Crickett's Beach Wedding

This last weekend we traveled down to Navarre Beach on the panhandle of Florida. Crickett, Scott's sister had a beach wedding there and Scott, the kids and myself were all a part of the wonderful occasion.

The kids and I traveled down early Thursday morning so we could arrive in time to help with some of the wedding preparation. I was pleasantly surprised that they all traveled so well and we only made one stop during the 6.5 hour trip and that was for gas, a bite to eat and a potty break. The kids enjoyed napping, singing songs and coloring in their coloring books. They only got antsy during the last 45 minutes and truth be told I was too!! We could see the beach and yet we weren't there yet, so it was hard to be patient!!!!!

The house we were all staying in was gorgeous and we got to work as soon as we arrived helping with cupcakes (ok, so was really tired and ony tackled shaking sprinkles). That afternoon we went to the pool which was REALLY cold and then came home to find the little bird you see in the first few pics inside the house. The poor bird flew off the couch and straight into the sliding glass door. The boys moved him outside and eventually he flew away.

Friday was packed with bridesmaid happenings including a trip to the nail salon, the rehearsal and dinner, and finally an evening of making all of our bouquets. Surprisingly, flower arranging was A LOT of fun!!! Scott arrived that evening just in time to help keep the kids from ruining the flowers!

We were slightly afraid of rain on Saturday, but fortunately the weather held out. It was super windy and a little overcast, but all-in-all I would say it was perfect. The wedding was beautiful. Scott's cousin and I played a flute duet- except I was eating so much of my hair because of the wind, it often was a solo for Beth!! The children behaved pretty well and did a decent job of standing up front. During the unity song, Lydia screamed the song Jesus Loves Me (not the official unity song), but thanks to the wind, I think there were very few of us who heard her. The reception was hosted by the "Chuck" Wagon (the Chuck Tinney Philly Cheesesteak Wagon, that is) and everyone enjoyed the food. The kids were well entertained playing in the sand and Lydia enjoyed making her "snowballs". As you can see from the sleeping pic of Lydia, they were worn out!!

Scott and I were able to catch the bride and groom leaving the beach house and headed for their cruise- Harbin chased them down the road, reluctant to let his Aunt Crickett go without him!!

We finished up the weekend with a trip to the small beach in the neighborhood (these are the non-slideshow pics) and because of the rain we ended up leaving a bit early.

Enjoy the wonderful pics and CONGRATULATIONS to Mr. and Mrs. Adam Ceccotti!!
The mom.

AWANA Awards Night

This year, both Harbin and Catherine were involved AWANA (Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed) at First Baptist Church in Snellville. Catherine was a "Puggle" this year and Harbin was a "Cubbie". Catherine learned principles such as "God loves you" and "God made me" while Harbin memorized over 35 Bible verses.

At the end of each year, the Cubbies do a drive in movie night and they bring in cardboard cars to sit in while they watch a movie. Harbin and Scott worked on his for a few nights and he ended up with a really cool tank. He even wore Scott's cavlar helmet then entire movie and I think it weighs about 10 or more pounds!!

We finished up the year with an awards ceremony and the kids got to go up on stage and get their awards for all their hard work. Harbin and Catherine can't wait to start next year when all three will be involved- Lydia will be a Puggle, Catherine will be a Cubbie, and Harbin will be in Sparks!

The mom.

Atlanta Botanical Gardens

To celebrate Earth Day, the kids and I joined some other homeschool friends for a field trip to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and the flowers were all in bloom.

We were a little late getting there due to traffic, so we missed out on the family tour, but we did make it there for the ladybug release. We all expected there to be tons of ladybugs, but really they just had little tupperware tubs of a few ladybugs, they would squirt water on some flowers and the ladybugs would scatter towrads the water droplets. We got a pic of the one ladybug we were able to find.

After the ladybug release we were able to find our friends and we all made some flower art at one of the kiddie station set ups. We quickly headed over to the amphibian talk and were able to see this HUGE toad as well as learn that Georgia ranks number one in the most number of salamanders (who knew?).

We ate our picnic lunch in Piedmont Park and then headed back to the gardens to see the Children's Garden. I am glad I was prepared with extra clothes, since there were fountains for the kids to run through. Personally I thought the water was freezing, but Lydia and Catherine seemed fine with it. They LOVED the fountains and I am looking forward to visiting the Suwanee Fountains many times this summer!

By the time we left everyone was quite exhausted (myself included since I forgot the stroller), but I think we had a great time. Enjoy the pics!
The mom.
(PS- I thought the pic of all the girls hovered around the caterpillar is hilarious. The boys seemed uninterested but the girls stopped right in the tracks in order to look at it!!)