Gold Fever

One of our most recent family activities is to pan for gold.  We have attempted in the creek near our house and then in the next post you will see that we visited the Alabama Gold Camp.  If you have a creek you would like us to pan please let us know. Here are a few images of us down by the creekbank.

Cole, our youngest Boston Terrier, is very protective of Tennyson and guarded her as she took a nap by the creek.  He has always been a step ahead and found the posionous snakes on the porch or the playground potentially saving the children from harm. Three days ago he we missing and we are very concerned about his well-being.  Please, pray for him.

Alabama Gold Camp

For the boys birthday's we decided to take them gold mining at the Alabama Gold Camp in Lineville, AL.  http://www.alabamagoldcamp.com/ If you are looking for a place to have true family time this may be your place.  We stayed in a bare essentials shack in the woods. It had 2 beds, sink, shower, and small frige / microwave and a grill outside.  There is no television nor radio, etc...just the peaceful sounds of nature and the babbling brooke was so calming.  We had a blast being together, digging, highbanking & panning for gold.  It was hard work but hope kept us going.  In the end, we were able to pan out some pickers and small flakes and at least have a tiny bit to show for our work.  We met some nice people that were there that had children our kids age.  They are frequent flyers of the gold camp and recently cashed in $800 worth from their weekend excursion.  The soil is rich in gold and it was exciting to find and see it in the wild.

Asher's 6th Birthday!

Asher's 6th Birthday!  Asher and Tennyson and I had a memorable morning cuddling together in bed and looking through Asher's baby album.  I later surprised him with lunch in town with Mark at Durbin Farms where he PB & J and ice cream.  Afterwards, I gave him a bouquet of balloons and we played at Granddaddy's and MaNa's house until soccer practice.  The next day Mark and I took Asher to Birmingham for some alone time with just him.  We took him shopping at the mall and he had a foot rub and ate at a new restaurant for us Texas Roadhouse Grill.  He had ribs and a baked potato and loved every bite until he fell asleep in my lap.

 

MaNa and Granddaddy gave Asher a cake decorating set and a DVD of Franklin and some money which he purchased a new plasma car with and a few dollars to add to his savings account.  Asher loves to shop!

MaNa made Asher this huge cupcake for his birthday cake. He was so excited about nuts being on it. 

Here is a picture I took from my phone of Mark & Asher getting a foot rub.  Who doesn't like to be pampered?!!

Asher has been enjoying his new scooter and Pogo stick from our CA family. The images of this are posted below on Braxton's Birthday post.

Aunt Vonnette & Uncle Ed gave Asher a Hallmark Interactive Storybook (Watson and the Case of The Sneaky Stealer w/ stuffed pet raccoon). Asher loves books and especially his stuffed animals.

Braxton's 8th Birthday!

Happy 8th Birthday Braxton! Braxton had a party at his school. He asked for his only favorite cake..pound cake that MaNa made for him.

Here is a picture of Braxton with his girlfriend Emily.

Aunt Linda, Aunt Deb, Cousin Maddie, Nana Susan and Mr. Chuckles gave the boys new scooters, a pogo stick and a new Djubi game for their birthday's.  Papa gave him a savings bond.

*Aunt Vonnette & Uncle Ed gave Braxton a Pop Bottle experiment kit with 79 fun projects.  The first one they secretly chose was the cork rocket blast off. I had just laid down for a nice afternoon nap but quickly arose when I heard the boys scampering in the kitchen and whispering what is baking soda & you get the vinegar or do you think wine would do better with all that alcohol? As many times as I heard Braxton read the instructions he never read the line...you will need a grown-up to help.  Thankfully, I am a light sleeper and all blasted off fine until 3 hours when it accidentally got launched again all over me and the inside of the car.
*Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Mike gave Braxton silly string and confetti flyer's which the boys chased and wrestled each other with.
*Grandaddy and MaNa gave Braxton money in which he is planning to add to his savings account.
*Mark & I took him to Birmingham to have some alone time withjust him and we went to see the movie Rango and ate at Chick-Fil-A.  Mark tried to get him to eat at Hooters but he replied "NO, my girlfriend asks me what all I do and would not like that."  I am still so proud of his answer and have thanked God for his tender heart.

Fun with Friends

Here are a few images of some good friends of mine that were in town visiting.  Donna and I met when we were five years of age and have been great friends ever since. Thirty one years later we are watching our children play with each other.  Elizabeth and Erik are not accustomed to our country life but they had a blast playing in the creek, skipping rocks, and picking bouquets.