We started the summer by ending the school year with Ella's 8th grade dance.
 |
| Ella is the one with her hair pulled back. |
Then we celebrated Ella's birthday.
We had hoped to make it to Dollywood several times during the summer to make the most of our yearly passes, but the summer passed so quickly that we only made it once.
Mike and Lisa got to take a weekend together to Asheville, NC. There they discovered just how much they love Vegan food.
 |
| Vegan cheese plate |
 |
| Mike had the peppercorn crusted setan |
 |
| Vegan dessert is delicious! |
Ella made her second flight alone as she flew off to New York City to visit Columbia University. From there she traveled to Washington, DC to visit George Washington University both with an ambassador's program where she met and traveled with kids her age from across the globe.
Next, it was off to Paris, France for Ella and Lisa and eventually, Mike
 |
| Ella with her friend Megan from Vermont |
 |
| Ella and Lisa with Megan and her parents |
 |
| Ella with the River Siene |
 |
| So much beautiful architecture!!! |
 |
| The grounds of the Louvre |
 |
| Dining was always so much fun! |
 |
| Mike joins us! |
 |
| The view of Paris from Sacre' Coeur Basilica on Montmartre Hill |
 |
| Visiting artists at Montmartre |
 |
| The best view in town is from Printemps Department Store |
 |
| A wonderful night out! |
 |
| Versailles! |
 |
| Inside the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles |
 |
| Out for a show |
Back home it was summer as usual for a few days and then...
 |
| Four soccer players from England, Scotland and Brazil came to stay with us. We had such a fantastic week getting to know Andrew, Nikki, Leo and Stephen |
One of our last memories of the summer was hiking to the top of the Chimneys here in Tennessee.
 |
| Nikki, our new giant friend from Scotland decided to join us |
 |
| ...so did our Steiner nephews |
And that was (with a couple of weeks spent at Grandma Camps for the kids) the Walsh Summer of 2012!
