Spring Concert

Last night was Benny's school spring concert!  We were so excited to go.  This is only the second concert the sixth grade band has given.  And they were fantastic!

 

Benny played the french horn wonderfully!

They started out with six french horn players at the beginning of the year, but are now down to four. 

 

In addition to the sixth grade band, we heard from all the others...seventh grade, eighth grade, the honor band, the jazz band, the High School band.  They all were teriffic!

 

Mom and Dad came up for the concert and enjoyed it!

 

Afterwards, we went to Dairy Queen for ice cream, soda, slushies and fries.  Then it was home to a late night to bed.

 

Only two more weeks of school left. We are all excited about THAT!

 

But I can't wait to go to more concerts next year!

 

Way to go, Benny!

 

 

Green Eggs and Bacon

 

 

What a crazy day Sunday was.  First of all, we woke up to this.  Snow!  We weren't getting much snow at all at home, then we headed out to North Carolina to visit family.  Not far from town we took this photo, encountered icy roads like crazy, and drove through heavy flurries of big fat snowflakes!

 

But within minutes, we drove right out of it. And in NC, the weather was sunny and gorgeous, without a cloud in the sky. And the snow was all gone by the time we came home, too.

 

Then Benny and I made dinner.  This was the birthday of Dr. Suess, so we decided to celebrate.  Who doesn't like at least one Dr. Suess book?  When Sam was little, he loved the book GREEN EGGS AND HAM.  Maybe because "Sam" was a character in the book?

 

Oh Sam I am,

Oh Sam I am,

I do not LIKE

Green Eggs and Ham!

 

 

 

But we liked our green eggs and ham (um, bacon) just fine.  Benny did a great job on the eggs, and I cooked the bacon.

Delicious!

 

 

Winter Break 2013

 

The boys are off school all week this week.  We've all been enjoying the break.  We mostly have been hanging around at home, but today we went to visit Mom and Dad.  We helped them get their 3D TV working on the 3D channel, then went out to lunch at Steak and Shake.  Then we headed over for the annual pilgrimage to Monster Golf.

This was the first time we've ever gone to Monster Golf and it's NOT been crowded. Normally it's jammed.  But the kids down there don't have the week off like we do up here, so we had the place to ourselves!  It was so nice not to be rushed the entire time.

 

We had a great time and during the game, two miracles happened.

 

The first miracle is that I got a hole in one! 

 

The second one is that after I had my first turn, Sam took his turn and his ball bumped mine straight into the hole, so I got ANOTHER hole in one!

 

Afterwards it was (of course) air hockey, skeeball, and a few other quick games, then the boys cashed in their tickets for Airheads taffy.  After a long drive home, we collapsed into our normal routines of video games, chores, and playing with the kitties.  All in all, not a bad day at all. 

 

Just a few more days left of break, and we plan to enjoy all of them!

 

 

Sam's 14th Birthday

 

 

Can you believe Sam is 14?

Today was his birthday party.  We played pin the tail on the donkey.  We had a scavenger hunt for prizes.  We shot off confetti guns and streamer blasters.  Then the boys got to tear apart a Spongebob pinata.  They liked that!

 

 

 

It was on to presents and cake.

 

This year to celebrate his birthday, we are all going to the circus!  We are very excited.  It will be a big night out in the big city!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cake was enjoyed by all.  Then it was on to candy, cartoons, and video games.  These birthdays just keep coming closer and closer together!

Happy Birthday, Sam!

Beautiful Snow!

 

Today we had our very first snow of 2013.  And it was a good one!

 

It started mid-morning as sleet, then tiny snowflakes, then to a full blown heavy snowfall.

 

 

Everything is so pretty!

 

 

 

We went for a quick walk to get some pictures.

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow it will warm up and I'm sure the snow will be all gone by bedtime. So I don't think we're looking at a snow day on Monday. 

