Magnolia again...

On a recent trip to Magnolia with a friend, we watched this raccoon play around in the water for a few minutes before it decided to come right on over the bridge to see us. It actually chickened out halfway over. We are wondering if it was rabid since it was out during the day.

  

Growing up

When I met Kim and Stephen they were 7 and 8 (respectively). Now both are taller than me- no surprise there I guess....

  

Dyeing eggs

While our Easter eggs did not get hidden or turn out like the picture on the box, we had fun dyeing them!

  

Crabby Stephen

We did try to do some fun stuff with our guests in addition to the pain we inflicted. We took Dee and Shan and fam to James Island County Park to go crabbing. We did catch quite a few and had a science lesson on telling the gender of blue crabs too! One fellow crabber could not believe we weren't keeping them to eat, so we finally gave him one that was legal.

Future PA

Doug's sister was the only one willing to let Doug play PA and give her a shot. You can see niece Sarah watching as niece Rebekah worries in the kitchen. You can see why people don't come visit us often since this is how we treat our guests =)!


  

Happy Easter!

Our "traditional" Easter picnic took place with Doug's sister's family in our backyard. It was nice to have family here to celebrate Jesus' resurrection with!

  

Our squirrel-proof bird feeder

This bird feeder is also supposedly bear-proof. I have my doubts.

  

Your tax dollars at work =)

This was a funny sight for me- 4 army people in full fatigues guarding the jump castle...


  

Piloting a C-17

At the airshow, you could tour different planes and helicopters and ask questions. One pilot offered to take a picture of us in the cockpit of a C-17- basically a cargo 747. The Charleston AFB is a C-17 base though we sometimes see other planes.

  

Air Show

We spent the morning at the Air Expo 2006, a free air show at the Charleston AFB. We went mainly so we could get on base, but it was very interesting. We left before the highlight of the show, the Navy Blue Angels, but we took this picture in our own backyard!

  

More birds

I have been home sick the past few days and I have seen a lot of birds. This Eastern bluebird is very tempremental and moves everytime I get near the camera. It is a beautiful bird and fun to watch.

  

Isabel

Here is a picture of Matt and Gaby's baby Isabel. She is a 2 1/2 months now and growing fast!

  

Brain Awareness Week

Last week as you were probably not aware was Brain Awareness week. I had a special speaker volunteer to come to my class to teach about the brain and she brought some real human brains. I wish I could show some of the pictures of the kids with the brain, but because of privacy issues I can't. So here is a picture of a brain and a half brain. It was amazing to see the brain (I kept telling my kids this was a once in a lifetime opportunity!) and remember some of what I learned in college.

  

I was attempting to post a video, but it is too big....

You can go to video.google.com and search for nature thriller and the video is called kayaking. It is 57 seconds long so you need a fast connection, but it is worth the wait for the thrilling ending =)!

Oysters

I was amazed to see so many oysters along the channels and creeks we kayaked on. I had thought oysters liked to attach to firm surfaces, but so many seemed to be anchored to the mud. This oyster bed was being picked by crows and this American Oystercatcher.

 

Kayaking

We went kayaking at Edisto Island yesterday. I am actually paddling backwards in this photo. More photos to come.....


 

Cardinals

I watched this cardinal for awhile this evening. It reminded me of my Grandmother who likes cardinals. She has Alzheimers now and is quickly deteriorating. I liked the colors of the afternoon sun on the tree and the red of the bird. 

with a little manipulation...

 

Kina does the backyard...

Kina loves to try to get out the door on her own and hide under the grill, but I sometimes sneak her out while I play frisbee with Daru. She stays on the picnic table and plots how to catch the neighborhood birds...she is very focused. 

Going back in the archives

Doug took this picture of my cousin a few years ago, holding "Bitty Kitty." He recently cleaned out our picture files, so I am having to go back in time....