a boy and his rocket shooter alien

A plug for Tinkertoys (we like the plastic ones shown here since they don't have small, choking hazard pieces). Gma and Gpa V. got these for our guys a year ago on Christmas. Rarely a day has gone by that they have not been utilized to build rockets, cannon-shooters, guns (do you see a pattern here?), aliens, swings, lawn mowers (aka: pushies), etc.

pete, the dragon-fighting prince

Prince Pete: 1

Dragon: 0

Pete was actually invited to a "Princess and dragon fighting Prince Party." When I told him about it, he was REALLY excited and insisted that we needed to make him a costume immediatly (even though the party wasn't for 5 days). When I asked him what sort of costume he thought a dragon fighting Prince would wear, he replied, "A beautiful dress?" Although it was a good thought, we ended up settling on some of his Sunday clothes with a homemade crown, toy sword, and batman cape. He refused to wear the crown and cape after the photo, so he really just looked like a well-dressed prince at the birthday party.

Pete has been watching me while I type this and has requested that I write his story. Here ya go (I typed it exactly as Pete dictated it, including the name at the end. Be warned it is rated PG for some mild graphic dragon chopping):

Once upon a time there was a Prince. His name was Pete and he fighted a dragon and he saw a dragon, he saw a tail. He asked his friends, "Could that really be a dragon?" They couldn't know if it was a dragon so they went behind that wall and they saw a dragon and then it was a real one and they chopped it open.

THE END

Written by: Pete V.

old stone fort state archeological park

January 3, 2009 we took another family outing to Old Stone Fort State Archeological Park with some friends. It is a 2000 year-old American Indian ceremonial site (which is now all covered with dirt).

Hiking

Some of the waterfalls.

There is moss everywhere in TN, even in January.

fort donelson national battlefield

After a late night New Year's Eve, we decided to take a family day-trip on New Year's Day to a nearby Civil War Site. Located near Clarksville, TN, this battlefield is on and around the Cumberland River. The Union forces successfully took the fort from the South by floating large boats covered in iron (iron clads) up the river. From the looks of these cannons, I'm amazed that they were able to succeed in the task!

Aimed out over the Cumberland River.

Pete LOVES "Cannon-shooters."

Mommy and Jack after falling down the slippery leaf-covered hill.
(It was VERY slippery)

The boys had a ball!

new year's eve 08

We decided somewhat last minute to host a New Year's Eve game night for some friends who stuck around for the holidays. It turned out to be a lot of fun! The "Big Kids" played card games, board games, and ate a lot of junk. The little ones had free reign of the basement toys and Pete's room. The very little ones went to bed at a decent hour, while the rest of us stayed up to ring in the new year. Pete and some friends fell asleep on the couch and missed the midnight festivities (although, they didn't miss much).