Fourth of July Fireworks

How is it already July 4th?  Summer is just flying by.  We celebrated the fourth with hot dogs, ice cream, and fireworks!

It was a rainy day so the show in town was cancelled, but we had a sliver of time when the rain stopped, so we did our own fireworks show in the yard.

 

 

The boys had a great time and did a great job lighting the fireworks and dashing away as they  burned.

 

Sparklers!

 

Benny lights a magic fountain.

 

Marty may be the safety man at work, but tonight was all about reckless firework tossing!

 

We smoked out the entire neighborhood!

 

And of course, Marty took these wonderful pictures.

 

Happy Fourth of July to everyone!

 

 

 

To The Bahamas!

 

In May, the boys and I went on a quick cruise to the Bahamas.  This time we went on the Disney Dream.  We loved it!! 

 

The ship was gorgeous!  And there was lots to do and see.

 

The Magic has the "Aqua Duck."  This is a tube that wraps around the upper deck and swings out a little over the ocean.   You get in a raft and ride through the tube.  We thought that was fun.

 

This time, we brought Moose along!

We also brought along a friend of his, because his friend was dressed just perfectly for a tropical cruise.

 

 

When we stopped in the Bahamas, we got off the ship and went over to see Atlantis hotel and casino.

They have a nice private beach.

Sting rays, swimming in a circle!

 

and they have an indoor aquarium.

But our favorite stop was the next day, when we went to Castaway Cay.  We went one time before with Mom several years ago. We couldn't wait to go back. We were so lucky to have perfect weather!

 

 

 

We had a big day there.

 

We swam around.  We snorkled.  There were a lot of little fish around us at all times.

 

We then went to the stingray area and fed the stingrays!  That was interesting.  Then we snorkled among them, which was fun but a little creepy.  They are big creatures!

 

 

We rented bikes and rode all around the back part of the island and discovered a landing strip back there!

We then rented a huge water bicycle and wore ourselves out, paddling around.

 

And of course there were smoothies and snacks, and barbeque for lunch.

 

Back on the ship there was a pirate party, complete with fireworks.  The kids went to the kids club, which they really enjoyed.

 

We love sailing with Disney and hope to go again next year.  Bon Voyage!

 

 

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!