Up to the highest height

Savanna had kite day at school in March or April and it was the perfect day to fly a kite. We had tried in the last few years to get one in the air without any success but this was our day. It could have helped that our kite was a little better than the dollar store model.  The girls both gave it a try and were successful in flying it high in the sky. We had so much fun we took it up the street to a big field to fly it some more. We flew a kite at the beach in April and plan to take it with us this summer. I love watching the kites at the beach in the summer. They are so elaborate. We will be there with our ladybug hopefully flying high.

Hippity Hop

Sadie, 2 in 2011

                                                                            Savanna, 2 in 2008

Cause for celebration

Notice all of the smiles in these pictures? We were all excited for tax season to end and have some quality family time. Our family is best when it is whole and we miss seeing much of Noah when he has to work on Saturdays. This year we took a trip to the zoo, had a picnic, and went on a hunt for white alligators. It was the perfect day for the zoo and we weren't the only ones of that opinion but amazingly enough it didn't seem that crowded at the exhibits. Our first stop was North America with the alligators, cougar, polar bear, and seals. No white alligators there but the seals are always fun to watch. We hopped on the tram to get to the Sonora Desert where we were amazed by the baboon family. The baby that caught our eye was born in December and he was fiesty. His mother had to hold him by his tail because he continued to get into trouble picking fights and running away. We found the white alligators there and also looked for the ocelot babies born just days before. The momma was keeping her babies away from spectators. Keeping our babies safe is the lifelong commitment of a momma, you know! Our final stop was in Africa where we had to see the giraffes and elephants. We also visited the aviary building to look for the Scarlet Ibis. This is a bird in one of the books we have been reading so I wanted the girls to see it up close. That was a fun place to visit! I think we will try to stop there more often.

Picks of the Litter

These are a few shots that make me smile!

March birthdays

We blew out a lot of birthday candles in the month of March and we didn't even have birthdays. A lot of people that we love let us celebrate with them and blow out their birthday candles. It might be as much fun as actually eating the cake.

Run Forrest Run

We were so proud of our Uncle Forrest for even signing up for his first sprint triathlon we knew we wanted to go and cheer him on. Nana joined us and we made a girls weekend to Wilmington out of it. Before we left everyone made a sign to cheer him on although he didn't notice these until the race was over. There was a lot of focus on that course. Sadie made smiley faces in her o's and Savanna wanted to write her message on her own. Mom and I shared a sign that read "Run Forrest Run" and "Pedal Forrest Pedal" since those were the only events we were able to see. The girls enjoyed meeting everyone's dogs and cheering on Uncle Forrest. He finished in the top 178 out of 394 men participating. Not bad for a first timer! We also enjoyed a trip to the aquarium and a brief sand castle building expedition. It was a little chilly to sit on the beach.  

Hello Mr. Bear

This winter trip to the zoo had a different focus. Savanna is now into dinosaurs. I say it is because she is one of 4 girls in her class at school. There are 13 boys and they are all boy. This picture of a dinosaur was the best we could do on this trip but we also got to meet the zoo's newest giraffe. She is a one year old and on this day she was being introduced to the habitat. Fun for us except the zebras were off exhibit. She was meeting friends one species at a time. We watched there for a long time. There was an elephant who gave us a close up and this cute bear kept waving. We like that the weather allows us to visit the zoo year round. Every time we have a different experience!

Happy V-day!

Our Valentine's day began with a breakfast of heart shaped toast and pink eggs, all served on our dinosaur plates. It was a school day so Savanna was dressed in her red and white ready to sing to the elderly of the church as well as celebrate in her classroom. Daddy took his girls out for dinner that night. A fun end to a fun day!

Ni Hao!

painting the paper in gold for our paper lanterns

As much as we would like to take our children to different countries, our mock "trip around the world" is going to have to do for now. Savanna is still trying to grasp that we are not actually going to these countries though. We started our journey in China since Feb. 3 began the Chinese New Year. The girls and I learned about the flag, the zodiac calendar, traditional dress and foods. We made paper lanterns, paper cutouts of animals, and an elaborate (for our house) meal. The girls helped make moon cakes, cookies that were supposed to look like moons. They were yummy but no one really saw the moon in them. We also had egg drop soup followed by sweet and sour chicken. Yummy if I do say so myself! The evening ended with a performance of a song about "gung hay fat choy", a traditional greeting used during the Chinese New Year. I can't wait to see where our journey takes us next!

Fins and Feathers

In the same week we travelled to Raleigh again, this time to the Museum of Art to catch an Eric Carle museum exhibit before it moved on at the end of January. Works from familiar children's book illustrators included of course, Eric Carle, along with Arnold Lobel (Toad and Frog books) and Leo Lionni (Swimmy). There were a few others that were a little less familiar to us. Some of the illustrators artwork we had seen on the walls was in book form on a table in the room. We enjoyed reading some of the books from these authors and illustrators. I am hoping to continue with some art processes similar to those of the illustrators we saw. Some friends from playschool went with us and we had a good time. We checked out the museum and then headed to the airport observation park for a picnic lunch. That was the highlight for the kids but the mommies enjoyed the museum too.

Raleigh

Since Savanna is into dinosaurs lately we decided to take a family trip to the Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh. With her you never know how she will react, considering before we left she told me she doesn't like surprises that she has to wait for. In other words, she would rather just be there in 5 minutes. Unfortunately for her we don't live that close to many fun adventures.While riding the escalator was quite the hit with both girls, there were also other highlights of our visit. Savanna enjoyed the fossils and dinosaur information. Sadie loved watching the turtles. It was really cold out so we didn't linger at the State Capitol. We will save that for another trip.

Christmases Past

Before this year's Christmas pictures were uploaded I had started a post on Christmases past. I have such fond memories of Christmas growing up that I wanted to share that with all of you. Of course these are only of my digital memories which began in 2002. A lot of memories have been made in Decembers past. 32 years makes for a lot of Christmases but I LOVE IT! Christmas is my favorite holiday because it is so full of family and love. It fills my heart to be surrounded by such tradition! I hope that my children will feel this same sense of family and tradition as they grow up!

Our first Christmas tree in our new house 2002

The warmest tree hunt to date 2003 

Savanna loves her Uncle Forrest 2005

Tree hunting with the family  2006

Helping decorate Granny's tree 2007

Savanna and Santa were so busy chatting that Sadie almost fell  2008

                                 One of my favorites of all time at Nana and Poppy's house  2009

2004