Adelle's 4th birthday party

We threw a birthday bash for Adelle at the house this year. The kids went crazy with a small swimming pool and slip n' slide, while the parents sat on the deck talking about the weather. Adelle hasn't had any problems making new friends in North Carolina, but we limited the party to just a couple of families. We just grilled burgers and hot dogs - nothing fancy, but a very good time.


This was the birthday girl's favorite present - a "swimming" baby from her big sister. She's been talking about it for months and was very excited that her sister came through with the hit of the party.



I'm not sure exactly what they're showing off here, but I'm assuming it was something very interesting.

Lightning!

In case you haven't hear the lightning story, it's a good one. Unfortunately, my picture taking skills aren't advanced enough to show the actual damage.

We came home a few weeks ago and noticed rocks all over the deck. Hmmm, that's odd. After a bit of investigation, we noticed the 30 foot pine in our back yard was scorched black from top to bottom and missing a bunch of bark. We put two and two together and came up with the obvious - the tree was hit by lightning.

The bolt of lightning went through the tree, dug a small ditch in the ground (through the rock path) and ended up hitting an old metal pole in the ground (the previous home owner used it as a satellite mount). It sent bark flying across the street, all over the yard, and on top of the house. It must have sounded like a bomb going off, as both levels of the deck were covered with rock from the path.

The phone was fried, the internet was baked, and both DVR boxes were toast. My photography skills are typically pretty good, but we were all shaken up a little bit that evening/night. We didn't even notice the bark across the street until later in the evening after the excitement had died down. In typical NC fashion, the storm was over in an hour and the sun was shining as I started cleaning up the mess.

This is just the trunk of the tree. There are large gashes torn out of the bark from top to bottom. I don't know if I'll ever get all of that bark out of my grass!


It tore a hole through the rock path, sending quarter-inch minus all over the place. It went through the rock, ripped a hole in the weed fabric then dug a small trench in the mud. Scary....
This is just the top level of the deck - the bottom level was covered in rocks as well. There were also chunks of bark all over the deck, yard and house.
This little end table used to have a glass top. Yeah, it shattered all over the rocks. You can see the metal post that has now been removed.

Washington DC - Part 2, Air and Space Museum

We spent a decent amount of time in the Museum of Natural History, but most of our time was spent at the National Air and Space Museum (the older one on the Mall). This was truly a dream come true for me as I've been dreaming about this for most of my life. The kids actually had a great time as well. There was plenty to see, and they let you touch and climb on a lot of the exhibits. Anyone with kids knows how important that is when going anywhere that doesn't include Hannah Montana or Cars.


I always new a 747 engine was huge, but this puts the size in perfect perspective.

This was a great mural in the room containing Vietnam-era jets and engines. My dad worked on Phantoms so I always loved this plane. To this day, I think it's one of the coolest planes to ever fly.

Of course, there can only be one "coolest" plane ever, and anyone who knows me is fully aware of that plane. Yes, it's the one and only F-14 Tomcat. Any reference to this plane will be documented and celebrated for as long as I live......


The original X1...If you don't know, read Chuck Yeager's book. He was Maverick before Lt. Pete Mitchell was buzzing towers and Rear Admiral's daughters.


We had an unexpected treat on the way out of town - Marine 1 flew right over our heads bringing President Bush back to the White House after a weekend in Texas. We pulled over as all 3 helicopters swooped over the car. Two landed on the South Lawn and another started flying in circles around the White House. Security is obviously very tight, so we couldn't get over to the White House to watch them land. We did catch of glimpse of Marine 1 on the grass, but didn't get to see President Bush. It was a great end to a spectacular weekend in Washington DC.

Washington DC - Part 1

We made out maiden voyage to Washington DC last weekend and had a great time. It's a nice 4 hour drive through the Virginia countryside.

The girls were very excited to see where the President lives - Adelle loved the "waterfall" out front.





Here we are at the base of the Washington monument looking over the reflection pool to the Lincoln monument.

The clouds started rolling in while we were at the WWII Memorial. This was a very powerful reminder of the men who died protecting the freedoms we sometimes take for granted.



This Lincoln monument was by far Emily's favorite part of the weekend. She just finished reading a book about President Lincoln and has been very interested in learning more about the man and his story.

Another very moving experience. Words can't describe your thoughts and feelings as you walk by the wall.

Spring soccer

Both girls picked up soccer this year. Adelle is very proud of her Nike cleats and Emily is learning to enjoy the competition. Both girls are very excited about playing and want to continue next year. Emily has two more games before she moves on to the swim team. Adelle goes back to dance class next Tuesday.

We had our first big ultrasound last week. Everything is good - baby and mama are happy and healthy. Due date is 10/3/08 and.....................

Here comes Diesel, Jr.

It's official - we're staying in North Carolina