The Kmiec Ramblings

We decided to take a road trip from Minneapolis to New York with the intention of seeing Adam’s family.  Along the way we made time stops at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Niagra Falls, and the Baseball Hall of Fame.

These photos are from our first stop, after 12 hours of driving through the night, in Cleveland, Ohio.

This is where we ate breakfast. We found this place called Yours Truly that was right in the middle of a farmer's market.

Just before the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a park that has the world's largest rubber stamp.

To give you a sense of perspective I shot this photo. Cora is in the lower right hand corner of the frame. This stamp is huge.

Cheryl shot this photo of Cora and Adam waiting for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to open. We got there kinda early.

This is the stage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It's one of the last things you see before you have to check your camera.

We would have shown you more photos from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but as you can see we weren't allowed to use our camera. Bummer and totally lame.

Wow, what a difference a year makes.  Last year we took Cora to the Minnesota State Fair.  She was only 4 months at the time, but we strapped her into a BabyBjorn and pounded away at the pavement.  We event made time to give Cora a little taste of a corn-dog.

Cora Eats a Corn Dog

We’ll this year, Cora was really able to enjoy the fair.  She really ran us ragged.  Clearly, I need to be upping my daily mileage so I can keep up.  She was hesitant at first, to touch the animals.  But, once she realized they wouldn’t bite back, Cora had no problem petting them.

Cora Pets The Animals

Her first real taste of fair food came in the form of a fried cheese curd.

Cora Eats a Cheese Curd

From there it was a corn-dog, then some mini-donuts, cookies from Sweet Martha’s, and lastly a blueberry snow-cone.

Cora Eats a Mini Donut

Cora Eats a Snow Cone

It wasn’t all junk food though.  Cheryl made sure to give her a nice glass a milk.

Cora Drinks Some Milk

What a great time!

We took Cora to the Como Zoo and Conservatory today. We took her to the Omaha zoo several times, when she was an infant. But, this a whole new experience. She ran and ran and ran…the girl has got some serious stamina. While she enjoyed the animals, especially the monkeys, she really enjoyed climbing “things” and playing in the water. After checking out the zoo we explored the conservatory and finished the day with a carousel ride. Not too bad!

Como Zoo and Consevatory

Cora Checking Out Monkeys

Cora Climbed a Bench

Cora Inspecting Foliage

Cora Snacking

Cora Playing in the Koi Pond

Cora and Cheryl in the Japanese Garden

Japanese Garden

Cora Riding the Carousel

It took about 1,000 takes, but we finally got a decent photo of Cora and Adam.  Not a bad way to celebrate the birthday.

Adam and Cora on the Porch

Spent the weekend at the in-laws. Had a great time in and around the pool. I’m telling you, Cora is going to spend a lot of time on the beach when she grows up!

Cora and Diane

Cora in the Pool

Cora and Diane in B&W

Cora in Her Chair

Cora and Diane One More Time

Cora Getting Ready to Dive

The last one is just awesome.  It’s a little over-exposed, but I just love the confidence she has to stand up on the diving board.

I really love shooting with my Nikon D2Hs and 105mm 2.8 VR.  The 105mm is razor sharp and the D2Hs is lightening fast.  You need both to keep up with Cora.

Cora Sticking Her Head Out

Cora Smiling

Cora Smiling Again

Wish I had my camera today. We were at a BBQ today that had an inground pool. Cora decided to try it out on her own and walked right in. We quickly got her out of pool…no harm no foul, but a lot of laughs.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted some Cora photos. It’s been hard to find the time to shoot anymore with me being out of town so often and her always running around. However, we made some time today to enjoy the hot weather. Enjoy.

Cora on the Porch

Cora Examining The Tree

Cora In The Tree

Cora loves the sprinkler. Actually in general she loves water. With the weather hitting near tripple digits today we decided let Cora play in the water. I think it’s safe to say she had a great time.

Also, you’ll notice in the 2nd picture Cora holding a basketball. Yes, she has already decided that basketball will be one of the 3 sports she’ll be playing in high school.