Self Portraits

This morning before church the boys called me upstairs to see what they had done. Not sure whether this was a good surprise or a not-so-good surprise, I headed upstairs. They had taken out a bunch of their art supplies (Popsicle sticks, feathers, foam shapes, etc.) and spread them out on the floor and created these self portraits. I love them!!! According to the boys, Ethan is on the left and Seth is on the right. Which makes sense seeing as how the "Ethan" Popsicle stick man is taller than the "Seth" Popsicle stick man. :)

Tiger Cub

Ethan just started cub scouts this past week. He is excited to start earning patches and belt loops. Ethan is ready for his first pack meeting.
As a Tiger Cub you have to sign up with an adult partner. Ethan and Scott are looking forward to their first scout camping trip in October.

Lilly

Just thought I would post a couple of pictures of our "youngest". This is our sweet Lilly.

Polar Bears, Pengiuns, and Dinosaurs. Oh My!

We all know that hurricanes are horrible. But I have to admit I was thrilled when my friend Jennifer and her boys evacuated to our house during Hurricane Gustav. The four boys had a great time together. We took them to Fernbank Museum of Natural History. Joshua, Ethan, Seth, and Kyle at Fernbank
Ethan and Seth
Ethan trying to carry a penguin "egg" on his feet like a daddy penguin.
Seth and Scott checking out the alligator

First Day of Pre-K

Seth started Preschool a week after Ethan started school. That was the longest week of my life. Seth had no idea what to do without his brother at home. He was ready for school on Monday morning. Lilly likes to be in the center of all the action. She then proceeded to pout the entire day because there were no little boys at home to play with. She gets really excited 3 times every day: when Seth comes home, when Ethan comes home, and then the climax of the day is when Scott comes home. She can hardly contain herself.
Seth's school doesn't use backpacks they use these little canvas bags that we didn't have yet on the first day of school, so we had to take a lunch box picture.

Seth in Ms. Sally's classroom.

First Day of First Grade

Ethan started first grade last month. I can't believe my baby is old enough to be in first grade. He is going to a brand new school. He seems to be enjoying himself and is doing great.
I have a backpack picture from every first day of school since Ethan was three and the tradition has continued with Seth.
Ethan in his classroom probably thinking, "OK, mom. It's time for you to go now...how embarrassing she is :)."

Mr Tae Kwon Do

Seth started Tae Kwon Do this summer as well. He goes 2 days a week and seems to have a lot of fun. He is catching on very quickly and it is so fun to watch all the "Little Tigers" do their stuff. He is learning kicking, punching, blocking, and a few Korean words. We are so impressed with the program and it is an added bonus that the studio is a 3 minute drive from the house.

This picture is a bit far away, but Seth is the little guy standing up. He is getting his yellow striped belt. This is his first belt he earned. He is halfway to his green stripe.

Newport via Boston

After a few days in Maine we headed down to Newport to spend a few days with family. However, you know us well enough to know we couldn't drive through Boston and not stop at Fenway Park. We took a tour, stood on the green monster, and loaded up on Red Sox gear. I'm not sure who enjoyed it more the boys or us. Oh, FYI, the Sox are playing the Braves in Atlanta in June...we're trying to decide if going to all three back to back games is over kill. Also trying to figure out how welcome we will be at Turner Field in our Boston gear. Fenway Park
My newest nephew, Henry. He was right where I like him...in my arms.
Ethan, Henry, and Seth

Birch Island

The long awaited trip to the Birch Island, Maine cottage finally arrived. Scott and his dad started the plans for this cottage back when Scott was in high school. We had seen photos of the progress made and even saw it in person a few times, but this was our first time actually staying in the cottage on the island. One of the coolest things about the house is that my father-in-law built the whole thing! The beds in the loft area for the grandkids. You can't see the signs above the beds, but they read "first mate" and "second mate". There is a drawer under each of the beds that Seth promptly unpacked his suitcase into.

The cottage
What would Maine be without lobster pots?
A hiking adventure.
Seth smiling about the raspberries that he picked.
Chris (Scott's best friend from junior high and the best man in our wedding), Sarah and their kids Trent and Brooke came out to spend the day at the cottage with us. Here is the whole crew out at The Goslings (the sight of many camping trips for Scott and Chris in their younger days).

Visits from far away friends

We lucked out that we had two sets of great friends passing through Georgia and we got the chance to see them. Andrew (Scott's friend from high school), Chandra, and their two kids went to a family reunion not too far from here. We took the boys up to where they were staying for a day trip. The above photo is Seth, Ethan and Tyler playing "Go Fish".
Andrew and Scott
Deanna and Jason (our dear friends from Monterey) stopped by on their way home from their family vacation. It was so great to see them. The boys acted as if they had never been apart and picked up playing where they left off over 3 years ago.

The above photo is Wyatt, Ethan, Seth, and Logan
Time for a silly picture of the silly boys

Atlanta Braves

We went to Turner field to see the Braves play. We took the Marta in to Atlanta which was an adventure in itself. Turner field is a huge field that was originally built for the 1996 Olympics.
Seth all smiles watching the game.
Ethan eating his first baseball game hot dog.
We went to the Sunday afternoon game so the boys got lucky. At all Sunday home games the kids get to run the bases and they get a cute little t-shirt that says I ran the bases at Turner Field.
The boys down near the field. Scott and I were kind of bummed because they were very strict that only kids be allowed on the field. So as the kids got the thrill of running on a Major League Baseball field, Scott and I were ushered off the field to meet the kids on the other side.

Little fishes

Zoo Atlanta

Once we got "settled" here in Georgia we were in a furnished 2 bedroom apartment for about a month...tons of fun with two adults, two children, and a large dog. The boys and I kept busy by playing tourist. Our first visit was the zoo. Of all the places we have lived and all the cool things we have done, my children had never been to the zoo. We had loads of fun and go to see the elephants, tigers, komodo dragon (Ethan and Seth's favorite), and the pandas (my favorite).



We spent far too much time with the farm animals there, but the petting zoo was a highlight for the boys.





Seth and Ethan with the elephant.

Here come the photos...

I am going to try to catch up on posting some pictures. I figured I would start with our move from Mississippi to Georgia. There are going to be lots of them so I hope no one minds TONS of pictures of adorable boys ;)

As most of you know our move to Georgia was far from seamless. While we were homeless, the boys and I decided to take a quick impromptu trip to Virginia. We were given the chance to spend some time with my family.

This is my sweet nephew, Hudson. The boys enjoyed him so much (and so did I).

Here is Ethan and Hudson. Hudson didn't stay put for too long. He is a bit on the squirmy side.

Ethan, my beautiful niece, Emily holding Hudson, and Seth. Can you guys believe Emily is 13!?!?!? Where does the time go. She is such a sweet teenager and a great big sister and cousin.

And so it begins...

I realized there are so many friends that I keep in touch with through viewing their blogs. I love looking at pictures and hearing stories about their families. It is the way I feel like I am a part of their families even though the distance separates us. I decided to start my own blog to keep in touch with all of our friend and family all over the place. I haven't quite figured out how it all works so be patient with me as I figure out the blogging world.