Fall Mountain Hike

We have been slowly making our way through the park on hikes. In mid-April we hiked the Fall Mountain Trail (to do it before the boardwalks were removed)! It was a great hike with perfect weather and lots of fun things to see.

Emmett took his nap in the Bjorn.

A view of Falls Dam from the boardwalks.

Some basking turtles near the boardwalks.

A skink on the boardwalks.

Wild Ginger in bloom.

We spent a lot of time just sitting by the water and throwing in rocks.

Turtles near the dam.

Lots of muscle shells in the moss along the bank, the picture does not do it justice!

Dada and Emmett hanging out at the water.

Cutie Emmett

These are some cute pics and video of Emmett playing around the house. As we mentioned before Emmett is into everything. He is fearless too!

Emmett found the Dr glasses...

and they are so cute!!!

"Hi, like my new PJ's?"

It seems like he has gotten so big. He looks really long here!

This is a fun video of Emmett playing with the animals and their mat. He loves to open and close the gate and put animals through it. It is fun to watch. Eli liked to do this too, when he was younger, but he would only do it with the Polar Bear!

Gwinn Spring Break

During Kentucky Schools' spring break Grandma and Grandpa Gwinn came to visit for a long weekend. We put them right to work!!! :-) Grandma hemmed some curtains she made for Eli's nursery in Durham, back in 2008. She made them custom; unfortunately, when we moved to Lake Norman they were too custom.... and they never went up. Now they are valances and look great! My dad and I also put in a fence in the back yard.

It wasn't all work though, we took a wagon ride and played with toys too! My mom also brought me a masterpiece......

Grandpa and Emmett.

New valances.

We literally just took these pics....
if you look you will see Emmett sleeping in his crib :-)

The fence nearing completion. Eli did not go for a bike ride, his helmet and the football are in the same crate in the garage and when he sees one he has to have the other :-)

The other end of the fence. Emmett's "old man hair" looks really cute in the wind and sun!

COMPLETE!!!

Walking on the top of Morrow Mountain.

Looking out into the park, Lake Tillery and Montgomery County.

It was Emmett's nap time so we left him in the car seat. Alas sleep did not come!

Another view from the top.

The masterpiece!!! This is a t-shirt quilt my mom made from my 'They Might Be Giants' shirts!! Most were bought at concerts in NYC. One was literally bought off of the back of a bartender, one is a special new years edition, one was signed in central park and all were well loved!!! There is one non-TMBG shirt and that is the "excelente" in the middle top. I got that shirt for having one of the highest Spanish averages in either 7th or 8th grade, and wore it on most of my Boy Scout camping trips.

Butterfly Capture

Grandma Mutti and Grandpa Vati came for the night on the first weekend of April. While they were here I had to work but they hung out with the boys and Andrea. They all had a good time. One of the highlights was when Grandma Mutti caught an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly. Eli has been trying to catch one again ever since!

Inspecting the catch.

Mutti and her prize.

No butterflies were harmed in the making of this post......

Pancake Fun

We eat a lot of pancakes and waffles since some days I don't go in to work until late. I have been making mickey mouse pancakes for a while, but now Eli really likes Handy Manny too.... So, I attempted some Handy Manny pancakes.....

Mickey Mouse.

Clockwise from 12 o'clock: Squeeze (pliers), Turner (flat head screwdriver), Dusty (hand saw), Phillipe (Phillips head screwdriver). Come on now.... use a little imagination!!

Emmett's First Kayak Trip

On Emmett's 10 month birthday we took him for his first kayak ride!! Another fun thing about Morrow Mountain is that Lake Tillery, which Morrow Mountain sits on, is a lot more paddler friendly than Lake Norman. We are right across from the Uwharrie River and there are always paddlers in the park and on the lake. This day was a little windy but we went for it anyway, it was a good trip!

Mama and the boys as we prepare to launch.

Dada and Eli in the red boat. It won't be too long
before we have to figure out a new system :-)

Mama and Emmett in the green boat.

Eli helping me with the straps as we pack up.

Getting Around

Emmett started crawling on March 14. He had become a rolling professional so he took his time in learning the art of crawling. He is still more of an army crawler than up on all fours but he has started pulling up on things too!