Beach Trip 2008

We took our annual beach trip to Panama City with the Stokes family and had a GREAT time! All of the siblings/parents/grandkids were there for at least half of the week . . . . We enjoyed some dinners in, some dinners out, time in the pool and on the beach, go-cart races, and even a few family wiffle ball games on the sand! How relaxing to get away and visit with family that we don't see often enough.

What a Blessing!

Our FIRST Harvest!

As we suspected, the garden was full when we returned from the beach. Our wonderful gardening neighbors, Maggie & Ricky, picked some of our squash during our absence and stored it for us; then we had the pleasure of picking the rest when we returned. What a treat it was, and so rewarding to eat the fruits of our own labor! The kids were ecstatic--although Graham was a little less excited later that evening when he tasted grilled zucchini and almost vomited (he is my slightly picky, no texture kid, lol)! Anyhow, he is holding out for the beans and watermelon! Here is a quick photo of those first fruits and veggies . . .


Of course, there has been much more coming in since then; we've canned pickles, frozen squash & zucchini, and enjoyed many salads and dishes with yummy fresh vegetables. Can't wait for the watermelon and cantaloupe!

The Three Musketeers

Well, you can tell the guys had a good time at the beach, lol . . .

This performance was done outside The Treasure Ship on the last evening we were there--I'll post more beach photos soon!

Garden Update!

I posted photos of the garden when we planted so I thought I would do a quick update. Everything is doing GREAT right now, we have lots of baby fruits and veggies and are excited to taste them soon. Here are some pictures of it now:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . Once I caught a fish alive!

This was Anna Beth's favorite song in preschool this year and it finally became a reality Saturday morning! She doesn't have quite the attention span of the boys, so time spent at the lake with her princess fishing rod is sporadic. However, the fish were biting on Saturday and she reeled in her first fish and then later two more! Here is the first one, which she brought all the way up to the deck to show me, lol--I hope he made it after they threw him back in!

Way to go, my little Princess!

How a Southern Girl Eats Some Chicken!

Okay--it is becoming more and more evident that we definitely have a little 'country chick' on our hands. Whether it is her ever-increasing drawl (one-syllable words quickly evolve into three, or even four syllables!), her love of all things outdoors (including a good kickball game or riding 'the ramps' with the boys), her new obsession for eating a bowl (or two) of grits EVERY morning, and now her most recent demonstration of how to finish off every morsel of a grilled drumstick! Prepare yourself--it gets UGLY!

Don't say I didn't warn you, lol!

Finish Strong!

Last year I ran the Dacula Memorial Day 5K with Ethan & my friend Carol from http://sheeptotheright.blogspot.com/--we loved it and planned to do it again this year. Of course, time was sneaking up on us and we kept delaying the registration as well as training. Finally, a few days before the race, we committed to do it--Me, Ethan AND Graham this year! To top is off, we only practice ONE DAY, so I was a little concerned!

Nevertheless, we talked about it, prayed about it (we needed lots of prayer!), and made the decision to finish strong in honor of all of the soldiers who have served and died for our freedom. Ethan ran with his buddy Connor (who also had not trained) and I ran with Graham (his first race!). It was tough, but we pushed through with only a few walks to catch our breath. We finished strong, two minutes quicker than last year! Of course, I'm not going to tell you what the time was since it wasn't anything to brag about, lol, but we finished! Ethan finished a little later, but again, he FINISHED! We had fun, but the aches and pains in the days afterward should be a good reminder to TRAIN next year!

Me & my boys!
Connor, Ethan, Ryan and Graham

Me with Carol--Girl, we've got A LOT of work to do

before the Peachtree Road Race next month!

The school year comes to an end . . .

Well, school is over . . . it was a great year at our new school, Mulberry Elementary! We loved the small-town feel of the school--everyone knows everyone! Not to mention, the boys had wonderful teachers. We showed them how much they meant to us by planning a Teacher Appreciation Picnic with the Warbingtons and Jenkins here at The Cleft--Can't take the credit, as it was Stacey & Andrea's idea, but it was such a wonderful idea! Nine of the ten teachers/principals we invited were able to attend, and most brought their families as well. Graham's teacher had a conflict and wasn't able to come, however his focus teacher attended so that was great. My photos didn't turn out due to a foggy spot on my lens (wonderful GA humidity!), but you can check out some of the details here on Andrea's blog:

http://teamjenkins5.blogspot.com/2008/05/check-out-my-slide-show_23.html

The boys celebrated field day during the last few days--here is a video of some of the picts. Ethan was fantastic at the 'flag tag' game; he really showed his aggressive side and was in the top three competitors! Graham was great at anything that required a little bit of speed!

All-in-all, we have been blessed this year with our children's education. Thank you, Lord, for another successful year of growing our minds!