I could take Parker to the Zoo

Or, I could simply take him to Alpharetta to have lunch with Daddy! Same thing.

Who's watching you at work? Part deux...

This is what welcomed me when I turned around to go to a meeting this morning.

Guess where my desk is.... That's right... It's right where they are staring!!!

We have to save our planet?

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

Words that we all know... sort of.



And in another version we were a little more confident about the words (though still not actually correct!)

For Earth Day last Thursday Parker's class had been planning a special craft. Apparently they discussed it on Monday and Wednesday. Parker - who does not go to school on Thursday - was feeling sad that he was going to miss the craft! He asked me if he could go to school on Thursday. Of course he can!

So, we headed in together Thursday morning for a little playground time and to participate in the craft. Parker went running into the playground yelling "Hey everybody!" and he didn't look back.

We had fun creating an Earth by coloring with blue and green markers on coffee filters, then spritzing with water to make the colors run together. And when it was time to leave, Parker had to walk around the classroom hugging each friend goodbye.

I'm used to watching how Brady attacks the world without a shred of self-doubt. Parker isn't built that way, and I've often worried that his quietness might keep from being a part of things. Yet watching him with his school friends the other day was a refreshing reminder that while Parker engages in the world in a different way, he's happy, secure and successful in it.

And as those who know Parker well can attest, he isn't quite as quiet as he often plays off to be!

Who's watching you at work?

(this blog is brought to you by Daddy)

Since it's Earth Day, I thought I would blog about how Radiant Systems is helping it's cause and leveraging Mother Earth.

In today's world of micro-cameras, motion sensitive image capture, and all other technology enhancements, I am pleased to see that Radiant has employed a new low tech approach for keeping tabs on it's employees. We call them "bird watchers".

Vulture slueths have been patrolling the building for the past couple weeks. And, for some reason, they are particularly fond of my window. (Maybe it's because I have an excellent view, or maybe it's because the are really after me!)

The Black Vultures can see through the window and will react when you pretend to jump at them - or so I am told :-). They peck on the window and stare at me with their beady little eyes. When they leave, I can only suspect they go back to the "HR Nest" to discuss my actions and work habits with the powers-that-be.

So far, they have been effective tools in the "Improve Productivity" strategy implemented this year to combat the recession.

So, here's to Earth and all it's wonderful creatures! Keep an eye out, however, you never know who's whatching...

Riding High

While we were in Florida over spring break, Grandpa (a cycling "enthusiast") mentioned that he thought the boys' bikes were too small for them.

Granted, Parker was still riding the little kid bike with the training wheels that are permanently attached, but I thought Brady (who lost his training wheels last fall) was still OK. Nope, Grandpa explained. Their legs couldn't stretch out, and they were too cramped on the seat.

Well, here's what the boys heard "blah, blah, blah... NEW BIKE!!!! blah, blah, blah."

So, yesterday afternoon Brady got a new green Avigo bike (18" rims) to replace his blue Vaporizor (16" rims) bike, and Parker eagerly accepted the training wheels back onto to the Va-poo-rizor for his "new" big boy bike. See, Dad, I do listen to you!

The Avigo came in a box. As you might guess, the instructions were incomplete, and the process of assembly was long and stressful.

Add to that a lingering break issue and training wheels that are missing a "crucial" piece, and the process wasn't quite as pretty or easy as the adults had hoped. Tomorrow after school we'll head to the bike shop to get both fixed up and working like new.



But the boys? Well, they didn't care that the back breaks don't work or that Daddy rigged the training wheels with chewed bubblegum and a bottle top!

They were excited, proud, and oh so BIG!!

They do belong in the Zoo

As Brady and Parker only had two days off of school over Easter weekend, we were not able to travel south .... or much anywhere else. That was just fine with us! We filled our two off days with family and friends!

Bill took Monday off work, and we headed to the zoo. The boys were right at home!

While observing the gorillas, Parker and Brady enjoyed "calling" them - and I believe they were honestly surprised when the gorillas did not answer their bellow.

