Have you ever heard the saying "The 'perfect' is the enemy of the 'good'? That sums up a lot about my personality -- I'm always putting things off (or occasionally avoiding them altogether) because I don't have the time/energy/ability to make them perfect. This blog is the perfect example. I've fallen super behind on my posting and don't even know how to use the new blogger interface let alone have enough time to catch up, in proper chronological order, on all the stuff that has happened since February. It would stress me out to even think about it, so I have just been putting it off and off and off...

But I'm not willing to abandon this trusty ol' blog yet. So, I am going to experiment with embracing the 'good' by just doing a post or two. They might not be properly formatted or look clean and designed and they certainly won't be in date-order. It's just going to be a few words and pictures for awhile, fingers-crossed.

Anyways, today Troy took the afternoon off work (a partial make-up for having to work on Wednesday's holiday) and we headed downtown to visit the biennial Flower Carpet. For the last Flower Carpet, in 2010, I wrote a good post all about it (if I do say it myself). So no need to repeat myself now.

This year's theme is 'The African Continent', featuring tribal designs from Ethiopia, Congo, Nigeria, Botswana, and Cameroun. We put Chicken in the backpack, took a ridiculously hot tram for a few stops, and walked the rest of the way through the lovely, SUNNY cobbled streets towards the center.

Maren and Daddy out adventuring!

We met up with some friends at the Grand Place and headed up to the balcony of the Maison de Ville to gaze down on the beauty.

Maren simply couldn't believe it!

Guild houses - panning from the left...

...center...

...and right.

Me with my friend Manjula and her son Julien

Close-up of the center panel

Maren waving to the flowers

Family shot

Close-up of the amazing statuary

View from the café

At the café

So that's it. A lovely afternoon's outing and a triumphant return to the blog! I don't love the new interface (perhaps I need lessons?) and upon re-reading this, I am less-than-impressed with my prose. Sigh. Once a perfectionist, always a perfectionist. But hopefully I can embrace the good and be back blogging with greater frequency now. We shall see...