New pets

New Pets

Our household has expanded to include two animals: one bearded dragon named Sydney and a beagle mix named Sally. The bearded dragon belongs to Colum (thanks to Grandma Timi's b-day $$) and the beagle mix 'belongs' to Joella as she earned it by taking care of a hamster for over a year. The promise was that we would get a dog when the hamster died... well... it died. We couldn't be happier with both pets so far... I must say I did a dang good job of picking Sally out at a Super Adoptathon that a local Petsmart was hosting... as for the names, they already had 'em and to the children, that's just their names... so, Sydney & Sally, it is!

Papa Richard visits

With Papa Richard

Liesl's Glasses

Liesl's 1st Glasses

One beautiful girl in glasses. She LOVES them. Thinks they're really cool. It's been about two weeks and she is doing great with the glasses, as far as wearing them all the time and taking care of them.

Norfolk Botanical Gardens

Norfolk Botanical Garden

Colum got some free passes to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens as a reward for helping with a service project, so we took this opportunity to check it out. We had a great day walking the trails and feasting our eyes on all the pretty flowers. The kids loved the WOW! Garden for Children (obviously) and I really enjoyed the butterfly pavilion... I think we'll have to get an annual membership pass soon.

Strike-Fighter Ball 2009

Hornet Ball 2009

Played dress-up twice in one evening. Ate fancy food. Ignored the speeches. Enjoyed the 'patriotic' video...

Virginia Zoo

My Favorite Animal Exhibit

Every time we go to the Virginia Zoo, I have to stop by the Prairie Dog exhibit. They are always amusing to watch as they go about their business. I couldn't get over a particular specimen...

Scout Cookout

This past weekend, the family visited the troop's campsite one evening to sample some campfire cookin'. Colum's patrol cooked up some fried squash, stuffed green peppers, & spice cake. It was surprisingly very good. We had so much fun that we forgot to take pictures until towards the end of the evening, and ALL the girls cried when it was time to go home.

Boy Scout Camp

Camp Powhatan

Colum went to a Scout camp over the summer. He had a lot of fun spending one week with boys, reptiles, a slimy lake, no showers (I don't think he even brushed his teeth either), & rifles.