Zach sings

The kids in Zach's preschool sang in church again right after we got back from Atlanta. Zach didn't have any trouble remembering the words, even though he missed that week of practice. :)

I decided to take pictures this time, rather than video. Ideally I would have brought my tripod, since the church was a little dark and I was in the back, but I think I would have gotten more than a few funny looks if I had. As a result, the pictures are a little blurry, particularly the group one below - but I had to include that one, it made me laugh out loud. There's nothing like a group of 3, 4 and 5 year-olds performing in public!

I have to admit though, watching Zach always makes me a little emotional. He looks so grown up and independent up there! And the look on his face is always so... earnest. He just focuses on his teacher and you can actually see his desire to do his part, to sing as loudly as he can, to get the words and motions right, all to make Mrs. Hulse happy. So very sweet!

Ahhh... fresh air

I don't think it's possible to describe how thrilled we were to arrive in Georgia and spend three full days in high-sixties, sunny weather. We have had the most unpleasant winter, so trust me, close to 70 felt like our version of heaven. But let me back up...

We arrived in Atlanta late on Monday afternoon, after an uneventful flight, other than the extreme turbulence and resulting vomiting. (Yes, we've pretty much realized we won't have a truly uneventful travel experience for a very long time.) There were all sorts of storms and even tornadoes threatening in Georgia as we flew in, and Zach's little stomach wasn't quite up for the challenge of the dips and dives. And it turned out Delta wasn't really ready for the challenge of Zach - there wasn't a barf bag to be found in our three seatbacks.

I won't gross you out with the details, let's just say it was fortunate that the flight attendant hadn't come around for our trash yet, and Scott was done with his cup of Diet Coke. And, I am happy to say, this flight once again reminded me that people are good. We booked our flight somewhat last-minute, so the only available seats were single middle seats. The gate agent was able to get Scott & Zach's seats together, with Charlie & me in the middle of the row behind them. Needless to say, I wasn't optimistic that someone would give up their aisle seat in order to move back a row for the always-pleasant middle seat. Luck was in our favor - the individual in my desired seat was a mom, and she volunteered to move before we could even ask, and didn't bat an eye at being wedged between two fellow passengers. The flight experience would have been very different if we hadn't all been seated together. So incredibly nice woman, thank you.

And to all of our neighbors who quickly passed us their barf bags as soon as they realized what was happening in our row - thank you too.

Needless to say, we were happy to arrive at the Bergums in our rented minivan. Their new house is gorgeous, and it was fun to catch up in person. And as I mentioned before, you would never have guessed that Zach, Brady, and Isak hadn't seen each other in over 6 months - they were off having a great time immediately.

We spent the morning of our first full day of vacation running around taking care of the practical stuff - buying diapers, baby food, etc etc. Then the adult guys went golfing and the boys spent the entire afternoon playing OUTSIDE - without coats, hats, mittens, gloves or boots. Zach even got a little bit of a tan line on the back of his neck!

Charlie was quite intrigued by the grass and leaves, since he's never had a chance to examine it before. I think he only ate a little. And Zach got to partake in one of his favorite outside summer activities: t-ball!

Dinner that night was a funny experience. We went to a hibachi-style Japanese steakhouse, thinking the action on the grill would keep the boys entertained. We were right, but we also discovered something I hadn't thought about... babies have an instinctive fear of fire. Especially big bursts of flames that come at you so you can feel the heat on your face. I've never seen Charlie afraid before; he spent the rest of the dinner expressing his displeasure any time the guy in the white hat was flashing his knives and spatula around. Lesson learned.

A big thanks to the Bergums for allowing us to invite ourselves down and crash at their house. We had a very fun time exploring the area, but also just hanging out, picking up old pastimes like pinochle. It was a great trip!

Golf cart cruising - Atlanta Day 2

On our second full day in the Atlanta area, we explored Peachtree City. A suburb located right next to Sharpsburg (home of the Bergums), Peachtree City (PTC) offered a unique opportunity - the chance to tool about town in a golf cart. So armed with a map, snacks, drinks, and bubbles, we did just that.

Believe it or not, PTC is not a golf course community. For some reason, the town just decided to build paths throughout the city; paths that are used for walking, running, biking, and golf carting. We saw houses with short little garages for golf carts, parents driving around in carts with car seats strapped in back, and an older woman driving home from the grocery store, with her bags stacked on the seats and a big plastic rain protector wrapped around her cart (despite the clear blue sky). The golf cart isn't the only mode of transportation in PTC, but it's clearly the most fun!