 

 

Lucky for us, today we were able to grab a BIG load of firewood!  Marty covered it up to keep it dry and we'll finish unloading it tomorrow.  It made for a lovely fire all afternoon and evening.

 

 

 Nothing like having a snug house on a snowy day.  We are so lucky!

 

 

Florida Getaway 2012

 

The day after Christmas, we packed up the boys and headed out in the rain for an eight hour drive to Destin, Florida.  We were all set for two days of sun and fun!

We arrived only thirty minutes before the sun set, but thank goodness for those thirty minutes. It was gorgeous!  And the boys were SO happy to be on the beach after a long day in the car.  There was running, jumping, leaping in and out of the water, and lots and lots of picture-taking of a spectacular sunset.

 

 

 

This is where we stayed.  On the eleventh floor!

 

 

I told you it was a spectacular sunset!

 

Our first morning there, Sam noticed a pigeon on the balcony. He went out to feed it and very quickly it was joined by several other pigeon friends.

That very quickly led to a giant mob of frantic seagulls hovering in a cloud off the balcony, screaming for food.  The boys threw pieces of cereal into the gull-cloud and the gulls would catch them in mid air and roate around so all the birds got a turn.  This turned into a morning ritual and the boys fed the birds each of our three mornings there.  They loved it, though it was a bit messy.

 

Later on the beach, the birds were hoping for more cereal.  It didn't happen.

 

We went on a dolphin-watching cruise our first afternoon there.  We rode the Southern Star, which was a very nice boat.  It was packed and very cold and windy.  But we did see lots of dolphins!

 

 

They were so friendly and approached the boat over and over.

 

 

 

The gulls also followed the boat for a long time, hoping for some Fritos, which some of the passengers threw to them.

 

Both boys were sick, which sure was a shame.  Benny had a cold and Sam had a raging sinus infection.  Though we were only there two days, I had to find a walk-in clinic and get Sam some antibiotics and steroids.  That was an unpleasant morning.  But we got what we needed, and went off to the Gulfarium on our last afternoon there. 

 

The boys loved it.  They watched a dolphin show, a sea lion show, and looked at alligators, fish, penguins, sharks, and otters.  We enjoyed the view of the ocean, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We got to pet an otter!

 

After the gulfarium, it was dinner at Golden Corral, which was a big hit for everyone.  Benny even had crab legs!  Then it was one last wild romp on the beach (the boys went crazy) and then a night snuggled in with TV and blankets and Ipads and hot showers after getting so wet and cold.

The next day we headed home with our cold medicine and our sandy clothes and our photos and memories. I hope we get to go again next year!  There is something magical about kids and the beach.  And they won't be "kids" forever.  For now, it's so important to enjoy times like these.

 

 

 Happy New Year!

 

Christmas 2012

 

Christmas sure snuck up on me this year.  It seemed to come so quickly after Thanksgiving!  But we sure had a great one!  This year we got to spend Christmas day with Mom and Dad!

 

 

Mom is recovering from knee replacement surgery and has had a rough time.  So she wasn't feeling a hundred percent that day.  And Dad has a back problem that flared up terribly, so he wasn't feeling great, either.  But you'd never know it--they were both so cheerful and happy.  They had a gorgeously decorated home, two Christmas trees, and tons of presents and good spirits.  When we arrived, we dove into sausage biscuits and fruit and opening stocking gifts. 

 

Then we moved onto tree gifts and of course, everyone was so thoughtful and generous.  Here's Mom modeling a handmade scarf I gave her......

 

And see the Moose she gave me?  She made the sweater that has a big Z on it.  Z is for Moose!

 

 

The BIG surprise was for the boys--an X Box!  They were stunned and thrilled.  They went upstairs, hooked it up, and started playing right away.

 

After a while, Linda and Cecil came over.  We made a buffet dinner while Mom rested her knee.  There was plenty of food and plenty of conversation.  All in all, a wonderful Christmas.

And afterwards, we hurried home to pack our bags and head to sunny Florida! But that is another post.  Merry Christmas!