The great marshmallow roast

Luke came home last week and we were pretty excited, to say the least. He passed two written exams with flying colors and flew his check rides with ease. I am proud to say that I am married to a certified multi-engine, and single-engine commercial pilot! It has been great to see Luke learn and learn and learn over the last 6 months. He is almost done with flight school - next step is the flight instructor portion - and we will see him meet his goals. All of us are so very proud of him. Thanks for doing this for us, Luke! We love you!!

In celebration of Luke's homecoming, we decided it would be fun to do a bit of camping and a little rock climbing. He has been indoors studying 14 hours a day and I have started back to a very busy semester and we thought a little outdoor time was the ticket.

We left in the evening, ate delicious Mexican food at a restaurant (I have cleaned up enough camp site dinner messes and didn't feel like doing another), and headed up to Prentice Cooper State Forest for a night under the stars.

Layton was psyched to help get the firewood. He equates camping with marshmallow roasting so that is the only thing on his mind. Here he has his stick all ready and (semi) patiently waits for dad to build the fire.

Kestrel also gets a marshmallow, unroasted, and sits down for a treat.

She is not so sure of it. She prefers salty snacks to sweet things so she took a bite, spit it on her shirt and threw the marshmallow on the ground for the bugs to devour.

The boys begin the roasting and Layton thinks his dad is the man when it comes to making them just right, so Luke gets the honor of roasting all marshmallows at Layton's command (he says please, of course).

Handing over the goods...

Enjoying the treat...roasted to perfection!

After that, the night went by very slowly. Layton enjoyed the fire before bed and Kestrel was completely out of her element. She really didn't sleep and proceeded to kick and wriggle until she got 1/3 of the tent to herself. Layton was smushed in a corner and Luke was laid out in a straight-jacket position. I spent the night curled up, trying not to touch Kestrel (the princess who yelled if anyone touched her), staring at the stars. It had been wayyy too long since I quietly looked at stars while laying in the woods. Though I didn't sleep, I had a somewhat peaceful night.

The next morning we woke up, ate breakfast, jumped in the car and headed to the Tennessee Wall for a little rock climbing. The temps were nice and the humidity was relatively low. The conditions were pretty good for August in the South. Layton did great on the hike up and was psyched to get on the rock.

Layton is all ready to begin. He yelled, "Climbing!"

The first crux for him...knees were in order.

Yes! He made it to the top of the block. That was about it for him and this climb. He lowered off and played in the dirt.

Next it was my turn. It was an easy route with my favorite type of climbing!

At the top of the route, I did something very important. To those who know me, it was a milestone for me...I cleaned the anchors and rapped the route!!!! I had a horrible scare of vertigo almost 15 years ago and have been terrified of taking control while rock climbing since. I was paranoid to clean routes, rappel and belay from a ledge. Today, I conquered a huge fear and leapt over a large hurdle in my life. I was so proud of myself when I got down that I burst into tears. I just felt like I proved something to myself that will transcend into a lesson for my kids one day. It was the perfect ending to a not-so-perfect camping adventure. We hiked back to the car and left on a really positive note.

Since Kestrel did not sleep the night before, she passed out in the pack on the descent. Oh, to be a baby. I just love the chocolate smeared on her cheek - and a bit up her nose! Teeheehee!!

Sonnie Trotter and Alex Honnold on Logical Progression

Watching these videos reminded me what a great time Peter, Bert and I had in Basaseachic when we established this route almost 10 years ago. Hopefully we'll all get back down there again one day.


VIDEO #1: BD athletes Sonnie Trotter and Alex Honnold make one-day ascent of 28-pitch 5.13a in Mexico from Black Diamond Equipment on Vimeo.


VIDEO #2: BD athletes Sonnie Trotter and Alex Honnold make one-day ascent of 28-pitch 5.13a in Mexico from Black Diamond Equipment on Vimeo.


VIDEO #3: BD athletes Sonnie Trotter and Alex Honnold make one-day ascent of 28-pitch 5.13a in Mexico from Black Diamond Equipment on Vimeo.


VIDEO #4: BD athletes Sonnie Trotter and Alex Honnold make one-day ascent of 28-pitch 5.13a in Mexico from Black Diamond Equipment on Vimeo.

More Summer Fun

Summer in East Tennessee is in full swing and the heat is heavy (to say it mildly and without offending my true southern friends). The pool water is a bit like bathwater on most days and we are keeping indoors to stay cool. There was a scare when the AC broke (89 deg. in the house) but a nice guy came to fix it and he didn't break our bank. A reilef!
Our garden is looking pretty nice this year and our plant, the "butterfly bush", attracts lots of guests. Here are two of them....

