He pooped!

We went to the zoo today. While Alex was petting a goat, he (the goat) pooped right there in front of Alex. Look at Alex's reaction to the situation. Be sure to see the expression on his face--it's priceless!

Halloween at Cochran Mill Nature Center

We went to Cochran Mill Nature Center tonight for their annual Halloween Festival. Here are a few pictures from it!

Pin the nose on the pumpkin

Going through the "scary house" (haunted house)

Alex decided he wanted a mushroom painted on his face. Go figure.

Look--it's a legless lizard!

Alex & Julia on the hayride

He's swimming!

Yea, Alex!! He is finally swimming! All summer, Julia and Meri have been going faithfully twice a week to cheer Alex on as he learns to swim. Today, he finally did it, and we are all so proud!

July 4th

We spent July 4th at our friends' house, the Taylors. There was swimming, a BBQ, golf, and fireworks! We had a wonderful time--the Taylors really know how to throw a party!

Our Vacation

At the end of June, we went on a cruise to Cozumel. It was Julia & Alex's first time out of the country! When we got to Cozumel, Alex & Julia went to Tulum to see the ruins while I took Baby Alex to swim with the dolphins. We had a great time on our vacation! Julia's favorite part was seeing all the "Mexican rats" (iguanas) running around in Tulum, and Alex just enjoyed riding the glass elevators on the boat. Couldn't we have done that at home for free????

Look Who's Diving!

Ok, it may not be a perfect 10, but he's working on it! Here's little Alex doing one of his first dives at swimming lessons.

Oh no!!

Yesterday, I was driving Julia home from her violin lesson. It was storming! When I was almost home, I got a phone call from my neighbor. She told me I had a tree down in the front yard. Imagine my surprise when I drove into my driveway and saw my backyard. Ugh. I saw dollar signs instantly. I then realized my garage door wouldn't open because we did not have electricity (no, I did not forget to pay the bill!). I also did not have a landline phone (Again, I did not forget to pay the bill this time!). Could it get any worse? Of course so! My phone did not come back on until tonight at 8pm, and we did not have good water pressure due to someone in the neighborhood having problems. Tonight, all is back in working order (thank the Lord), but we still have the 75 ft. oak tree in our swimming pool, and there are a couple more trees that are down or are about to fall over. The tree service is coming in with the crane tomorrow. We have 2 broken fences and some structural damage to our retaining wall, but at least noone was hurt! Alex spent most of today (with the help of a good friend) cutting down the 50 ft. pine tree in the front yard. He is "stove up" as they say!

Beach Be-Attitudes!

This week, we have been going to bible school. Julia & Alex really seem to love the music--just look! Their friend, Michele, joined in as well.

Julia is off to camp!

Julia went to camp for the first time today. She was a little nervous but really excited! She went to ASTA camp which is a strings camp located in Hampton, GA (about 30 mins. from our house). She is staying for 2 nights--we go pick her up on Sunday. When we got there, she discovered there were also 2 boys there from her school--Andrew & Harrison--that play in honors with her. A familiar face is always good--even if it is boys!!! :-)

Alex is finally going under!

Today, Alex finally understood the concept that when he went under, he had to blow out! Yea Alex!!! A big thanks to Julia for catching this on camera!

Parade of States

Today, the 4th graders at Woodward Academy did their yearly presentation of the Parade of States. There are 134 4th graders, and they began working on this project in February. Each child is given either a state or a person, and they have to dress similar to him/her and write a short speech/summary about him/her. Julia was Georgia O'Keefe. Here is a clip from her speech.

Swimming lessons!

April 14-May 14, I did a "Water Babies" class with Alex. Today, he started taking swimming lessons all by himself (I have to sit back and watch). He cried some, but by the end of the lesson (and a few pieces of candy later), he had settled down. He was kicking in the water, blowing bubbles, and eventually put his eyes in the water--big step for him! Did I mention he HATES going under the water? It's going to be a long summer full of lessons!!! :-)

No more brace face!!

After much pain and agony, Julia finally got her braces off today!!! We are all happy! She chewed gum all the way to school.

Alex got his first medal!

Alex has been taking soccer lessons at his school. The program, Soccer Shots, ended for the school year. They gave out medals and certificates. Alex was so proud of his!!

The Garden

At Alex's school, they have been planting a garden. I have been asking him what they have been doing, and yesterday he informed me he had been planting "weeds." It really made me laugh! After I questioned him further, he told me he was planting seeds. :-)

April Fools!!!!!

Julia brought this note home to share with her Daddy. Needless to say, he was not very happy about the situation. Since he was still at work, I faxed this too him. I called him and told him Julia had waited until the last minute to give this to me, and I was furious. I had sent her to her room. He needed to deal with this and call the teacher because I was just too upset to do so, and I shouldn't be the one to have to handle everything. Well, he did (call). He realized it was an April Fools joke when reached a number that reported the weather, temperature, & traffic. He called us back and started laughing. We got him good! :-)

Easter

Easter was full of excitement! Julia & Meri helped with an egg hunt at Alex's school. On Easter, we went to Fort Valley for church, lunch & dinner with family, and an egg hunt. We also were able to connect with some old friends we haven't seen in years! Later on Sunday afternoon, we went with the grandparents out to a putting green. You know this excited little Alex (and big Alex too)! Little Alex thinks he is Tiger Woods, and he watches him almost daily on The Golf Channel.

She Made It!!!!!

Yesterday, Julia tried out for Honors Orchestra, and she made it!!! We are so proud of her! She is pictured here with one of her violin teachers.

Stinky is just too big!!!

This evening, Stinky was looking for a new place to lay down. She decided inside Julia's bookbag was the perfect spot (until she realized she was too big for the it)! Watch this cute video of Stinky caught in the act, but try not to let her huge gut distract you!

It's Snowing!!

Yesterday, we had a lot of snow! It was Alex's first time ever seeing snow, so he was so excited! Julia & Alex made snowballs, ate snow, and made snowmen. Neither one of them wanted to come inside to warm up. They really enjoyed getting to slide down the hills!!! The only thing we all hated was this happened on a Saturday and NOT on a school/work day! Oh well.

Alex has plenty of confidence!

This morning, I had to take Alex to school. In the classroom before his, a little boy was taking off a fleece dinosaur hat that had spikes at the top of it. I said, "Look Alex--look how cute his hat is!" Alex replied, "Just like me!"
I don't think Alex is lacking in the confidence area!