Friday, June 28, 2013

Lego Time

It was time for the annual Lego Competition at the North Shelby library.  Everyone made something for the competition except for Belle, but she did get to pick out her favorite "girly" one.  And she has now decided that she needs some "girly" legos for Christmas.

This year the visiting Sartin team took ribbons in all categories, but everyone had a good time.  I was glad I got off work early to enjoy all of the cool creations.  Sam made a zoo with penguins, and Davis made a tower with a plane that spun around.  










Friday, June 7, 2013

Campout with the Barons

After finally convincing Magan that Birmingham was safe enough to go to a Baron's game, and that there would be plenty of police staff available for the scout campout, she agreed to let us go.  Note:  Magan + Judy + CBS local news = Disaster everywhere!  Stay Inside and in yo Mama's arms.  Anyway, after a good meal at Maccaroni Grill (pregnant ladies pick), we set off for our night of fun.

We left all of our gear in the car, as the plan was to pull the cars into the VIP lot when everyone else left.  At the game, we found out it was Star Wars night, and that it was free seat cushion night.  Jackpot.  It didn't take the boys long to make it to the play area.  Sam sat with me for a bit...on the grassy knoll...on our new seat cushions.  







I think the boys had a real good time, they got to get their own drinks and hot dogs (came free with the camping ticket), and I bought them a sno cone (which they know is a treat from their cheapo dad).  Sam let me throw him some pop ups and grounders while Davis played in the play area.  But we finished the night on our cushions watching the Barons get smashed by the Suns (11-1).  Did I also mention that it was Friday Night Fireworks, and set to Star Wars music?  How cool is that?

Firework show over and it was 10:40 PM.  We just sat and hung out for awhile, then I starting realizing that NO ONE else was staying.  Even the scouts were leaving...what's going on?  We starting making our way back to the main gate, and I finally found a Barons rep...The campout had been canceled due to rain earlier in the day.  Sam took it well, but ole Dave was having to fight back tears.  Oh well, I told them maybe we could go camping back in the back yard, but by the time we got home it was 11:30 PM, and they were fast asleep in my car.  It was a fun night anyway.


Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Stone Mountain - Day 4 (Fernbank Museum/IKEA)


Wow, we were slow moving after not getting back in bed from the Braves game till 12:30 AM.  But one of my goals was to run around Stone Mountain, so I was up on this Wednesday @ 7 and out on the 5 mile loop around Stone Mountain.  It was a great place to run, lots of people to "race" and often the whole road was available for the runners.  I finished in 49 minutes, and made it back the hotel a little after 8.

But it took everyone else a bit longer to wake up and we didn't get out of the hotel till around 10:30.  I don't know if I have mentioned the free breakfast we had at the hotel each morning, but it was awesome.  Bacon and Ham omelette each day for me.  We decided to try the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, mainly because I noticed it was free with our McWane membership.  This place was really cool, and was similar to McWane, but had the animal areas, and also the LARGE play area.  The LARGE play area had a river running through the middle of it with fish swimming in the river...but the river was just a projection onto the floor, but when you stepped onto it, the water rippled, and fish would scatter.  Very neat.  I lost Davis at one time in this area, did I mention it was very LARGE, but when I looked around, I knew where he must be...the underwater scuba area...and that is exactly where I found him.














We left the museum after lunch and got into fun downtown Atlanta traffic to get to Magan's favorite place...IKEA!  So we finally make it to IKEA, and Belle is sleeping, when Magan asks "Where is Belle's piggie (Yes, the atlanta braves piggie)?"  and then we remember that she had it in the gift shop at Fernbank.  so her and miranda take the boys into IKEA, while I taking the sleeping Belle back to the museum.

Its getting late, so I am ready to finish this blog...so we found piggie, Belle was happy when she woke up, boys do not go well with IKEA, Sam like the organizers there, Belle just had to have the pictures of her on the Princess Beds in IKEA, We spent too much money at IKEA, I had to unpack then repack the car in the IKEA parking lot, Davis decided he had to pee right before leaving IKEA, so back in we went, Cracker Barrel for supper on the way home, had great time with Mir and the boys.  The End.






Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Stone Mountain - Day 3 (Hike up the Mountain/Night with the Braves)



This is our crew for the hike up Stone Mountain.  Magan was taking a break this day chilling out at the spa getting a massage and pedicure, so my plan was to hike up the mountain (guy on the train said 1 mile, about 45 minutes), then take the gondola ride down, and play at some of the areas we had so much fun at the day before.

The day began hot, and I mean very hot, and so our hike began.  You can all guess how long it took Davis to start complaining about his knees.  But all in all, we were doing pretty well, but I quickly realized this was a lot harder of an uphill hike than I thought it would be.  Perhaps it was just trying to keep the kids going.  And Belle was on my shoulders from about step 1, so as group lead, I pushed this crew forward stopping periodically for water.  Running 10 miles a week has definitely made a hike like this more bearable with a little girl on my shoulders.

So we finally made it about 3/4 of the way up, and that's when I hear from Jasper "Hey, Where is my Ipod?"  Gone, he had played us a song from the Ipod at one of our water breaks at about the 1/2 way up point.  So down the mountain I go with Jasper looking for the Ipod, we made it back to our stopping place, and did not see it, so back to to the crew...no Ipod.

So we started up the last 1/4 of the mountain, and let me just say this is a VERY steep section, requiring handrails for one big climb.  But we made it to the top, by this time Belle was whining because my "head is wet", and she does not want to hold on.  At the top, we told the ranger about the lost IPOD, picked up some powerades, and went to wait on the gondola.  On our way to that area, a nice young kid informed me that the gondola was not running right now.  I politely asked him if he knew when it would be going again, and he told me "when it was fixed".  And perhaps because I had just hiked up the mountain with 5 kids, and was a little wore out, some of the Junkin in me slipped out to inform Richard (Yep, that was his name, fit him perfectly) how much I appreciated his smart aleck remarks.  We later sat in a waiting area, and got to hear good ole Richard talk about how he was trying to fix the problem, but in talking with him, I got a good sense of why his mother probably named him that.  So we finally to leave Richard, and hike back down.  One of those guys that you almost cringe to hear talking.  Typical Richard.

The hike down was much better...the only funny part I remember was Belle crying and fussing at me that I had made her pretty pants wet (from the sweat on my arm).  :)  Such a girlie girl.  Oh...and Jasper's Ipod was turned in at the museum at the bottom of the mountain.  Miranda was very happy.





Since my hour hiking plan did not turn out like I was originally intended, and most of our hiking crew was hallucinating from the heat, we decided to return to the hotel to play in the pool instead of going to the stone mountain attractions (Got 1 day pass to use later this summer now!!).  The pool was a much better choice to cool off and relax prior to the Braves game.

That evening we set off to Turner field.  The Pirates were in town, so Sam was happy to cheer them on, and this was the first braves game for Jasper and Jude.  These guys are athletes to the core, and were very excited to be at the game.  After taking some pictures outside the park, we walked over to the Right Field fence where one of the Pirates threw a ball up to Jude.  Pretty cool!

Magan stayed and rested while I took our kids shopping.  They are not ones to sit for 9 innings of a ball game.  But Sam got a Mickey Mouse Braves Pin, Davis found a "super special" atlanta braves bear, and Belle...she wanted an Atlanta Braves...Pig.  yeah, I don't know, but they got my money, cause she's got my heart.

The game was perfect, Braves tied up the game in late innings, then in the bottom of the 10th, they had a walk off double.  Sam and Davis:  As you guys read this many years from now, and you are taking your kids to a braves game, and they fight over who gets to hold the nacho chips and cheese, then they cry as you take away the chips and drink because of their fighting, remember this moment, and get two plastic containers to evenly split the snack...or just take away the chips and drink, they will get over it.

Dear me, just realizing how extremely frustrating Colby and I must have been to Granny and Granddaddy.  And they are reading just laughing at how I am being paid back.  :)

Davis, Jasper and Jude kept dancing and almost got in camera view in their attempts to...get on the big screen at the game.  I had the camera ready as I thought they were going to make it one time.  Those boys are crazy.  Of course Sam sat beside me saying "Why would they want to be on the TV?"  That boy is too much like his dad.  Belle, that cutie, was the sweetest little Braves fan you ever did see...She did the tomahawk chop every time.  She just kept grinning at the large Chick-Fil-A cow that led the chop.