Our last great adventure...for the week at least!

What a week already! I am really exhausted, and I know my babies are, too.

The weather here has been crazy - rain, rain, rain, sun! On my way to pick Major up from school it poured! I was hoping the remainder of the day would be nice and it did turn out that way! Yea! After coming home, changing clothes, & grabbing a few things (like a snack & the camera) we headed to get Ella Grace. To save time, I parked and picked her up as a walker. She had already received instructions to be the first person in the walker line and we were running to the car! ha! We did just that, besides me carrying her for a piece. Once in we were off like a race horse. We had places to be!

The three of us made it back to the airport by 3:32. Yes! We met a gentleman we had met earlier in the week with Jeremy & he called him for us. I checked-in at security and then we moved on in. We were waiting to see Air Force-1 land with President Obama! How cool is that?!

We waited. And waited. And waited. (Cause we were early.) First we waited inside.


Then we waited outside.
And we had a little fun while we waited, too!

And then here he came!

Air Force-1 landed with ease. We watched as the plane maneuvered around the tarmac.
Hey! Who put those there?! ha! ha!



The stairs were pulled up, the media moved in and...

Out came the President! Hello, Mr. President!

He basically ran down the stairs. Shook a few hands right off the stairs and headed in our direction. By "our" I mean the spectators, not like just me and the kids.

"The" wave.





Right here (the picture above) he was shaking Ella Grace's hand. He commented to her "I see that flag you brought with you. Thank you for bringing it!" yea!

And here he was shaking Major's hand!
And here!
Moving on, now...

Adios!
See the flags on the front? Mr. President is inside this one! (Really this time)

And the motorcade takes off!
The three Amigos in front of Air Force - 1.

Now how about that for some Tuesday afternoon fun?

Awesomesauce!

Another adventure

A little more planning involved in this, but we got to do something else which was super cool. The were able to view the Presidential limos! How cool is this? When the flags are on, the President is in! (except in these photos!)

Ella Grace and Major

Ella Grace was a little more excited about this.

And Major-man!

A front view of the limo.

See my handsome hubby?

And not to be outdone by the limo, the firefighter came out and said "Who wants to see the firetruck?" Um-hmm, the kids ran over like they had never seen one and were SO excited. Forget about the trip to see the limo now!

He offered to let the kids try out the hat, coat, suspenders and boots. Austin was the only one that would take him up...I should have jumped in, too!

You really can't see, but there were 3 planes in view here coming in for a landing. The firefighter told us they were each at least 5 miles a part!

Nothing like laying on the tarmac watching the planes come in!

Listening to the firefighter.

Paying close attention.

What a great adventure!

Blackhawk

At the last minute Sunday...as in at the end of worship service...we found out we were able to do something unexpected and that we likely won't ever be able to do again. We drove near the airport and were able to see and sit in a Blackhawk helicopter. Pretty neat!

We took turns sitting inside the helicopter. This was one of several available to the President.

Major was really pumped. This is a true boy - in to planes and cars, etc.

No problems getting a "cheese" here!
Ella Grace wasn't quite so sure. We couldn't get this girl to smile! One day she will realize how big of a deal this really was!
It was difficult for me to even straddle the controls in the middle! (And, yes, I had to take a turn too!)
This is the Presidential seal. It is actually on a removable panel in case the VP were in it, rather than the President. We were also able to sit in the cabin area where the President, his wife and staff sit. Small quarters!


Isn't that awesome!?

What a Friday!

Have you ever had so much on your "to-do" or "to-go" list that you just didn't slow down? The kids and I spent a busy Friday and Saturday trying to do and see as much as possible. We'll start with Friday tonight, and hopefully get to Saturday tomorrow!

We woke up early at Nana and Pop's. From there we drove to get Major's picture made for his 3rd birthday! That is so hard to say! He did a great job. I was a little worried at first; as my mom said he was doing a "pirate grin" at first. He warmed up quickly, and we got some good pictures. Ella Grace was trying hard to make him smile. She could easily get a job as a photographer's assistant!

After that we dropped by Krispy Kreme and picked out some assorted doughnuts to take to Mee Maw's for a snack. BUT, not before we watched the doughnuts being made. That was cool!

At Mee Maw's we ate our snack and the kids played with the "junk". This is what the kids affectionately call the toys at Mee Maw's. It is a compilation of all sorts of things - from Easter eggs, a small chain, measuring spoons, plastic plates, an old butter dish, a few puzzles, a basket and little tin bucket. The kids never get tired of this and are so excited when they get there to play with this.

Showing off her chocolate with sprinkles doughnut

De-lish!

Major, Mee Maw and Ella Grace

Major and the "junk"

After leaving Mee Maw's we headed to the science museum for a short visit. We ate lunch there and played hard for a little over an hour.

Isn't this cool/creepy?!

It looks like Major fell right into it!

Shew-ee!

Little bit of a problem here...

Hmmm...

10-4

Beam me up!

There is this "thing" there - it senses your motion and transfers it onto a screen that looks very 70s-ish. Ella Grace was trying to get Major in a handstand on the screen.

Our final stop was to the lake. I inadvertently forgot the swimmies, so we did a stop at Grandmother and Granddaddy's house to borrow theirs and then met Pop at the lake. The kids swam and played on the boat, Pop got a quick dive in, and I took a little snooze. I had taken some allergy medicine the night before and was just exhausted. Ugh!

By the time we got back to Nana and Pop's house the kids were worn out! No nap, but they were super! When you keep them on the move and busy, they do a great job! Just don't slow down!