Aunt Chris & Uncle Brent & Marquis Visit

In May, we enjoyed a visit from the Carters.

Here Marquis is getting a good look at Julia.

Julia had fun hanging out with Marquis and Uncle Brent.
An afternoon at the park.
I think Marquis had the lead in this shot!

Stephen loved showing Marquis the ropes.

The whole crew went to the Creative Discovery Museum in Chattanooga, TN.

The kids had a lot of fun with the water works.

Now if this doesn't look like trouble, I don't know what does.

Three kids 4 & under at a large tub of water?

That's Syndi peeking out.

Julia and Marquis had a lot of fun.

Julia enjoyed playing Doctor to Uncle Brent...

...but her bedside manner needs some work.

Raspberries, anyone?

Maybe Marquis can do better.

Marquis and Brent checking out a museum exhibit.

Junior performing on a stage.

The special theme this visit was tied to architecture and building styles.

Each of the Caruvanas had a go at making a building.

Here Stephen works on his cinder block house.

Rivaling Donald Trump, Julia built a cardboard tower.

Syndi worked long and did a great job on her wood house.

Junior shows off his brick home.

And, of course, the annual fun at the bubble curtain.

Stephen, following his older brother.

A trip to Kangaroo Jake's was fun one day.

The order of the day was climbing...

...and tumbling...

...and bouncing...

...and being worn out by day's end.

Here Aunt Sylvia hugs and loves on Marquis.
It was a fun visit with Jon's sister and her family.

Stephen's Birthday ~ 4 Years Old!

Well, we're a little behind on the blog...Stephen had his fourth birthday in April, and I forgot to post pictures.
He enjoyed getting getting some Cat in the Hat paraphernalia...
...and eating his birthday cupcake!
Junior was also very excited for Stephen. He made him a huge paper birthday party man thing. Stephen is happy to be four, and it was a good, small, quiet celebration.

Jon's Mercury Mystique Rolls 100,000

Jon's 1999 Mercury Mystique rolled past 100,000 miles on May 19th, 2009.

These pictures were all taken when the car hit the milestone.
The Mystique was special-ordered in October 1998, and arrived 14 weeks later in January 1999. It turned 10 years old in January 2009. About a week after these pictures were taken, we gave the car an oil change and a professional car wash.

We praise the Lord for providing this wonderful car and keeping it in such good condition for the past decade! It has been very faithful, with no repairs - the original battery lasted over 8 years, the brakes & rotors have been changed once, the tires twice (Jon loves skidding and drifting) - it's been a fantastic car, and Jon thanks God for maintaining it all these years.

PVN Awana 2008-2009 Slideshow

Jon again prepared an Awana slideshow video for the closing ceremony at Pleasant Valley North Baptist Church, this time for the 2008-2009 year. This will give you a peek at what we enjoy each week throughout the school year!

Junior Graduates from Kindergarten

Junior graduated from kindergarten in a ceremony held at a local college by our GRACE homeschool group.
Junior led the kindergartner procession, since he was first alphabetically. (He wasn't too thrilled about that.)

He proceeded up the aisle...

...and joined me in the front row.

Our guest speaker was Georgia State Representative Barry Loudermilk, of Georgia's 14th House district (representing part of our county). He did a masterful job of charging the graduates, as he expounded on Proverbs 3:5-6, though I doubt the kindergartners grasped any of it, LOL.

Junior marched up on stage and received his certificate of completion...

...from Melissa Casey, coordinator of our GRACE homeschool group.

He was quite proud.

Here he is pictured with his fellow kindergarten graduates...

...and with all the graduates.

It was a proud day for Junior and for us.

He was especially fond of the gifts received from the us and from the Blackwelders, as Martin, Joan and Cesilee were in attendance.

~

Congratulations, Junior!

We're proud of you!

Six Flags Over Georgia!

On May 1st we made our first-ever trip to Six Flags Over Georgia. It was the first time any of our kids had been at an amusement park. The local fair is as close as they've come before. Cesilee Blackwelder was gracious enough to join us for the journey.

Here you see us just after we entered the park.
Julia Grace was left with a friend, since she can't ride most everything at the park, and she still has her appointment with nap time. (Wish I had that.) Above you see Jon waving like an idiot at the camera. This is the Mine Train, the original Six Flags Over Georgia roller coaster. It was Syndi and Junior's first roller coaster ride, and they were terrified!
By the time the Mine Train was done (and it was our first ride of the day), Syndi and Junior both admitted enjoying it. We moved on to Looney Toons land, where we had more newbie-friendly rides, like this airplane for Junior.
The Mack trucks were a big hit for all three of them.

Junior raced around, chasing after Syndi and Stephen...

...but never quite could catch them. (Probably something related to that pipe between the two trucks!)

Here they swung in some boats.

Syndi and Stephen paired up, and Junior went with Cesilee.

Bumper Cars!

Always a family favorite.

We made each kid ride with an adult driver the first time...

...but we returned later, and Junior...

...and Syndi each got their own car.

Look out everyone!!!

Jon & Syl hit the Ninja coaster while Ces took the kids around.

Then Syl & Ces hit the Superman coaster while Jon took the kids to the carousel.

Syndi has had some experience horseback riding.

Apparently not enough.

We hit some other rides, including...

...the hot air balloon ride.

Junior grabbed onto Daddy as the boys rode in one basket...

...while Syndi had her own basket.

It was a fun day.

Here we stopped for a family picture as the park was closing. You can see Jon is wet from the ride we had just splashed down on.

Syndi came away with a plan to work her way up to the large roller coasters, to allow her to overcome any fears she might feel.

Junior wondered why we couldn't go swimming in the pool where our boat had just crashed down on Splashwater Falls.

Stephen was oblivious, fearless, and had a blast...all day.

And we have free return passes, so we may be returning in a month or two!