Happy Thanksgiving to all. I'm writing this in the 10-12 minutes our sweet potato biscuits are baking in kitchen oven. Julie and I borrowed a recipe from our dear friend, Nicole, in an attempt to impress our foodie Thanksgiving hosts later today. This year we're the tag-a-long couple with nowhere else to go, so some kind friends invited us to join them at dinner hosted by another couple, who apparently has rather high food standards. This is all very good for us and I expect to waddle back tonight very satisfied.

Julie and I have had a relaxing autumn. We managed to take a tropical getaway trip to Hawaii and a weekend backpacking hike to West Virginia. Hawaii was as beautiful as ever and my friend Steve's birthday was just the excuse to travel. We stayed in Kauai at a house on the beach and spent each day outdoors swimming, hiking, riding a tandem bicycle, snorkeling and scuba diving. Oh, and we learned to surf, which was the most memorable and difficult activity we attempted.

Our backpacking trip to West Virginia was a short three-day affair. Julie, Louie and I piled into a rented red Ford Mustang and headed west. The backpacking was beautiful and we arrived near the peak of autumn. Louie did very well and as always, packed in his own food and water. It became a bit chilly at night, but the weather was perfect in the day.

That's all to report for now. Here are some photos of the above activities and some winter portraits. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone.

Hawaii Photo Slideshow

West Virginia Photo Slideshow