Lake Murray

Tex loves the new grass at the lake.  He kept wiggling around on his back and looked like he was in Heaven.

Olivia with her fish.  The girl needs to learn how to bait her own hook and take the fish off.  I don't think McIver's going to be interested in doing it for her much longer if she keeps catching the bigger fish.

This is Mac's catch.  He caught it about 3 seconds after dropping his line in the water.

I love watching them work things out on the dock.  They know I'm not going to be any help, so they just figure it out.

Lake: Before & After

BEFORE:

AFTER:  

Grass!  Beautiful, lush, green grass! The view coming in from the lake is just gorgeous.

Those shrubs will get just big enough to hide the not-so-pretty wall to the boat ramp.

This little palm tree is Will's favorite part.  Can you see Mac's shoes and socks?  The very first thing he did when he saw the grass was take them off because he wanted to feel the grass on his feet.  The kids commented all afternoon how great it is to be able to walk across the yard and not hurt their feet.

Street Side BEFORE:

With the Wall...

Midway:  After that wall came tumbling down.

AFTER: OMG!  CAn you even believe it!?  We were able to save the original azaleas but decide to go ahead and remove everything else.  We WILL also remove the white lattice fence.

And, just because I can ...

Spring Break 2012 - Lunch with Great Grands

The children and I took our time getting up and dressed on Wednesday morning.  Then we picked up Grandma Myrtle and Grandma Janet and took them to lunch at S&S.  

Even though the outside temps reached the upper 80s that afternoon, you can bet your bottom dollar that pool water wasn't warm enough for me.  But, my crazy kiddos had a ball splashing around together.

He was trying to sneak up on me, but I caught him!

Spring Break 2012 - World of Coke

Olivia and McIver said they loved the World of Coke even more than the Georgia Aquarium.  I had worried that there might not be enough to keep them interested (I thought it would be just memorabilia), but there was plenty to see and do.

In the lobby waiting for the introductory video.

McIver was over Flat Fred by this point, but he let me take just one more picture.

Loved all the old and new Coke signs.

I don't remember this character in any Coke commercials, but apparently, s/he was a 'thing' at some point.

The Coke Polar Bear was SO CUTE!!

The Tasting Room is probably why they liked World of Coke better.  There were stations for each continent and drinks from lots of different countries.  McIver was WIRED!!!  I thought his head was going to spin off his shoulders and he COULD NOT STOP TALKING 90 miles per hour!

The 4D movie was pretty awesome, too!

THE Vault where the secret formula is actually kept under lock (and lock and lock) and key.

THE American Idol couch where contestants waited to see if they were voted off the show.

All of the old bottles were super cool.

After a trip through the gift shop, we headed down to Macon to spend some time with Nanoo and Pop.

Spring Break 2012 - Georgia Aquarium

The children and I drove to Atlanta to visit the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca Cola last week during Spring Break.  After getting ALL turned around trying to find the 'official' parking garage (for which I paid ahead of time online, so I was bound and determined to find it, doggoneit!), we finally made it to the aquarium.  Thankfully, it really wasn't as packed as it could have been.  We didn't arrive until noon (when you purchase tickets you have to reserve a time before which you cannot arrive) which may have helped our cause.  So, we started out with a bite to eat and then made our way to the exhibits.

It was pretty cool to be walking through this tank of saltwater fish.  We felt like we were IN the aquarium with them.

These bubble windows always make me dizzy, but Mac and Flat Fred didn't seem to mind.  Check out that shark!

Olivia was all about posing for a few pictures.

The kids crawled through the tunnel in the freshwater tank.

Trying to pet the stingrays.

The beluga whales were just magnificent.  It's hard to believe their itty bitty tales (see the very right hand side of the photo) can maneuver those massive bodies.

Love the anemone... so bright and colorful (which you cannot see from the picture).

Olivia and one of the many themed dolphins in the courtyard outside the aquarium.

Cub Scouts Field Trip

Will planned a field trip for the Cub Scout den to go to our local NBC station, WIS.  Only problem was that it was the Monday of our Spring Break, so only three boys could make it.  And, Will had surgery late in the day, so he couldn't even go.  I'm actually glad I went, though, because I was able to see the shocked look on their faces when the anchor told them they were going to be on television.

They were shocked when she asked them to come stand in front of her desk.

McIver kind of liked the idea of working behind-the-scenes at a television station ... lots of computers, switches, knobs and buttons.

Burch and McIver brought their Flat Friends to the television station.

Front Yard Soccer

Olivia and McIver have taken to playing soccer in the yard before school and after homework is done in the afternoons.  O actually asked me to come out and take some pictures; I was happy to oblige.

McIver is LOVING soccer!  (Will is loving NOT doing baseball.)

Love that sweet smile!

How's this for a shot?  Olivia kicked the ball RIGHT AT ME and this is what we got.

I am McIver ... hear me roar!

Showing off her moves; and, Daddy's home!

Mac's got some moves of his own, but this was just my chance to get another shot of him.

Spring Break 2012

The children and I loaded up the car yesterday morning to head to Atlanta for a day of sight seeing. We went to the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke. Had a ball, but these are the only two pictures I took with my phone...

I'll add the others once I get back to the computer. Until then, happy spring break!

Waiting for the Dolphin Tales show to start.  The 'production' was a little corny, but we couldn't get enough of the dolphins and their tricks.

Mac with Flat Fred ...