Last vestiges of summer vacation.

With the first day of school just hours away, now is a good time to look back on some of the fun we had this summer.

Once again, we spent a bit of time biking along the North Shore on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail. This a great way to see many of the major sites of the city, including the Carnegie Science Center.



And Heinz Field where the Steelers play.



And the skyline (Yes, I waved to all the poor suckers who were stuck working inside those buildings on that gorgeous day.).



Our new routine this year included taking a packed lunch and eating next to the USS Requin submarine outside of the science center.



We also went kayaking again.



This year, Lauren got her very own paddle. She was workin' it!



Me? I continue to steer us on course. Sort of.



Lauren also had her very first (of many future) salon visit. I've been cutting her hair myself since she was born, so I thought it was about time she had a professional stylist have at it.



Lastly, we took our annual pilgrimage to the Westmoreland County Fair. These festively colored tents house the people who steal your money under the guise of offering tremendous prizes.



There is no escape when there is face painting to be had. There's another five dollars that will go to waste once Lauren cries it all off when she doesn't get a prize from the scheisters in the festively colored tents.



Once again, we were accompanied by our friends, Mr. Scott, Ms. Beth and the Other Lauren. Can you tell which Lauren is which? Now that they have their faces painted, I wonder where they're off too...



Of course. The duck pond.



We hesitantly allowed the girls to partake of the rides. You never know exactly how safe they are, and in fact, we saw one operator trying to fix a ride by banging on it with a hammer! Not to mention that you had to pay extra admission in order to ride, but we decided to play dumb about it. And it worked - a couple of the operators actually let them ride!



Take that scheisters!