The basement is almost done!

Whew - Derek and I have once again fallen in love with a new space in our home. We are so super pleased with the way the basement is turning out. He even said tonight that he would be down there all the time if the television was mounted and connected. But, alas, it is not...not yet that is. We are just waiting on the final inspection and all is a go for final decorating and electronic devices. Just a few before and after pictures...so exciting!

Aidan and Hatcher love it too. It is a GIANT play space for them...right now. They love jumping on the bed in the guest room and dancing in the main area on the hardwood floors. They helped me pick just the right shade of blue. I let them help me paint sample swatches on the walls. I say sample...they ended up being random areas all over the basement walls.

I will share more photos as the decorating continues.

Trip to Lake Lure in NC Mountains for Aunt Roxie's 30th Birthday

From the beach to the mountains, we traveled north to Lake Lure in North Carolina for Roxie's 30th birthday. Uncle Jim rented a cabin on the lake for everyone to gather and spend quality time together...at Roxie's suggestion. It was somewhat of a suprise for Roxie - some of the details were too hard to keep secret. The kids were really excited about going to the moutain. The setting was amazing, a beautiful lake surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains. The lake was actually the locale where Dirty Dancing was filmed. We were all hoping for some relaxing time away together; unfortunately, Hatcher and Aidan wouldn't sleep in their bunk beds and fought us everynight to sleep with us (they won). And baby Hilton was teething and working through his first real cold...congestion and all. So, the young parents didn't get much quality sleep, but we did all spend some quality time together. As usual too many photos, so there is a video, but if you don't have 5 minutes to spare...some of my favorties pasted below for quick viewing. Enjoy - I know we did! Thanks Uncle Jim for pulling it all together.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Chimney Rock - The first full day there we all hiked up Chimney Rock and took some time enjoying the amazing views. After a snack and some pictures, we headed back down the mountain (in the car) and drove to our cabin. The boys were able to fish off the docks and hang out near the water. There was a fire pit, so we took full advantage and made s'mores.






Lake Lure - Saturday we all went out on a pontoon boat and toured the lake. That was super nice and peaceful. After our spin, Uncle Jim parked the boat so we could all jump in and enjoy the water - it was cool but refreshing.





Happy 30th Roxie! - That night Uncle Jim cooked ribs - delish! - and we celebrated Roxie's 30th birthday. So glad we could celebrate with her.

The beach video

What a week - I finally finished the montage of our beach vacation at the begining of this month. We had such a wonderful and relaxing time. Can't wait to go back.
Enjoy!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our Watercolor Vacation - We Loved It!!

I have been looking forward to it all year...our vacation at WaterColor in Santa Rosa Beach - near Destin. Ever since my first stay there, I have enjoyed no beach like this one. We were first thinking of going in June, which rolled into July, then August...and finally Derek and I nailed down a date in September. Our friend's place came available and we snagged it for the week that led into Labor Day. So we went down on Tuesday the 1st and came home on the 8th. It was such a nice time away.






We took our time getting out of Atlanta and arrived at the beach house around dinner time - just in time to hit the beach and see the sun set. Each day was a little different, but we always rode our bikes, played at the beach and took a daily nap. Some days we would stop by the Beach side pool and grill for lunch and let the kids swim in the kiddie pool, other days we headed home early so we could rise from our afternoon nap sooner for dinner out. Towards the end of our trip, we took to hitting the beach at night to see the moon and stars and "hunt" for sand crabs with flashlights and nets. The kids really took to that activity - Hatcher would just reach down and pick them up. This year we we out on the lake for a boat ride - and debated fishing from the docks...but never made time.












Hatcher was amazing on his bicycle this year. He rode with Derek and I through many of the miles of nature bike trails that wind around Watercolor and for the most part he kept up. There were some days when he insisted on being first or "the leader" and rides took a bit more time.




Moments to share...

While watching random TV one night after bath time and getting the boys in their PJ's, a Muppet skit came on with Ms. Piggy and Kermit the Frog and with the most serious tone, Hatcher looked up and Derek and me and exclaimed, "Hey. pigs don't have hair!" Derek and I busted out with laughter and not knowing why, Aidan felt the need to join us.

Although i don't have a picture, Derek and I both witnessed a first...a couple pushing their dog around in a stroller for a walk outside. What? Are you kidding me - taking the dog for a walk typically doesn't equate to going for a ride in a stroller!

One night while reading bedtime stories to Aidan, he grabbed Teddy, his nighttime teddy bear, and held his hands up to make Teddy flip the pages of the book. After each successful flip, he told Teddy, "good job Teddy!"

As always - too many pictures to share on this site. I think i took nearly 550 pictures on this trip. So, here are a few of my favorites and I will come back and load the video montage when I am done.

A trip to pre-historic times...Fernbank Museum

Saturday, August 15 (I know I am behind...) I took the boys to Fernbank Museum to see the Dinosaur exhibit. The suggestion came from Owen's mom, Heather. She called us and told us she and her sister were taking Owen and wondered if we were up for it. Perfect timing, Derek needed to do some additional work in the basement and we needed to be gone all day. So we got dressed and headed downtown to see the Dinosaurs. I don't know that I will visit any more museums anytime soon - the kids plowed through the place in 20 minutes. They have no interest in what the informative plaques say or how cool the bones look in different lighting. Although they did have some voice over audio, we weren't able to hang around anyone place long enough to hear the details. They spent most of their time in the play area - designated as the "hands on" area of the museum. Still - only 20 minutes in there. When you pile on the bathroom breaks and chasing efforts - the tour took about an hour and a half. But, it was something fun to do on a hot Saturday indoors. Thanks Heather for the suggestion.