We drove on the paths whenever possible, but had to go on the road at times, and even through a big shopping center parking lot to park and eat at Chik-Fil-A (I bet we could have gone through the drive-thru!). We visited parks to let the kids out to run, cruised around a very nice lake, and saw some lovely scenery when we took an unintentional detour. Charlie even took a nice snooze, snug in the Bjorn and his dad's arms.

As if that wasn't enough fun, then it was time to officially celebrate Isak and Scott's birthdays - both born on March 2nd (just 32 years apart!). And what kid, whether a preschooler or an engineer, doesn't want to go to Chuck E Cheese for their birthday??

(^ No, we don't generally let Charlie kick back in a restaurant in his bare feet. What can I say - he was on his second massive blow-out of the trip, and my stash of back-up clothes in the diaper bag was running low!)

Pizza and a seemingly unlimited supply of tokens made for a fun night. Zach had never been, and was thrilled with all the video games and of course the "prizes" he got when he cashed in all his tickets. We've had many conversations since about how C-E-C is a special occasion place, not somewhere we go every day. I sure hope there's one around here as nice as the one we went to in Atlanta!

Whew. What a day. But no, we weren't done yet! Time to head home for some cake and a few presents. I think both birthday boys had a good day!

Georgia, Georgia-ahhh

We've already been back from our trip to Atlanta for over a week, so I thought I'd better get moving on posting about it. We were in town to visit our friends the Bergums, who moved there last fall. Zach was pretty excited to see his buddies Brady & Isak - and they picked up right where they'd left off.

Since I haven't finished reviewing and editing the pictures, I'm starting with the ones that are done - the ones from our last day of the trip! We spent that Thursday in downtown Atlanta, first checking out the very cool Georgia Aquarium - the world's largest aquarium:

All the boys had a great time, but I have to admit we got the biggest kick out of Charlie. He LOVED all the fish, was kicking and squealing, trying to reach the big fish swimming just out of his grasp. The bigger boys ended the outing with multiple rides down the whale slide, while Charlie snoozed in the stroller.

Then we crossed the street to Centennial Park, forever remembered as the site of the bombing at the '96 Olympics. There were two great playgrounds, but I think the boys spent the most time playing near the fountains. It wasn't quite warm enough to run through the fountains, so instead they ran many, many laps around the fountains. Isak even tried taking a drink...

Since it was such a lovely setting, we tried for a family picture. Always a challenge with small kids; I think the Bergums had more success!

Up next... our golf cart adventures!

Charming Charlie videos

There's a new store here in Woodbury called Charming Charlie's. I like the name. I know it's not very modest, but what can I say - I think my baby is charming! :)

Grandma Cookie requested some more video of Charlie crawling (if you were actually requesting video of Charlie tormenting Zach with his new mobility... I don't have that yet. This video was taken in the relative peace while Zach was at school this morning.). He does eventually crawl in this video, with his own special style, but first he just sits there and acts charming.

The second half of the video is for my good friend Melissa. When Zach was a baby, she gave him a little stuffed lion. Zach has always been neutral about stuffed animals - he does "puppet shows" with them occasionally, but he's never been the kid whose bed has to be piled with all of his favorite animals. When we realized how much Charlie loves to pull hair, I remembered this lion, with his big mane, and rescued him from Zach's bin for Charlie. And a love affair began...

Mr. Cool

I took Charlie to the optometrist this morning for an eye exam under the Infant See program. He had just woken up from his nap and was full of smiles and cheer - he charmed the many ladies at the doctor's office. He thought the whole experience was pretty fun, until he got tired of the doctor holding something in front of his eye that he wasn't allowed to grab. But as soon as she stopped, he was willing to give her some grins again.

As far as how it turned out - his eyes are as healthy as the rest of him. They checked for all sorts of reflexes and conditions I'd never heard of, on top of more familiar things like a lazy eye. And somehow or another they could get a general assessment of his vision. He has slight astigmatism and far-sightedness, but well within the normal range for his age. They'll check him again when he's three and then will have a better idea of how his vision will be long-term.

And believe it or not, they managed to dilate his pupils. Doesn't he look sharp in his shades?

Crawling & curling

Charlie is crawling - sort of. The video isn't great, since it includes his inspection of the rug, but it sort of shows how he puts his right foot down instead of his knee. I guess it's a crawl/scoot hybrid! This has been a very slow, frustrating process (particularly for Charlie), but I think I'm grateful that he's easing us into it. I'm not ready for a fast crawler yet! This method has already helped him learn to sit up, which helps relieve some of his frustration as well.

The second part of the video shows Charlie helping his dad sweep on Wii curling...