Hanging with Hockenberry

We had so much fun hanging out with Lisa and Lily. It's awesome that Lisa and I have been close friends for so long. Now, we can watch our kids play together. Totally amazing! Thanks, Lisa. Let's do it again soon.

What better than a cold sprinkler when it is in the 90's?

Myles enjoyed the mud puddles as most little boys do.

Myles wasn't so sure about the water at first.

But it didn't take long before he was running around laughing.

Lily didn't like the cold water at all.

If G could have had his way, he would be in the sprinkler until a pool formed in the yard.

Myles and Lily

Sweet little Lily. She was such a pleasure to be around. All smiles (with the exception of the sprinkler incident) and so easy going. She just goes with the flow. She didn't even mind two crazy boys running around her house. Actually, I think she enjoyed watching them....from a distance.

Columbia Crawfish Festival

This weekend was the annual Crawfish Festival in Columbia, SC. We decided to check it out and spend some time with my college roommate and dear friend, Lisa. It was all you would expect from a Crawfish Festival, beer, Cajun music, and of course, crawfish. I am not a huge fan of crawfish or any other crustacean, but Lisa and Josh filled their belly's with them. Despite the 90 degree temperature (gotta love Columbia!), we had a blast!

The huge crawfish was a big hit with Grady.

Lisa, Lily and Mr. Crawfish

Here are the supposedly delicious crawfish. I just couldn't bring myself to eat them....all those legs and little eyes.

Josh loves 'em.

Grady even ate his fair share. Myles decided to share my veggie burger instead. If you're wondering why Myles wasn't in any pictures is because he was exhausted. He didn't go to sleep until 1am as we were not at home. Myles pretty much refused to get out of the stroller. I never let him out in public with a pacifier but this was an exception. He also demanded that he bring his blanket along too.

Grady checking out a crawfish. He was fascinated!

I swear Grady is part chimpanzee. He climbed this wall so fast, I hardly had time to snap a picture. We were all impressed.

Boys??!!

I swear sometimes I think the male gender comes from a different planet. I always knew they were strange but I don't think I fully realized how strange until I had two boys. Here's a video of how they were entertaining themselves the other day. This went on forever!! Who knew banging your head on a cabinet could be so much fun. I can't picture little girls attemping this form of entertainment. Needless to say, they are always amusing!

School Pictures

Grady had school pictures taken about a month ago. They encouraged Myles sit in as well. Poor G had a horrible cold and had broken out due to a runny nose. His little face was covered in scabs. Despite feeling bad, he happily sat for pictures.

A Visit to the Biltmore Estate

The City of Asheville is pretty much synonymous with the Biltmore Estate. Most folks that visit Asheville make Biltmore a number one priority. So, it's crazy that we have lived here for 6 years and have never made a journey to this famous house. For those of you who don't know, the Biltmore Estate is the largest private residence in the US. It was built in the 1800's and is now, largely open to the public. There are a few sections of the house that remain private. It is amazing, to say the least.

The main reason that we have not made a visit before is the cost of admission. Luckily for us, the park that I work for has an agreement with the Biltmore and several other attractions. We get into some great places for free. It's a pretty sweet perk of the job....besides hiking and getting paid for it!

This is a side view of the house. I didn't get a pic from the front so you can't tell how big it really is. Grady didn't like the house. He said it was, "a little scary". I think it was the massive gargoyles that threw him off. We didn't take the kids in the house. I know they wouldn't appreciate it. Plus, I can't afford to pay for any broken items! It would be like releasing a bull in a china shop. Josh and I will go on our own sometime.

We headed to the Gardens and the Conservatory. The boys loved running around the gardens. The flowers were breath taking. (almost as pretty as my mom's garden!)

Myles was all smiles when he saw all the colors.

Me and the boys in the gardens.

Can you spot G? He is camouflaged in

all the bright colors.

Grady had to find the bass pond and see if it was full of fish.

Myles loved the guitar player in the Conservatory. He even played a few special songs for Moo.

After the gardens we headed over to the farm. They had a petting area where the boys terrorized the animals.

Myles really wanted the chicken to peck his hand. He chased them around the entire time. I know those chicks were happy when the Scala boys left the farm.

We stopped off for a bite of ice cream. They have a little village inside the Estate with shopping, restaurants and a winery. Josh and I are going to come back another time for a wine tasting. Yummy!

Family Bike Rides

Josh and I have always loved riding our bikes around Black Mountain and into the downtown area. Now, with two kids things have gotten a little complicated. We debated about getting a trailer that Josh would pull behind his bike. I wasn't to sure about the boys being in close quarters for an extended period of time. They can get a little rowdy!

A friend of ours suggested that we borrow his "tag-a-long" bike. It's a great invention that clamps onto the back of an adult bike while the kid can ride on the back. Grady LOVES it. I was pretty nervous about him hanging on to the back of Josh's bike but he had no reservations about it. He jumped on right away...."faster, Dad". Josh was concerned too as he couldn't see what G was doing while he was riding but we haven't had an mishaps yet. I'm just glad he is behind Josh and not me.

Grady's feet can't reach the pedals to actually help pedal but he can keep them on there enough to sit steady. It is so funny to watch them on this thing. What a great invention.

I can't believe how big G is getting!!

Heading down the hill. Hold on, Grady!!

Myles rides behind me, on Grady's old seat. He has really enjoyed the bike rides as well.

First Baseball Game of the Season

Today was the first weekend game for the Asheville Tourists. The Tourists are the minor league team for the Colorado Rockies, pretty ironic as we use to live in CO. This also marked Myles first baseball game. I wasn't sure how the boys would do as I can barely sit through a baseball game but they did great. We watched a little, then walked a little. They didn't really pay attention to the game (who can blame them) but they loved all the people and the music.

As a true sports fan, Josh attempted to follow the game. Not so easy with the boys climbing all over you.

Myles loved the Mascot, Teddy the Tourist.

Dad and G watching the game.

We had to chase down Teddy and take a picture with him.

Myles first taste of a stadium dog. He liked the ketchup more than the hot dog.

This is just a taste of Grady's habit of making friends. The kid would talk to a brick wall. Most people were pretty cool with it but not everyone. He attempted to hang out with a group of 8 to 10 year old boys. His opening line, "Hey, will you guys be my friends?" They just stared at him like he was insane.

He definitely has a little of his Great Papaw and Uncle Will in him!!