Chattanooga Zoo

This week we visited the Chattanooga Zoo. We had a great time! It had been awhile since we last visited and boy, have they made some improvements! The zoo is really looking good. This is a picture of the boys at the entrance to the Red Panda exhibit. There are several different types of snakes to view.

These guys are so funny to watch. The way they interact with each other and with visitors is amusing!

I know this one was wanting some food. We didn't see the food dispenser until we were leaving this area. Sorry!

We enjoyed our visit and hope to see the Knoxville Zoo next. Have a super Friday!

Kim

Week in Review and Upcoming Activities

We are back from college orientation and boy, was it exhausting! There was alot of great information to take in and Clint was able to get registered for classes. He was also able to get alot of items taken care of that needed attention. I think it was just very physically and mentally tiring! We did have a great time and enjoyed being there. Clint actually had to stay on campus, which was a nice intro to dorm living! I wanted to share pictures today of our trip to the Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament in Atlanta. We went there a couple of weekends back. We went with my brother-in-law, nephew, and some boys from their neighborhood. It was such an enjoyable night. The food was awesome! The entertainment was just as wonderful!

We had been wanting to go to this place for quite some time. It was well worth it! The tickets were actually purchased at the end of last year during a special that Medieval Times ran. They ran a half price ticket special where you had six months to use the tickets. So, all in all, it was a special evening at a discounted price!! Gotta love that!!

Have a wonderful Monday!

Kim

Week in Review and Upcoming Activities

This summer has been filled with wonderful activities! I feel like we have been able to take the time to visit with family and friends. I am just loving it! There is still so much I would like for us to accomplish before we begin the school routine again. Speaking of school routine, I am in the process now of finalizing our curriculum for the 2009-2010 school year. I always think that is a fun thing to do, search out new items, review what worked last year, take out what didn't. Hopefully by the end of next week I will have our schedule pretty much finalized. I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th! We celebrated with our church family at the home of one of our members. Every 4th they open their home to the church for good food, great fellowship, and exciting fireworks! This year was no let down, it was a super time as usual. Thank you to the McGhees!! I thought I would share a few pictures of the festivities! As you can see, everyone just relaxes and has a great time!

There is always volleyball games going on. The young ones play, then the teens, then the big challenge, the eighteen and over game. Mike and I have the best time playing in this game. We played four games this year before everyone needed a rest!

This week we will be heading to my oldest son's college orientation for a few days. This is an exciting, but also emotional time (for mom!). I will be glad to see his dorm room and get his schedule. This is all new territory for us, so prayers would be much appreciated! I wish everyone a wonderful week. I will post pictures of the orientation when we return.

Enjoy your week!

Kim

Week in Review and Upcoming Activities

Last week, my middle son went to Bible Camp at Fall Creek Falls State Park. This park in located near Crossville, Tennessee. It is an absolutely beautiful park! Today I want to share a few pictures of the youth camp, then tomorrow I will share some park pictures. This is the building where worship services are held and where morning assembly takes place. They have a service each night of camp. The speakers are some of the counselors. They have a theme for each year. This year the theme was the book of James. Here is a picture of some of the campers and counselors just "hanging out". My son goes senior week ( ages 13-18). I get tickled when he tells me that some of the campers just sit and talk all the time. He said, " Why would you come to camp just to sit and talk?" They have crafts, field games, swimming, volleyball, ping-pong and lots of other activities as well. They also do daily hikes out in the park area.

The volleyball area. Lots of good times happen here!!

One other activity that I forgot to mention was fishing. Here is my husband getting my son's fishing gear in order.

This was his "home away from home" last week. This camp is a very rustic camp. The cabins are very minimal, but my son just loves it! He has been going since he was ten. When he turns eighteen, he wants to be a counselor. I love the spiritual growth that I see in him after he returns from camp. It's funny, I went to this same camp when I was young and I just loved it! You are away from so much there. The campers are not allowed to bring cell phones, ipods, video games, etc... It is almost like a sigh of relief for these campers. They can relax, study God's word in his beautiful creation, and get to meet up with friends. Oh, an added bonus is that the food is awesome! They get three wonderful meals in addition to snacks. These ladies that cook for them are just wonderful. While you eat, most of the time you can watch the deer behind the dining hall. What a relaxing way to dine!

I hope you enjoyed this view of camp at Fall Creek Falls. Tomorrow I will post some pictures of the park. Have a super Monday!

Kim

Week in Review and Upcoming Activities

Last week, our first official week of summer break, was a big week. We got quite alot accomplished, which was nice. I really think writing down our summer goals was a good thing to do. It focuses us a little more on what we want to accomplish this summer. Today, I just want to highlight a little of what our week entailed and what we hope to accomplish this week. We listed our eight kittens on our homeschool website. Our little stray had five kittens, but we also found three kittens on our property that belong to another cat. We have already found homes for three of the kittens. A sweet friend, who has three children, took three of the kittens. They will have such a good home with this family.

Last week, we also observed the flags that are put up for Memorial Day. They have crosses with names on them of service men and women. It was such a beautiful sight and a reminder to thank all those who give so much for our country.

Our homeschool support group had their annual book sale last week. We had a table in it. This is a picture of the crowd. Several people came out for the sale. We were happy with our sales. We are trying to put back some money for the supplies we will need for the upcoming school year and also for vacation. The boys set up our table and manned it the whole time. I was very proud of how they conducted business. They took the table down when it was over and loaded everything up. I basically got to visit with friends. What a nice day!

Last week we also got alot of organizing and cleaning done. I started on paperwork that needed attending to. We finished getting my oldest son's shot record and TB screening for college. I am glad to have that taken care of.

It was a great week and I feel good about what we got done. I hope to get alot more done this week. I start jury duty today, so we will see how that impacts our progress. It should be interesting!

This week:

Monday-Jury duty, laundry, clean things out for yard sale on Friday.

Tuesday-Jury duty(?), garden work, tennis with the boys in the evening

Wednesday-Jury duty (?), Zoo & Picnic, Church

Thursday-Jury duty (?), get everything prepared for yard sale

Friday-Jury duty(?),yard sale, movie & pizza night

Saturday-Middle son's SAT II test in Biology, Family Reunion

Have a wonderful Monday!

Kim

Weekly Menu, Upcoming activities

We are officially in "summer mode" and lovin it! The menu for this week is:
Monday
Memorial Day Grilling
Grilled Chicken
Corn-on-the-cob
Green Beans
Garlic Bread
Salad
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Tea/Kool-Aid

Tuesday

Crock-Pot BBQ Sandwiches

Baked Beans

Chips

Brownies

Tea/Water

Wednesday

Spaghetti

French Bread

Salad

Mixed Fruit

Tea/Water

Thursday

Mexican Casserole

Chips/Mexican Dip

Watermelon

Salad

Tea/Water

Friday

Homemade Pizza

Bread Sticks

Salad

Ice Cream

Tea/Lemonade

Saturday

Vegetable Lasagna

Garlic Cheddar Rolls

Salad

Mountain Dew Cake

Tea/Lemonade

I would also like to share our plans for this week:

Monday-Memorial Day Celebration

Tuesday-Clean pool, install new back door, sell items at homeschool used book fair

Wednesday-Tennessee Aquarium, Clint's piano group lessons, church

Thursday-Work on shade garden area, vegetable gardens, swim, Clint's year-end piano recital

Friday-Clean out area by the shed, swim, boy's having friends over

Saturday-Boy's friends over, swim, work on boy's school supplies for 2009-2010 school year

Today, I would also like to thank all those serving to protect our freedoms now and in times past. I would also like to remember all those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

Have a blessed Memorial Day!

Kim