Trying to capture how cute (and loud!) the boys' gorilla calls were, I turned on the video and asked Parker to repeat it. At which point the gorilla calls gave way to something more like an injured doplhin in heat. Oh welll!

On the Road Again

After three long, painful - and sometimes grumpy - months, Bill has finally begun to run again!

Taking a bizarre fall while out for a run on Jan. 3rd, he suffered two meniscal tears. He was laid up for about a month trying to "let it heal." When it became clear that the pain wasn't getting better, he had an MRI that revealed the injury.

Off we went to Dr. X at Emory's Sports Medicine Clinic for knee surgery. The experience was as routine (to the nurses and doctors, though a little freaky to us) as a cavity filling. We were in, out and resting back at home in a few short hours.

Within two weeks Bill headed off to Scottsdale for the Inaugural Plummer Cup, a fantastic boys golf outing that his Dad gifted to himself and the three brothers. Not only did he play golf - he won! (Look for more to come from another guest blog!)

While Bill was saddened to miss the ING Half Marathon in March, there is a silver lining ... He has discovered the fun and fitness of spin classes! ;-)

This past weekend the gorgeous weather and the pull of the road overcame him. Fittingly, he stepped outside on Easter morning for a 2-mile comeback run. A new beginning has sprung!

This morning he took off on a 4-mile. He returned wearing a well-deserved little smile, despite his report that he was "pretty slow."

Speed doesn't always win the race, my dear tortoise. Keep your sights on the long run. Cheers to you!

And now the world 'breaks'

For some silly reason many of the independent schools in Atlanta decided to host their Spring Breaks in early March. Great in terms of the crowds at Disney! Bad in terms of weather.





Oh well, we took off to Florida all the same, and true to fashion had a wonderful time. In fact, our day at Epcot was absolutely awesome! We were basically rained on for 10 hours, yet the boys kept their chins up, their feet wet and their slickers on! We saw just about everything Epcot had to offer, and when we finally dragged our soppy selves back to the car were tickled to discover the boys' wrinkled toes. Thank you again, Miss Betty, for giving us an amazing experience!

We did make it to the pool on two occasions - nothing would keep those boys from water (except lightening of course.) And we also headed back to a favorite spot - the Orlando Science Center. This children's museum offered us a perfect day indoors while the rain continued relentlessly outside. As with many museums, it's always fun to watch the boys rediscover a place, bringing in their fresh - and if only a little - more mature views on exhibits.

The current main-floor exhibit was a cool science/electricity/sound exhibit that mostly went over the boys' heads. But it did have a hurricane simulator that impressed upon you the wind force of a Cat 3 storm!

There was also a great exhibit on Toys - all the wonderful basics that every child should play with: blocks, dominoes, tinker toys, magnets, etc. Playing with wind and sails, the boys raced in the Mershon Regatta. Yes, Brady, you are ready for July 4th on Pelican Lake!!

A major highlight of the trip was a stop at LegoWorld in Downtwon Disney! The boys are both addicted to Legos - they are literally invading my house by the thousands! The boys looked forward to the Lego trip all week and were thrilled to run around the store (for more than an hour, mind you) trying to choose the perfect items! Did I mention it was the first time Parker had seen Ben 10 Legos? Yep, we brought home Swampfire and Big Chill!

Now, while they didn't really understand that the items they picked could probably be purchased at Target for the same amount, the experience of it all was priceless! As I sent in my Lego Club registration form, I began anticipating their excitement at receiving the monthly sales catalog (uh, I mean magazine.)

I'm sure to date I have swept up a half dozen tiny plastic pieces into the depths of my vacuum cleaner... I can only imagine the multitude that will go the way of the dog hair within the coming years.

And while we were still a month away from Easter at that point, Grandma couldn't let the boys leave without an Easter Egg hunt - definitely the earliest one in the history books!

We're very sad not to be in Florida right now, spending time with our cousins Jack and Annie (and enjoying MUCH better weather!) but we had a blast and look forward to heading south again as soon as school lets out for the summer!