Since it is so hot, we play outside in the mornings before it really sizzles. Kestrel loves the red sports car and Layton is one of the scariest monsters I have met. His teeth really add that extra spark of fright, don't ya think? The TV remote makes for the best weapon too.
In Chatt-Town, a little place known as Rock City (think red bird houses all along the interstate for miles saying, "See Rock City") is a cool oasis of rocky paths and tunnels to enjoy. Our friends, the Malones, invited us and here are a few pics of the trip. Kestrel is in the pack I am carrying and you can barely see her little blonde head peaking over...
Layton and Ryan had the best time running through the City.Time for a little snack.One of the biggest highlights for me thus far is that I painted the inside of the house and added much needed color. I did the parts I could do and hired the best painter to do the tall walls. I am so happy with the outcome and I feel like I am getting the house the way I really like it. It has only taken me 4 years (2 kids, a husband's career change, and all that life throws my way).


And finally, today is my mom's 60th birthday. I wish I could be with her today and celebrate with her, but traveling alone with my two little ones is pretty much my worst nightmare right now, so we are sending this to her to let her know how important she is to all of us and how much we love her!! Happy Birthday, Mom!!!! Note: I have never posted a video so I am not sure if it will work...

4th of July!

Happy Belated Independence Day!!! The kids were jazzed up to start the festivities this year and took to all the summer fun with great attitudes! The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays (ok, all holidays are pretty much my favorite) because my Grandma Weirdo loved to celebrate it. I have great memories of watermelon eating contests, Grandma dressed as a clown for Legion picnics, pinatas, family BBQs, firecrackers (she called them all firecrackers regardless of type) in the street (several times the police showed up because they were marginally legal), lawnchairs in the yard, and lots of fun! This year, I wanted to begin doing some of those things for my two (minus the clown costume).
We celebrated with neighbors at a BBQ and also did the lawnchair/firecracker/yard fun at dusk. Unfortunately Kestrel went to bed at her normal time so she missed the show, but Layton had a blast!
In addition to the 4th, we celebrated our 9th anniversary on 7/7! Luke is in flight school in Atlanta and I was feeling the itch to have a vacation so I decided I would take the kids to a resort in Georgia and Luke could meet us there in the evenings. After misreading a map (I know...how could I?) and realizing my first pick was 2.5 hours for Luke to get to in the evenings, I booked us a family getaway at Stone Mountain Park outside Atlanta. Turns out...it was PERFECT!!
The Mountain itself is a huge granite dome and, on one side, there is a huge carving of Stonewall Jackson, Jefferson Davis and Robert E Lee. At dusk, the largest laser light show in the world is projected on top of the three men and it was a "southern experience" for sure. There were lots of jeers and jabs between Georgia Bulldog and Georgia Tech fans, Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Georgia on my Mind", etc...Layton had a long enough day, so we packed it up and went back to the hotel for the night. Gotta love his face in this one :)
We stayed at the resort right in the park and it kept us busy and was comfortable. At the park, we took a nature walk...
We did go into the park where we saw a percussion group, rode a train, Layton did some bouldering, rode the skylift to the top, played miniature golf and ate a bunch of popsicles. It was 100º the two days we were there, so I didn't get the camera out in the heat too much. It was a great mini-trip and was wonderful to be together as a family on our special day while Luke is in school.
This week Layton is spending each morning at his old pre-school for Vacation Bible School and Kestrel is helping me update the blog.

Summer is Underway!

Our summer is so fun this year...so far. Luke and Layton have been a goofy twosome and Kestrel continues learning all about new stuff (and learning things are a no-no, like outlets). Her utensil capabilities are getting stronger - meaning my cleaning capabilities getting easier - and she is eating new foods like chips with Grampa!
We had a wonderful visit with Nana and Grampa. It was relaxing and Grampa watched World Cup Soccer simultaneously in two rooms! We spent lots of time at the pool and went to the Ocoee River to try snorkeling in fresh water. The spot we chose is where the whitewater events in the Atlanta Summer Olympics were held and it was pretty cool to see all of the aquatic life while looking down from above. I was a bit shocked at how many fish there were because the water was fairly shallow in a lot of areas. Everyone had a good time and enjoyed the cool water rushing past.
Layton thought snorkeling in "the wild" was lots different than in the swimming pool, but he enjoyed it nonetheless. His swimming skills are definitely impressive!Kestrel liked the scene and Nana was great to keep her safe and sound.
After waterplay, we enjoyed the wonderful picnic Nana prepared for us!
I think one of the best things about their visit is that Luke and I had 2 (count 'em...2) dates!! We played putt-putt one night and went bowling another. It was very fun to get out with the hubby and spend time, just the two of us. We were sad to see the grandparents leave, but happy to know they made it back to NM safely! We sure do miss you guys!! Thanks for everything!!

The night they left, we spent the evening on the Williams' pontoon boat. Sean captained and we went to Riverbend, a huge music festival here in Chattanooga, on its last night. We anchored near downtown and listened to the Charlie Daniel's Band. We also stayed for the fireworks and it was awesome to see the show from the water!
Sean and Trina chillaxin'.The kiddos and me cruisin'.Chase and Layton posin'.Kestrel and her Trina :)Kestrel lovin' it.The big boy toys.The crowds movin' in....All of the boatin' neighbors.Waitin' for sundown and the shows to begin!The concert.The fireworks!!
Thanks to Sean and Trina for being awesome hosts and great friends! We are so happy to have them in our lives and spending these fun times together is great!!