Summer Zinnias

For the first time I can recall I have successfully grown something from seed. I chose zinnias in order to increase my success potential because I heard they were easy to grow. I decided to play around with my camera and take some photos of the blooms. I am pretty happy with the results of both!

Peter Pan

Just before the end of school Double A was in a first grade production of Peter Pan. She was a pirate and narrator. None of the parts had lines but instead they had about 25 narrators. All the kids sang songs and acted out their parts. I keep telling myself I will get the video on here but really have no idea how to do that and just haven't even tried yet!

She did a fantastic job as a narrator. She had tons of inflection and emotion in her voice, was loud enough and clear on the microphone. She was a cute, oops, a scary and mean pirate, too.

The pirate crew showing how mean and scary they are. LOOK OUT!!

A song at the end of the show that all the kids sang.

Double A doing her speaking part on the microphone. It was an adorable show and all of the children did a great job dancing, signing and memorizing lines. Amazing they were only first graders.

For the second show the next day at the school assembly Double A was so excited that she was chosen to give the thank you card to the piano player. Their class is lucky enough to have a student whose father is a professional piano player and has shows at the symphony hall and such, Peter Martin. He volunteered to practice with them and perform for the shows. Maybe one day I will get the video situation figured out :)

Camping - Update #3

So I have tons of new pictures to post here but am still playing catch up. Unlike some bloggers I know (looking at you TB) I am not post dating these and rather I am just owning up to being a slacker :).

My 700 pictures I just downloaded from ONE camera need to be sorted through and posted...after I download the gazillion on the "beach" camera and get the ones from my sister in law on her camera. Bahamas pictures are coming!!

This post is short and sweet (I think, just now starting it) with pictures and brief update from our Spring Break camping trip back in March. We arranged to meet our friends from Mississippi (and some of their friends) at a campground in Kentucky. It was tons of fun, even if it was chilly. We explored Mammoth Caverns, went horse back riding, fishing, roasted 400 pounds of marshmallows and just relaxed. One day we drove to the next large town for "provisions" after we discovered we were camping in a dry county. While we were there the older kids and dads toured the Corvette factory. Double A now wants an electric blue Corvette...her dad wants a black one. I told both of them to keep on dreaming the dream.

Unfortunately Husband #1 was only there three out of 7 days. He got called back to the hospital to do a pediatric liver transplant so had to go to the tiniest airport in Cave City, Kentucky and be flown home. We ended up leaving a day early since he was home alone and I was camping with two kids on my own and his birthday was the day we would have returned. We thought it would be nice to be home with him on his special day :)

Inside the cavern, on the ridiculously tight and steep stairwell going down in to the cave

all the kids on a hike on the hills above the caverns

My best bud and I in the cavern

Double A with the deer jaw bone we found at the river's edge while hiking. Other deer parts were claimed by other kids

all the kids down in the caverns
Husband #1 with Bumblebee (in his AWESOME miner's hat) and Double A. This was outside of a cave we went to that we rode in a boat through the cave. Saw bats inside and everything.
Reading around the campfire...this just made me smile. They also played flashlight tag and other fun games. They all stayed up WAY too late...so much so Double A kept waking up with stomachaches during the night and on the second or third night she even threw up. Once we started getting to bed earlier she was fine.

Our spring break is a wee bit too early for prime camping time, the weather is chillier than we would prefer and not all of the attractions are open in the tourist areas. We make do and have a great time anyway!