Fort Discovery

Yesterday, we took a day trip to Augusta. We went to Fort Discovery Science Center there on the riverwalk (savannah river). It was beautiful but cold! We didn't stay outside too long! The science center is a partner with the Army, so it was communications/physical science stuff. I prefer the life sciences, but this was good too. Grady really had a blast and could have stayed there forever! As soon as we got there we were pulled into a demo. The Army guys were there training for this mobile bus they have. They drive around telling kids about science. So we had a private demo, just us. We learned about sound and electricity. That was the best part of our visit. The kids got to do the experiments and the men were really great!

Madison's First Big Cheer Performance

Yesterday, Madison and her Pixie squad had their first performance at a cheer competition. The girls did awesome and had fun!! They didn't compete, just did an exhibition, since they are so little. the squad has 3,4,5,6 and one just turned 7 year old on it. It's every one's first year, so we are all learning.

Madison seems to be the leader and helps everyone along. To me, she seems bossy, but the coaches and other parents think she's being helpful. So, I let her continue on. She loves cheering and seem to be good at it. Hopefully, next year I'll get to see exactly how much she can do. This squad is a little limiting for her, so it'll be nice to she how she grows next year.

The day was full of stress for me. I had planned on enjoying the day in the stands like any other parent. Truth is, I'm not any other parent. I'm the gym owner's daughter and everyone looks to me for answers. Not that I mind, but sometimes I want to just be like everyone else. Today, our pixie coach decided to not come to the competition and the music cd broke. Mom called me at 1 and we were leaving at 1:30 to tell me that the coach wouldn't be there and that I needed to find the music as well or the pixie's wouldn't have music. I found the music, but didn't have any cds to burn it on. So, we took the laptop with us and stopped at the store to buy some cds. Well, the song wouldn't play on the cd player, only my computer. After many kind people trying to figure it out for me, we ended up putting the microphone on the computer's speaker. It worked, thankfully, but could have been better. I have since found another copy of the song, downloaded it and it plays just fine!!! The music was stressful, but even more stressful was the coach issue. The team are all very young and they have bonded with their coach. They do not like to perform when she's not there. No one else knows the routine well enough to be of any help to the girls. They usually follow along with their coach while they perform. They couldn't do that yesterday because she wasn't there. We did have 2 other coaches stand in for her, but it was hard on the girls, especially Madison. She ended up throwing herself on the floor in warm-ups crying. Thankfully she composed herself and managed to perform the routine while smiling!!

So you can see that the squad did an awesome job yesterday and I'm truly glad it's over!! I look forward to their next performance and hope that it won't be so stressful :)

Our Trip to Fort Mountain State Park

Yesterday we wanted to go on a family hike. We decided to go to Fort Mountain http://www.gastateparks.org/info/fortmt/to see the 855 foot rock wall and hopefully some nice fall color. It was a lovely park with lots to see and do. We will probably go back to camp sometime next year. Here are some pics from our trip.

Fall Family Hike

Today we went to Pickett's Mill for a hike. It is a state historic park where a civil war battle was fought. We learned a lot about the history of the area and enjoyed a nice hike. It's early fall here and the leaves are just beginning to change. I was able to get a few nice shots of the fall colors. We had a great time!

This is a video of Madison's cheerleading team working on their routine :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJbJYhgUbC4

Our Beach Vacation 2008

The day after our anniversary, we left for Cape San Blas, FL. 7 days at the beach!! We had a great time despite lots of rain and construction noise. We are already planning next year's trip and we are even making plans to move there in the future. The kids love the ocean. I love the sun and watching my kids have so much fun. Jason is in love with the beach and a very relaxed lifestyle of fishing and kayaking with the occassional flight thrown in for money, lol!

Our 10th Wedding Anniversary!

August 8 was our 10th wedding anniversary. Jason planned a huge surprise for me :) We had a very private vowel renewal ceremony at 3:30 in the afternoon (the same time our wedding ceremony was is '98). Madison was the flower girl. Andrew was the ring bearer. Grady carried the unity candle and was the photographer. Jason had a replica made of the first tier of our wedding cake, complete with our glass cake topper. I was very surprised and happy. When it came time to renew our vows, Jason gave me a beautiful anniversary band that matches my wedding band. It was a very nice gift and the kids made it really special. I'm so lucky to have such a great husband and children.

Our beloved Jack is gone.

Jack, our Lhasa Apso, died today. We adopted Jack 13 years ago. He was 2 years old. He was our first child. He got sick last week and I took him to the vet on Friday after we returned from Newnan. He was having trouble breathing. We were the last patients for the day. The vet was very nice and explained everything to me. Jason and I decided to let Jack live out the rest of his life at home with us. He was a well-loved dog and we will miss him.

Happy Birthday Mema Rosa!

August 2 was Jason's grandmother's birthday. She died last year. We made a visit to her gravesite in Newnan, GA, on Friday. We all miss her a lot. She was a great woman. Here are some pics from the cemetary. We brought her some flowers for her birthday. Happy Birthday Mema!!!

My mom's bday bag and a new one for me!!

For my mom's bday, I made her a new bag! It's in the gym's colors and it's appliqued with the gym letters and stars. It was a lot of work and I think it turned out well.


Yesterday, I made myself a new bag. I have been wanting new one for a while. I 'm glad that it's finally done! It's a little big for me, but it will work!

Doctor Visit Today

Almost 3 weeks ago, I made myself a Dr's appointment. It was long overdue. What they say about moms taking care of themselves last is true. I had been having some symptoms and I needed to see what was going on. The Dr. ordered some blood tests and then I was to come in today for an ultra-sound. The ultra-sound was clean (YEAH!!), but I have hypothyroidism. My thyroid isn't producing enough of it's hormone. I need to take synthetic hormone for the rest of my life, but it's very treatable!! Trust me, this is great news. I'm a little bummed about taking medicine forever, but to be back to myself will be fantastic!!!

July 4th, 2008

Yesterday we did the Fourth of July celebration thing. We had hotdogs and watermelon for lunch. I even made homemade ice cream for dessert. We bought some fireworks at Kroger and the kids really enjoyed watching them in the backyard. After the excitement, we came inside and watched the fireworks on tv. Madison kept telling everyone "Happy Independence Day". It was a very nice, relaxed day :)