Middle School

It's official, I have two middle schoolers.  Summer break is over and we are back in the swing of things with school and other activities.  It feels kind of weird to not have to drop a kid off at Wacona anymore, but I guess I'll get used to it.  The kids have both had a positive start to their school year, and I hope that it continues that way.  Here is a picture of the kiddos on the first day of school.

Rolling Stones

 We went to a Rolling Stones concert!  We have been looking forward to this for months. I am on the Stones mailing list and when I received notice that they were coming to Jacksonville, I couldn't believe it.  We usually have to go to Atlanta, Orlando, or Tampa to see bands this big.  Jacksonville has been upping their game lately, so maybe we'll get more bands of this caliber.  Anyway, I purchased the tickets for Brian and myself the moment that they went on sale in November.  My parents, Quincy and Chase, aunt Libba, and Jessica also purchased tickets.  Most of us had seats in the same general area, but not directly beside each other.  Originally, the concert was set to be in April, but Jagger had to have heart surgery so it was pushed back till July.  Between the time that I purchased the tickets and the time that the concert took place, both of my children began to get seriously interested in classic rock music.  So, we made a last-minute decision to buy two extra tickets so that they could see this excellent band who is, in my opinion, the greatest band on the planet.  Seriously, I love them- and they haven't lost a step.  They put on a fantastic performance and played almost all of my favorite songs.  Mick Jagger was high-energy which surprised us because he's 75 and just had heart surgery.  Didn't matter- he was dancing all over the place and he sounded great.  I'm so glad we decided to take the kids.  This is something that they will always remember. 

Here's a bonus picture from my first Rolling Stones concert in 2006. I was pregnant with Olivia (which is why you may hear her claim that she has been to "two" Stones concerts).

Summer STEM Project

The kids have met with their friends all summer to build an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV).  It was definitely a challenging project.  The kids learned how to measure and cut PVC, drill, waterproof, solder, assemble, troubleshoot electrical issues, and adjust buoyancy. It took 20+ hours to assemble. Soldering the circuit board was the most difficult part by far.  We were all nervous that something would go wrong or not work.  The first two tries were duds but after a few adjustments, the ROV was up and running.  Everyone was so excited and we rushed out to the pool to try it out- and it ran great.  There is an underwater robotics competition that we can enter in the spring, and we may participate.  I have to say, this was a great way to keep the kids engaged in STEM during the summer.  They loved the project and loved the fact that they got to do it with their friends.     

Pool, Pier, Putt-Putt

When not on the beach, we hung out at the pool or on the pier.  The pier is still not fully rebuilt from the damage it took during the hurricane two years ago. so fishing could only be done around high tide. Both of my kids swim well enough that they can be in the pool without me right there, and that was nice (meaning more time on the beach for me).  We were also able to eat out a few times during the week.  In addition to our usual favorites (hello, Salty Pelican) we tried some new places including the brand new Salt Life.  We ate on the rooftop overlooking the ocean.  The view was incredible and the food was also good.  Papa Buie gave all of his great-grandkids money to get ice cream, so we hit up Fantastic Fudge.  I ordered Vanilla and was given a Lemon Custard flavor by mistake, but it was delicious.  I was glad for the mix-up.  I also took the kids putt-putting, and that was fun.  We had such a great week at the beach and are already looking forward to next year.

Beach Vacation 2019

 We love our week at the beach, and this was one of the best in recent memory.  The weather could not have been better.  It was in the mid-to-high 80s with a gentle breeze every day.  I spent about four hours on the beach on all but one day. The older kids spent more time than usual on the beach this year as well.  They usually boogie board some, and they did this year too.  But, the big thing was getting out in the waves and playing in them. They asked to do this every single day. I have lots of pictures, so I'm going to do several posts.  Here are the first set of beach pictures.

Six Flags Over Georgia (with friends)

One of the perks of our Six Flags passes is that we have several "bring-a-friend" days.  In the past, these days have usually passed by unused because Six Flags is so far away so it's not really convenient to use them.  This is summer, though, and we have time on our hands.  So, the kids invited their friends to accompany us.

 The park was busy, so we didn't ride everything.  We did, however, hit up some of our favorite rollercoasters including Twisted Cyclone, Dare Devil Dive, Goliath, and Mindbender.  We also rode some non-rollercoaster favorites like Monster Mansion and Justice League.

It was very hot, so we took a break in the middle of the day to visit the attached Hurricane Harbor Water Park.  I didn't bring my bathing suit, but I wish I had.  I ended up going into a splash area in my clothes a couple to times to cool off.- it was that hot.

 After leaving the park we visited a rolled ice cream place.  Our friends had just gotten back from Thailand and they wanted to share this Thai dessert with us.  The rolled ice cream was so amazing.  I will be seeking out places to get this dessert again in the future.  It was a long day for sure, but we all had a great time.