Life continues apace here in Washington. We're in our last month here now, and taking care of the growing list of details prior to our departure: French visas, pack-out arrangements, buying the furniture - now that's a big one. For many of the US diplomats posted in Paris, including ourselves, the apartments come unfurnished. The last time we had to supply our own furniture in our home, Tasman was two years old and Atlas wasn't born yet! Time to buy kids' beds, bookshelves, rugs, and lots of other stuff we never had the need for before. Fortunately, we have learned that there are several Ikea stores near Paris, so whatever we miss out on here, we can pick up there - at a premium, of course.

There were plenty of opportunities for fun the past month. One of the best was going out to the second site of the Smithsonian's Air & Space museum, the Udvar-Hazy center. It's housed in several large aircraft hangars, and displays some of history's more famous aircraft, including a Space Shuttle and Concorde. We went on their annual family day, where they have lots of special activities, like talks from astronauts and the chance to get behind the wheel of a private plane. The kids loved it!

Atlas is currently fascinated with firefighters, so he was also thrilled with our visit to the local fire station. A very nice volunteer firefighter took us around the station, showed us their dorms and how they slide down the pole to the bottom floor, and even let the kids sit in the truck - until an emergency call came in, when the trucks had to zoom right out again.

Take a look at some of the pictures from the past month. And a warning in advance - we are due to arrive in Paris on August 1st, so our next monthly update may be delayed, depending on how quickly we can get internet service there. A tout a l'heure!