Wild Animal Safari 2

Wild Animal Safari

We also visited Wild Animal Safari over Spring Break.

This is the awesome van we rented so ours didn't get mauled...

by this...

or this...

More Spring Break

Jack and his water obsession...

Wow! I wish I had one of these in by yard!

Happy Easter!

I love seeing the two of them playing together and being good friends.

Spring break

We went to FDR state park to camp for Spring Break.  Of course we chose the 3 coldest days of the year!  Can you believe snow flurries in South Georgia in April?  Here are the girls all bundles up...

 

We went to Callaway Gardens and the butterfly house...

The happy family...

The secret garden... 

Model 3T

 

 

I thought Jack was super handsome in these pics from our Spring break trip...

Kikko 2

Margot loves these rings just as much as her kikkopants sister. She uses them mostly with her hands and usually with her left!!! She does use her foot some thought, just like Katya! I got these pics on one of those nice days where the natural light in the room is just right. What a fun baby she is these days!

Bear Jamboree

 
 
 Pictures for Grammy and Grandma...Thanks for letting Katya borrow the outfit - she was a hit for Bear Jamboree.  What a fun day!  They had biscuits and watched someone churn butter and one of my friends from church quilt.  Then they went outside on a very chilly day and panned for gold and washed clothes on a washboard.  Then they had storytelling (really fun songs) in the library by their wonderful librarian who I went to music school with at UGA.  Then they saw a bluegrass band and clogging by their classmates and the school nurse!  They saw animals from the local zoo and another band with the son of Katya's teacher in it.  They finished off the day with a hay ride.  Then when they got home, we played outside with the new bubbles that Grammy got them for Easter.  Thanks for helping with the biscuits and kids Grammy and Papa!

My Review of REI Kingdom 6 Tent

REI

REI Kingdom 6: This family palace of a tent features 2 private rooms, tall vertical walls that maximize livable space, and multiple organizer pockets located throughout.

REI Kingdom 6 Tent

Great family tent, in 95% of conditions

compass9 North Georgia 4/12/2009

 

5 5

Gift: No

Pros: Waterproof, Sturdy, Easy To Set Up, Comfortable

Best Uses: Beach, Car Camping

Describe Yourself: Avid Adventurer

What Is Your Gear Style: Minimalist

Just came back from a spring break camping trip with the kingdom 6 + optional vestibule in southern georgia. There are five in our little family with myself and wife, 5 year old, 3 year old, and 3 month old. Set up was easy, rainfly has great coverage without sacrificing breathability or livability, on the contrary, it goes out of its way to make it more so. The rainfly has an ample vestibule that held all of our gear and camping chairs while we were gone from the site, the sides of the rainfly roll up to increase visibility and it is very easy to increase the tension with the pull tabs at the base of each pole and the handy velcro ends at each tip of the top spine pole. The optional vestibule gave room for us to sit huddled and sheltered from the elements and allowed me to cook breakfast without getting snowed on. In short, it gives a lot of storage space (we could all put our boots on at the same time under it) and added weather pertection.
We had hard rain one night with some small hail, snow flurries in the morning then warm sunshine on the last day. Camping by a lake would have meant either high winds or lots of condensation. The first night was very windy 20-30 mph with gusts even higher. With the guy lines staked out, the rainfly hardly fluttered and the tent stood strong. The rain/hail didn't get through the tent at all, even with the wind, and no condensation in the morning! The next night was calm but chilly with a low of 32, but again, no condensation in the morning, fabulous.
I am 5'10" and can stand up everywhere in the tent, the tent stands firm and the walls are almost vertical. Plenty of pockets and loops for everything you'll need. The floor of the Kingdom is great, super tough coated nylon oxford, think NAVY gunny-sack material, super tough, but soft to the touch. We love this tent and look forward to many more hospitable camp-outs with it, but if the weather goes bad, we'll sleep soundly. Great tent.

all lit up at night, day two

: Using Product

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Jack-o-lantern

My favorite nickname for Jack. We have many, and none of them original. What a great name if you are running for class pres or just need a slogan. There are so many quotes/sayings with Jack in them. Anyway, Jack Attack has been so awesome lately. I love snuggling with him in bed at night. I love watching him dance and sing and play instruments. I especially love when he wakes up in the morning and says "Hi, Mommy" in his cutie cutie voice. He always gives a sheepish smile, too and drags his bootie (his blanket, not his bum) around. And he loves to sit in my lap! I've got to enjoy THAT while it lasts! We are having some good times together lately. I am really enjoying him. Hopefully the feeling is mutual.

It's all you, baby

I don't remember enjoying the other two kids quite this much when they were babies. I'm not sure why, maybe because I'm older, or I need a sane, calm moment, and Margot so often offers my escape from the world. I love it when she breaks out into a huge grin. I also love cuddling with her on my chest. She makes me very, very happy. She is so peaceful. Hopefully I can return the favor.

BFF

Katya and Jack have been sleeping together. We tried this before, but Katya would always get frustrated and go to her bed because Jack would be too crazy. It might be the Benadryl, but it's working now. And no kids waking up in the middle of the night to come sleep with us either! She is such a mothering type. Tonight she read to Jack and sang songs. I love it when they dress up as cheetah and giraffe and chase each other through the house. They are great playmates!