Easter 2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Easter!

Gone Fishin'

In the kids' opinion, no trip to Mississippi is complete without a stop by a local fishing hole.

 

 

Doug's dad has a generous friend who allows us use of his pond.

 

 

 

 

And with the way the fish bite, they don't see many fishermen.

 

 

Jonathan hooked this whopper right away. 

 

 

(Ok, it was really just a trick of the camera angle).

 

 

Unfortunately, the kids believe that all fish are eagerly waiting to be hooked and have been sadly disappointed by having to wait for a bite at other fishing spots.

 

 

 

Josie caught several though as far as I know, she didn't lick any this year.

 

 

 

And old soul Matthew insisted on baiting his own line and unhooking his fish.

 

 

 

 

 Jonathan convinced Grandpa to cook a few of the fish for dinner.

 

 

 

Once the miniscule bones were picked out, everyone got a taste of the goods.

December Photo Project: Day 11

Merry Christmas to me!  This angel brought good news of great joy: no more tears over sharpening pencils.  Peace on earth!

(Twenty) First Day of School

Apparently I was just so excited to start a new school year that I failed to take pictures. 

So with a month under our belts, here goes:

 

Andrew (10) - 5th grade

Stephen (9) - 3rd grade



Matthew (6) - 1st grade



Jonathan (4) - Pre-K

Josie (3) - Pre-K

 



Katherine (1) - School Mascot



 

Here's to a great 2014-15 year!

Scouting: Year Three

Matthew has been eagerly awaiting this day: his first den meeting as a Cub Scout.

 

 

Jonathan was consoled when I scored a uniform in his size at the thrift store

 to pair with a hand-me-down neckerchief.

 

 

Doug will be heading up Matthew's den of Tigers.

 

 

And Tootsie was not to be left out.  "When I grow up and I am a boy, then I will be a Scout, too, and wear my socks and go camping with Dad and all the boys."

Digging Out

 

School has officially wrapped up, and now it's time to deal with the neglected aspects of life

(namely purging, organizing, planning, cleaning, and planting).

National Public Garden Day

As a field trip to put the closing marks on our school year, we traveled to the Huntsville Botanical Garden.

 

 

There was special Alice in Wonderland exhibit for the summer, and despite the rain and drizzle, the kids had a fabulous time exploring the rabbit hole, Mad Hatter's tea party and other activities based on the book.

 

 

 

Aside from the special exhibit, the garden is huge and lush with lots of delightful paths and themed gardens, with treats around each corner.

 

Miniature town with working train

Lovely water features

Argh, mateys, a pirate ship!

Large water features with small paths to make a mother very nervous

 

Creative garden art

This mother protected her eggs from hoardes of school children

 While most gardens, in my opinion, seem more suited to ladies of a certain age, this one was well thought out in terms of engaging children as well. 

 

 

One section was dedicate to children alone with eight or so themed gardens within, most of which had some kind of interactive water feature.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But the highlight was the butterfly garden, a building that houses turtles, frogs, fish and butterflies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Despite the nasty weather (and the fact that I was feverish and under the weather), I'm glad we went.

 

 

 

 

It was a fun little day trip.