundantly bought and sold, but their quality in everything, from ladies of the night to glassware, is very different. It is the first place I have been where the juxtaposition between success and failure is so evident, with beggars prostrating themselves for change outside of Hermes and Gucci. The notable exceptions to this general trend seem, rather hopefully, to be Skoda, Pilsner Urquell, and education. The last is the rather important one, as education is the one that can change the qualities already mentioned. More people speak English here than anywhere since Ireland, and universities abound. The arts are celebrated, with multiple excellent classical concerts competing at any given night. Hopefully Czech will change from the industrialized doorstep to Germany into something impressive of its own right. Only time will tell.
Anyways, we went to Prague. It was fun, the food was fantastic and cheap, and the sights were awesome. Music was second to none, and no parts of our cars disappeared. One of our compatriots even was able to bribe the police to avoid a ticket. They were honest police though, and only took their fixed bribe for making a ticket go away. Compared to police in the 3rd world where I have been (Hi Honduras, please stop being so crotchety) they are models of law enforcement. For all of the dark humor, Prague was rather stunning in parts.
On the home front (possibly a source of the dark humor) work goes well but very busy. Miller has managed to crash several government computer systems simply by glaring at them, which makes work harder. Jak is saddled with several cadets at the moment, but they seem like they will be good and be less of a hindrance than expected.
Love to you all.
Us

Alpine Adventures!

So how many cool things can happen in Austria in four days....well, about a million! I know we are a tad tardy in posting, but we have been a bit busy. I have been wearing a few hats at work, as I am training our newest LT to take over for me, as I am moving up to XO. Nate has been busy being UMO (Unit Movement Officer) extraordinaire. We have been putting in long days, but have been rewarded with some awesome weekends. Our most recent adventure to the Alps was just amazing.
On Friday, the first day of our four day weekend, we woke early and started moseying to the Austrian border via Munich on the the Autobahn. Our drive was uneventful, except for a tad bit of traffic. As we reached the border, the Alps just rose out of nowhere. They are just a stunningly large mountain chain, of whose size, I just cannot truly fathom. We reached the village of St. Anton, which was the location of the 2002 Alpine Skiing World Championships. Well, I can see why! The town pretty much dies in the summer, but it was quaint and picturesque. Due to our love of a ski town in the summer months, our room was half the price it was in winter, and we were the only guests in the guest house we stayed in. We wandered a bit, bought a good topo-map and turned in early in anticipation of our next day's hike.
Although we got up quite early Saturday morning, the hotel owner was awake and served us a delicious, yet simple breakfast of tea, rolls, jam, cured meats, and cheeses. Although it may not suffice for breakfast in the 'states, we have learned to truly appreciate this sort of breakfast too. Anyone who knows me knows I can never turn down good bread, regardless of the time of day. After setting off to find the trail head, we wandered through town admiring the flocks of sheep and herds of horses and cattle that sprinkle the countryside in this area. Austrians have superior looking sheep, I will say that much! We passed a series of gates up to the trail ( it goes through a series of higher altitude grazing areas for sheep) and started to climb steeply. We slowly made our way up to the first peak, Mount Gampen (6056 ft). From that modest peak, the views were splendid and the alpine wild flowers were in full bloom. I have never seen a more beautiful variety of flora in my life! Next we moved on to a neighboring peak, Mt. Kapall (7600 ft) where things started to get cooler, and snow patches more common. We even started to see glacial formations nearby mountains. The air was noticeably thinner and the wind much stronger. This was quite welcome, as the heat and humidity of the lower areas was really bothering Nate and I. Our final peak for the day was Weissenschrofenspitze (9028 ft). This peak was truly daunting. Its trail wound in switchbacks up the steep gradient, as a direct ascent would have been nearly impossible. We saw delicate varieties of wildflowers growing from the rocks and glimpsed two alpine marmots (thanks to their shrill calls, which sounded oddly like emergency whistles!). After reaching the summit (well, a point 100 meters from the real summit), we quickly descended due to some bad weather coming in. We showered and had a very disappointing dinner at an overpriced and very mediocre restaurant. After watching the Williams v. Williams Wimbledon Final, we turned in for the night.
The next day, we woke to rain. So we did what any sane people would do: we strapped our boots on and set out to find some waterfalls! After following a trail on our map and meeting some truly fantastic elderly Irish hikers, we found some of the most stunning waterfalls. We continued along the trail, reaching no peaks, but following a contour line at an elevation of roughly 6000 feet. From a clearing in the trees, we spotted what appeared to be the Rabobank Cycling Team bus. When we finally reached town after descending for a few miles, we discovered with delight, that it was the team bus! In addition, numerous other professional cycling teams were there as well. After talking to a Silence Lotto mechanic, we learned that the Tour of Austria was in the area. We vowed to find it to see the start the next day. We made it back to the chalet to shower and drove through some impressive mountain passes to find some better dinner in the next town over, Lech. Well, we found a great restaurant in the charming ski town, ate gourmet pizza, drank radler (it is known as "cyclists' beer" as it is a mix of beer and lemonade). We wrapped up the night by watching bits of the Tour de France and seeing the most impressive Wimbledon Men's Final I have ever seen. Poor Andy Roddick lost to Roger Federer, whom I still dislike more than most human beings on this planet...but that is another post for another day!
Our last day in Austria started out soggy. We finished breakfast, thanked our host (well, we tried, our German was very incompatible, as Austrians have such a strong accent, it is almost impossible to get even a bit of what they are saying) and set off to find the race. Luckily, as we were leaving, so were all the cycling teams, so we followed them to the start. I will not bore you all with cyclists and teams you neither know nor care about, but I will say that it was awesome. After seeing the start and a bit of the race, we started heading home and stopped briefly in Garmisch to check out the shops. It was a truly fantastic weekend in all! We love and miss you all very much.
-The Millers
PS: The cats say "Hi" too and also very much enjoyed the run of the house while we were gone!