Bob with an old salt

Bob tries to convince an old Key West sailor
why the Steelers will win the Super Bowl. "He
didn't say much, but I think I convinced him."

Pregnant in Paradise

It's hard to believe that Erin is almost a mile out in

the ocean. We took a boat ride and our captain

took us out to the sand bar to wade around. The

water was so warm and the sand was like sugar.

Two chicks on a boat

Phil and I picked these two chicks up on the beach
and took them for a ride in a fast boat. Too bad
they just had their hair done.

What is he thinking?

He is contemplating all the snow back home, and how
he doesn't have to shovel any of it! He thinks,"what
was it like to chip ice off the windshield....I think it
was kind of hard to do. He contemplates what it
felt like to slip on the ice and fall on your ass. He is
also thinking of how miserable it was to get up
in the dark and try to start a cold car to drive
to work. This is a real thinking man!

Key West

We took a day to drive down to Key West and toured
the Ernest Hemmingway house. This is a picture of
his study where he wrote several of his novels from
1931 to 1939. His typewritter is on the table. He was
not only a great writer, a hunter and women's man, but
a great fisherman. He caught the largest sail fish ever
recorded. He also helped Joe Kennedy run rum from
Cuba during prohibition. We had lunch at a beautiful
site where the waiter happend to be from Penn Hills.

The mangroves

Phil and I rented a kayak and tried to get lost in

all these mangrove canels behind Lower Mattacumbe

Key. We eventually ran into some people living back in

this jungle. When they saw my Steeler shirt they

hollered, "Go Steelers."

The Good Life

Part of our usual routine down here in the Florida
Keys is to eat lunch out, preferably at a place that
has a great view of the water. This place is called
Lazy Days and it has great Key Lime Pie. I have
a hard time finding Guinness down here, but I
found something close called Havana Red.

Landing a mackerel

We landed three of these mackerels. They have to be
gaffed because they have razor teeth. Here the two
mates try to de-hook Phil's fish.

What a catch!

We had enough fish to eat for the whole two weeks. The
large fish are King mackerel. They gave us the best
fight, and they were delicious!

Two great fisherman

Phil and I spent a half day on 200 feet of deep blue sea.

We each caught some little stuff, but I got 2 Kingfish

and Phil got one. We had the local restaurant cook them

up for us. They were outstanding! So were we.

Iron City

Fun in Florida

Pictures from the first week in the Keys. Erin, Phil, Ann

and Mariann at a beach in Islamorada. Cuba lies 90 miles

behind them.

More Sled Pics

Despite having a tone of snow dumped on us lately, one benefit is sneaking outside when the weather allows. Stacie Boris (whom I teach with) invited us over to her folks yard outside Sarver, where we were lucky to enjoy some fun on the slopes.





Here is a shot of Stacie and her little boy , Jacob.










Gilly threw us for a scare, smacking head on with a tree trunk. She doesn't fully understand the concept of "bail out" when in danger. Luckily she was ok, despite causing the tree branches to shower her with snow upon impact. It was a true miracle that she was not hurt, and of course she said, "Oh Dad, I was never going to get hurt."

Sled Fun

Snowed In

Took the kids outside today. There was easily 6"s of snow on the ground, which the weatherman said was the most snow we've had in 5 some years. By nightfall there was more like 8"s but I took the camera outside and snapped some shots.

Gillian made some snow angels, and to boys played on the sled. Of course it got cold quick and they soon came back inside, but we had fun. Here are some of our pictures from today.

Happy New Year!!! 2009

Glad I snapped 3, the other 2 pics were bad.

Christmas at the Farraher's 2008

Erin and I always built a fort made of boxed presents in front of the fireplace. This goes back to as long as I can remember. Anyway, my own children have continued this tradition, and with the help of experienced builder, Aunt Erin, the kids did a pretty decent job again this year.

Then they helped take turns dismantling the wall, passing out the presents to all good boys and gals.


This year Santa put a 'kid in the bag' present.

Everyone got some really nice gifts. I got a new golf bag, which I can't wait for the weather to turn nice again to hit the links with. Thanks to all those family members who gave generously.












This year we miss Aunt Sal who is not in this family picture. We treasure the Farraher memories from Christmas past, and look forward to creating new memories with our family additions. This time next year, Colin and Erin will celebrate Baby's 1st Christmas!!!

One treat that we always look forward to is seeing this green colored wrapping paper. Ever since the late 1970's it has been showing up in my family known to all is the "Work house paper' from where my Gram Ma Ann McEntee (pictured holding it) got it from work. Vee has done an amazing job preserving this paper year after year, and I thought it deserved a picture on the blog, forever preserving it in the blogosphere for future family generations to see.

Farrell Family Outlaws

Sorry, but this was the only picture that turned out. It was cold and the other ones you people were moving.

Farrell Family Portrait 2008

The Grand Kids 2008

Christmas at the Farrell Homestead

Christmas at the 4235 Stanton Ave. Farrell's homestead is quite an experience. In a house fit for maybe a dozen or so people to co-habituate, our family (literally) squeezes in about 40+ people under one roof. It is a fantastic holiday tradition, albeit somewhat suicidal after about 15 minutes of holiday exposure, as there are not enough chairs or space to move around in. That said, we do love seeing all the relatives, and treasure sharing Christmas Day with each other. Thanks to Maggie and Gram for offering their place to everyone to celebrate and make messes. They are good sports although one wonders how many more years we can do this until we need to rent a hall or something bigger with the coming generations.

Santa came for a visit, and handed out gifts to all the great grand kids. Uncle Jim from California was with us this year, as his family took a 6 week trip to Brazil and dropped him off at Maggie's house.






A standard tradition of each Christmas is to get a photo of each of the generations and sub groups outside near the Farrell arch. I will post each of those shots following these pictures. Meanwhile, here are the Farrell Great Grandchildren. Note that Tristan refused Santa and walked off the set not wanting his picture taken.

Christmas Morning 2008

Everyone woke up at dawn, but the kids were pretty good about letting Mom and Dad sleep in until about 8 AM or so. The big Christmas gift to the family was a Wii, which has become a big hit this Christmas for all the kids. Santa also brought the boys some toy cars, make-up kit for Gillian, and a lot more.

Christmas Eve at Betty's

Some shots at the Johnston's household on Christmas Eve. All the cousins were there, including baby Lucca who was experiencing his first Christmas. The boys each got night vision goggles, which the Dads really enjoyed looking around in the dark with. Everyone got some really nice presents, and Betty's cooking was delicious as usual.



Here are some other shots from the evening: