Ella and Trent ride the Pink Pig during our visit to Pops and Purson's house in Atlanta. This was the highlight of Ella's trip!

Home, Safe and Sound

We returned home from Atlanta on Sunday and took Trent to camp yesterday afternoon. Today I've been working on finishing up the rest of the laundry and changing all the sheets. I thought that I would post the last few things from Atlanta.

From our trip to see the Braves play...


From the 4th of July in Marietta Square...



From our relaxing Saturday afternoon at the pool...

Ella got a little braver this summer and made her way into the water. Last summer we could barely get her to put her feet in the pool. So this video will show you just how far along she has come since last year.

An Afternoon at the Fernbank

Today, the kids and I went to the Fernbank and spent some time looking through all the exhibits. I am very pleased with this museum because they do have a great rotating display...it's been a different hands on exhibit each time we've gone. This membership was well worth our money. Here are a few pictures of our time there.
BubbleShare: Share photos - Powered by BubbleShare

Lake Winnepesaukah on Saturday

On Saturday, we loaded into the car and drove up to Chattanooga to go to Lake Winnepesaukah...Lake Winnie for short. It's a great little amusement park that reminds me of the old Lakeside. It is very much geared to kids so Trent and Ella had a wonderful time. Here are some of the pictures from our day! We had so many pictures that I loaded them into a slide show. Press the start button and it will automatically slide through all 31 pictures.

BubbleShare: Share photos - Powered by BubbleShare

Abby Gets a New Car!

Abby bought a brand new '09 Camry on Wednesday night! We finally got to see it in the daylight yesterday. Happy Birthday to Abby!

After dinner at the Outback last night we came home and ate CAKE!

And Abby opened her present from us...a new sunshade for the new car and an I-Tunes gift card so she can update her Ipod(she can plug her Ipod into her new car).

I forgot to post this earlier this week. Here's a quick video of Trent diving for pennies. It's his new trick!

We Went To A Braves Game! AND MY 100th POST!!

Wow...my 100th post! It has taken me a little over year to get to my 100th (I began the blog on June 10, 2007).

We've been taking it easy in Atlanta this week spending most of our time at the pool.
On Sunday, we went to church with Pops, Purson, and Abby. Then we came home, ate leftovers, and went to the pool so Purson could have a quiet house. She had to complete a pretty big homework assignment and having everyone around making noise doesn't make it very easy to concentrate.
Monday morning the kids and I packed a picnic and took off for the pool. We spent about 3 hours there. Ella is getting brave about being in the water. We have progressed from just sitting on the side of the pool to getting on the float and riding around. Trent is still a fish...he stays in the pool from the time we arrive until the time we leave. Monday's trip to the pool was exciting for Trent because the guy with the kayak came back and brought his 11-year old son. Trent is learning how to throw pennies in the pool and then go look for them on the bottom. He was quite impressed with the other boy because he could dive to get the pennies in the 8 foot end.

Yesterday was Tuesday and we had originally decided to go to the Fernbank Museum. However, plans changed when we decided to go to the Braves game last night. A day at the Fernbank and a baseball game would've been a little much so we will go to the Fernbank another day. So here's a little rundown of the game...

We arrived a little later than usual - the game was already at the bottom of the 1st and the Braves were already behind 2-0. But we got some great seats in the shade on the third base side, field level. Here's a picture to show you how close we were:



Trent was happy with the seats because he had a great view of third base and his favorite player...Chipper Jones. However, I forgot to tell him before we got to the field that Chipper had been on the DL and more than likely would not be playing tonight, so he was a little bummed when he didn't see his favorite player covering 3rd. Since we were late we weren't able to eat dinner beforehand so we all got pizza at the field.

I had a teachable moment with Trent when Yunel Escobar was called out, threw his helmet, and was then ejected from the game. The Braves trailed the entire game but started a rally in the ninth and were only down 4-3. Things got really exciting but they still couldn't pull out the win.

Oh, yeah...as for Chipper...well watch the video...

Although he only came in to hit once Trent did get to see him. And Chipper did get a base hit (that's why we are chopping).

Ella is slowly figuring out the Tomahawk Chop. It looks better than last year!
And I took this video just for John. This is the Chick-fil-A cow that does the "chop" I was telling you about.

Until next time!

Summer 2008 in Atlanta

I apologize for not updating the blog since we arrived on Wednesday. We really haven't done anything exciting to blog about.Wednesday we went to IHOP for dinner and then spent the rest of the evening just chilling out at Pops and Purson's house. Thursday it was kind of cool so I decided to take the kids to the park rather than the pool.

Yesterday, the kids and I went to the pool and stayed for about 2 hours. Trent and Ella had a great time and it was capped off when one of the neighbors brought their kayak over and started doing tricks in the deep end of the pool. Trent and Ella were eating lunch while they watched him and thought it was the neatest thing they had ever seen. We came back to the house, cleaned up, and took long naps after our afternoon at the pool. When Pops got home from work we loaded into the van and picked up Purson on our way to Joe's Crab shack. I had never eaten at a Joe's but it turned out to be quite fun...it's one of those places that every 15 minutes or so the waitresses start dancing. I took a short video of Ella doing the "Chicken Dance."

The fun part of our evening didn't come until after dinner when Pops went to start the van. Uh, oh! The van wouldn't start! To make a long story short we ended up not being able to jump it in the parking lot so we had to call our friend Darryl to come and get us. We all piled into his Escape (Abby and I sat in the back, criss-cross applesauce) and went to pick up Purson's car (we left it at the beauty parlor on the way to dinner) and then came home. By the time we arrived home it was time to go to bed.

Today Purson, Abby, Ella, and I went downtown to walk around IKEA...and we just happened to bring home 2 pans of their DELICIOUS cinnamon rolls. We also rolled by the mall to do some of Abby's exchanging that she needed to do. Pops and Trent stayed close to the house. They began with a quick trip to Wal-Mart to pick up some oil, ate lunch at a Chinese restaurant, came home and changed the oil in Abby's car, and then began watching the first episode of Star Wars. We ate spaghetti for dinner and Trent and Pops went back to watching Star Wars.

Pops has suggested that maybe we need to make a Bruster's run later on this evening. We will have to see about that. :-)

So that's what has been happening so far. As I said in the beginning...nothing really interesting to blog about. Maybe we'll have something more exciting to write about in the next week.

Wednesday at Pops and Purson's

Today we took it easy and made a quick trip to the mall...shopping with Ella without a stroller is not the easiest thing in the world. We ate a quick lunch at Dairy Queen in the Food Court and enjoyed a "Dilly Bar" for dessert. Then we moved on to the park where we spent about 45 minutes. Trent was not the happiest camper because he didn't have anyone to play with while we were there - schools in the Atlanta area are not on Spring Break so there were no school age children to hang around with. It was also time for Ella's nap so we went home earlier than I had expected.

Earlier this evening Pops and Trent finally got to perform the Mentos & Diet Coke experiment. I hope you enjoy the photos and short video clip.

Visiting Pops and Purson in Atlanta...again

Here we are in Atlanta...our 3rd trip! Trent, Ella, and I arrived last night and will be staying here until Thursday. As I type, Trent and Pops are in the kitchen cooking dinner and Ella is finishing up her nap.

Today I took the kids back to the Fernbank Museum. We bought a family membership last summer and were not able to see everything so today we went back and were able to accomplish it all. Some of the things were the same as last time but they did have a few new things to play with. Here are a couple of pictures and a short video of our outing.


Ella feeds the baby birds in the interactive Life in Georgia exhibit. She really enjoyed this exhibit last summer.

This is the tree house in the middle of the Life in Georgia exhibit.

Where's Ella???? She's learning about camouflage, of course! This is a vest the kids wear and then they are able to stand in front of the colored boards and look at themselves in a mirror. It is pretty neat.

Trent and Ella learn more able plant and animal life in the state of Georgia. Here they see if they can snag any native fish of the state.

Trent enjoys catching Blue Crab in his net. Another sea animal native to the state.

Ella remembered making bubbles from this summer. She was excited to get to do it again.

Trent thinks he looks like Harry Potter in this picture.

The Fernbank has a great dinosaur display. This walk-through exhibit takes you through the entire scientific history of the state from the earliest one-celled organisms that lived millions of years ago, through the age of the dinosaurs, and into the present day.


Trent remembered the weatherman display from this summer so it was high on his list of things to revisit. Last time Ella wasn't to excited about it but this time she seemed to do a little better.

Saturday in Atlanta

Today Pops and Purson took us to Lenox Mall to ride the infamous Macy's Pink Pig of Atlanta. This is a holiday tradition for all "homegrown" Atlantans...some of the people my mom works with told her about it and shared their many memories of riding the pig when Rich's deparment store was still in business. It seems that the original pink pig (the original pig began sometime in the 50's from what we can gather) would travel on a steel line around the ceiling of the toy department in Rich's and the children would be able to look down and pick out what they wanted while they rode. It later was moved outside, and when Rich's was bought-out by Macy's in the 1990's it was moved to the top level of the parking garage at Lenox Mall. The pink pig we saw today was not the original but the original is on display in the same tent as the "new" pink pig train. It was quite a different experience, but lots of fun! Here are a few video clips and photos of our day. As you will be able to tell from the pictures, the train is housed in a large tent with LOTS of pink...pink lights, pink carpet, pink rails and fences. IT GLOWS PINK!

This is a picture of the original Pink Pig that sits next to the current train tracks. This pig (the original) actually ran by hanging on a steel track - like the Big Bad Wolf roller coaster at Busch Gardens in Virginia.

Daddy, Trent, and Ella wait for their ride on the Pink Pig.

This was Trent and Ella's first ride on the Pink Pig. Of course, Pops made sure they got a TWO RIDE ticket!

HERE IS A SHORT VIDEO CLIP OF THEIR FIRST RIDE:

Because Pops and Purson like to spoil their grandkids, here is a photo and video clip of their second ride. Trent was very excited that he got to sit in the very front of the pig!

After taking both train rides we went out of the tent and Chevy was sponsoring free face painting. Trent got a dragon and Ella wanted a flower, but when she got to the chair she wouldn't let the lady touch her face so she has a pretty flower painted on her arm.

Thursday in Atlanta

Thursday was the first full day we spent at Pops and Pursons and we decided that we would go to the mall to see if there were any great deals. Of course, we ate lunch at Chick-fil-A (this is the home of the original Chick-fil-A) and then we walked around. The kids were perfect so we let them ride the indoor merry-g0-round.

For dinner we cooked hamburgers on the grill (John ate chicken) and then decided to go up to Lake Lanier Islands to see their Christmas lights display. It was amazing...6 miles of Christmas lights to drive through.

One of the neatest things we were able to see at Lake Lanier was the live nativity they had on the route. A local church manned the nativity (along with a hospitality tent with free hot chocolate) and you had to get out of the car in order to see it. It was not like our church's nativity a few weeks ago...this was a "move around and act it out" nativity. Visitors came and sat down on the benches and watched the 10-15 minute "show." Here is a picture and a few video clips follow:

Back in Atlanta!

We are back in Atlanta visiting Pops, Purson, and Abby. Abby moved back to Atlanta last week to take a new job in the area so we are excited that we get to spend a few extra days with her also. I will be updating the blog as new pictures are taken. We aren't planning a lot for this trip...just a time to relax, enjoy time off, and spend some time with Pops and Purson. We will be returning home on the 31st.

Like Mother, Like Daughter

I took this short video in the car on our last day in Atlanta. Ella was in the backseat with one of her books that plays music and she started counting beats and directing. My camera ran out of memory space right after she started directing, but it's still cute. Enjoy my little Maestro!

Oh, yeah...if you're wondering what's on her head it's a paper hat from The Varsity in Atlanta. We ate lunch there that day.

JOHN VISITS CHICK-FIL-A!!!

What an exciting day in our family's history!!! We visited the Chick-fil-A corporate headquarters in Atlanta!!! Thanks the wonderful managers at our Chick-fil-A we had a personal guided tour, complete with a visit to Truett Cathy's office (unfortunately he was not in this afternoon), a view of the corporate gym and cafeteria, and (Trent's favorite) a chance to see the BATMOBILE!!

Truett Cathy purchased the Batmobile and drove it into the hall of cars himself. His Batmobile is only one of three from the movie "Batman Returns." The Batsuit is only one of 500 from the same movie.

This picture was taken in the Chick-fil-A Museum in a model of Truett Cathy's first restaurant. If you would like to know the entire history of Chick-fil-A please email or call John and he can tell you everything he knows.

It was a great tour and I'm glad that we were able to finally go. It is such a neat place and it would probably be a wonderful place to work.

Visiting Abby

Yesterday, we spent most of the day hanging around the house and relaxing and then we took off down I-75 to go see Abby. Most of you know that Abby just moved to Macon last month for work, so the kids and I wanted to go and see her new apartment and her office. Luckily, Person was able to join us on our short road trip.

The Fernbank Museum

Today, the kids and I went to the Fernbank Museum downtown. This was the first day that I actually drove into the downtown area on I-75. What an experience!! I've determined that Atlanta traffic on the interstate only has 2 speeds-either you go really slow in bumper to bumper traffic OR you go really fast (and by really fast I mean 75 to 80mph when it's listed 55mph). Today I had the priveledge of being able to drive in both.

When we got onto I-75 at 11:00 this morning it was bumper to bumper for about 2 miles due to an accident. The rest of the time I felt like I was the turtle on the interstate, and I was driving at 75 mph. But I soon became accustomed to my surroundings and it didn't seem so bad. I've also realized that going 20 mph over the posted speed limit is not as big of a deal here in the "big city" as it is on I-81. I have to admit, by the end of our outing I was the one breezing past those "turtles."

So anyway...our visit to the Fernbank was very much enjoyable. I had done a little searching on the internet about this museum prior to today and thought it sounded like a nice place to visit. I was also excited that if I bought a membership at the Fernbank it would be accepted at the Science Museum at home also. And even better than that...I was able to save $10.00 on the membership since I am a teacher! So our family now has full membership priveledges at the museum until July 2008. And that's a good thing because there was no way we were going to be able to see the entire museum today - we will have to go back again to finish it at a later date.

Below are some of the pictures I took while we were there. The kids and I had a great time and I look forward to taking John back this weekend to see their IMAX movie titled "Wired to Win: Surviving the Tour de France." By the way sweetie...if you want to see a trailer for it check this out http://www.wiredtowinthemovie.com/

Trent and Ella both practiced being weather forecasters on the green screen. Trent thought it was very neat that the weather forecasters don't see the pictures on the wall, instead they have to look at the t.v. monitors in front of them. Ella was not as enthusiastic about being on t.v.

Both of the kids had a great time making gigantic bubbles.

One of the special exhibits at the Fernbank this summer is called "Lizards and Snakes." This was a really neat exhibit that had a special area with all kinds of hands-on learning materials for kids to play with. No, Ella and Trent are not holding real, live reptiles...they are just dressed as herpetologists ready to study the plastic look alikes.

The final stop today was in the kid's play rooms. Each room was designed for a specific age group - one for preschoolers and the other for school agers - and teaches kids about the different wildlife in Georgia. The kids both agreed that this was the best part of the day. Here, Ella is pretending to help the bees carry pollen from one flower to another...and she would still be doing this if Iwould've let her. The child drops a ball into one of the two flowers on the sides and the ball goes through the tube back down to the middle flower to be picked up again. Ella figured out how it worked and then tried to see how fast she could do it.

Next door in the school age room, Trent learned how to fish and about the different types of animals that are in the rivers and lakes around Georgia.

So that was our day! Check back soon for more updates.