Owls

Monday night I was outside on the deck and had one of those fun, living in a park moments. I was surrounded by calling Owls. There was a Great Horned Owl and a juvenile Great Horned Owl, an Eastern Screech-owl, and a Barred Owl. It was very fun to listen to, especially because we heard all three species at the same time! If you click the links below it takes you to a great bird site. Look for the link that says "Play sound from this species" below the range map on the right.

Great Horned Owl


http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Great_Horned_Owl.html

Barred Owl

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Barred_Owl.html

Eastern Screech-owl

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Eastern_Screech-Owl.html

Fun with a balloon!

We threw a baby shower for Jon and Laura a few weekends ago with two other couples and will post photo's soon, but here are some videos of Eli playing with a balloon.

Random Cell Phone Pics

Below are some random pics from our cell phones from January and February. They really don't fit anywhere else so here they are.

When I was away for a week at training Andrea went to Durham to hang out with some friends. She took and sent this pic to me from a playground with Libby and Luke. Apparently Eli was very close to sleep :-)

For those that do not know this was our last pic of the Jeep because we sold it and bought a Honda Odyssey mini-van!!!! That's right and I LOVE IT!!! Funny story... if you look there is still a UMaine Black Bear magnet on the jeep and we left it there. I tried to take it off and it was stuck and leaving black crud behind.... so we left it there:-)

In January Jon and Laura came to visit us at Lake Norman and we hiked the Alder Trail. Jon who loves babies and has one coming in May carried Eli and they both had a great time.

This is a pic of Eli napping at Andrea's parents house.

If you look closely you can see a drop of drool on his cheek.

Eli is most definitely a side sleeper like his daddy.

This pic is from the day they were supposed to push in our new boat ramps... long story short it didn't work, the boat ramps are still closed, and we have a big mess on our hands! But check out how big the machines are compared to the guys in front of them.

SNOW!!!

Well it only took six years and one month but I finally got a decent amount of snow in NC!!! It was awesome. We got 4" of rain over two days and then it transitioned to snow and we got 5" of snow. Unfortunately it happened overnight from my days off to my work week so I had to work during all the fun, but even that was fun; because we played in the snow all day.

The park looking beautiful (but closed).

The view over Park Lake was nice except for
the chocolate milk color due to the 4" of rain we got.

Clearing trees and opening the roads.

Road work continued... like I said playing in the snow!

The park was actually closed for a day and a half due to the snow and downed trees. Then there was a lot of black ice the next morning also. I really enjoyed working in the snow, being out all day and running a saw and tractor.

My parents and Pops were going to leave early that morning but had to wait for some of the snow to melt. They left around 10:00 and made it home fine. Before my parents left Andrea, Eli, Doc and my mom played in the snow.

Doc ready to pounce!

Eli, Grandma, and Andrea.

Snow time.

Eli and Grandma enjoying the snow.

Doc in the background is my favorite part of this picture!

Sippy Cup and Visitors

Two weekends ago we had a visit from my parents and Pops.  It was a short trip but it was a lot of fun!  They arrived on Friday and left Monday morning in the snow they brought.  While they were here Eli used his first sippy cup!  He LOVES cups and does everything he can to get yours, so we gave him one.  

One handed from the get go!

Leaning over backwards makes drinking easier,

swallowing is a different story.

Just hanging out.

Cuddling!

While my parents were here we got a bunch of stuff done around the house.  We hung a bunch of pictures and cleaned half the basement.  We also put up some under-the-counter lights in the kitchen, much nicer!

Sitting with Grandma.

Grandma enjoyed feeding Eli.

The Boys.

Peek-a-Boo, I see you!

We really enjoyed the visit and of course love it when Pops and Eli can hang out!  The best part is that we will see them again in less than 3 weeks!

29

On 02/20 I turned 29.  I worked and then we went out to Chili's.  While we were out Eli had his first pea experience!  He also sat in his Bumbo at a restaurant for the first time.

Big Boy in the Bumbo.

Making a mess!

Look at his face, he is working hard!

Daddy and Eli.

Ski Trip

The Sunday after Valentine's Day we went skiing at Sugar Mountain with some friends; Caleb, Courtney, Ken, Leslie, Matt & Candace.  It was my first time skiing but Andrea has been a few times.  We had a blast both skiing and just hanging out around the cabin.  We stayed Sunday, Monday and left early Tuesday morning.

Matt rockin' the slopes!

Sugar Mountain

The Garri

The Gwinns

Most people think it is weird that I have never downhill skied having lived in NY and Maine, but skiing was expensive in high school and in college it was a pipe dream due to cost :-)  We got great deals and split all the costs so this trip was not bad at all.  I was able to pick it up quickly and we rode both easy and intermediate slopes.  Since we were skiing on a weekday there were no lines for the lifts so we skied A LOT!  We all had a few good falls but it was worth it.  If I win the lottery or ever become rich I have another hobby to add to my list :-)

Leslie and Andrea on one of the intermediate slopes.

Caleb flexing the guns.

So excited to ski she is dancing a jig.

Caleb, Courtney and Candace babysat Eli while we skied Monday afternoon.  It was so nice of them, we would not have been able to ski otherwise.  Eli did great for his first non-family babysitters and the longest time he had been left alone, what great friends!

Courtney the babysitter extraordinaire!

Bean Game fun.

Sunday night we all showed our age and just hung out in the cabin and talked and retired early.  Monday night was a different story... we busted out the Bean Game and stayed up late.  Towards the end of the night Ken settled himself next to the refrigerator and slowly worked on cleaning it out.

Midnight snack.

Blowing Rock picnic.

Ken, Matt, Candace, Andrea, Eli, Hello Kitty, Me, Caleb (Leslie: Photographer).

Souvenirs!

On the way home we stopped in Blowing Rock and had a freezing cold lunch at a small park and then walked the downtown.  We stopped for ice cream and picked up some tubs as keepsakes :-)  I really liked the area we were in and hope to get back there soon... Blowing Rock and Sugar Mountain are actually on opposite sides of Grandfather Mountain, which State Parks just acquired!!