Toothless

Evie lost her first tooth yesterday, and a second one today! At this rate we will be putting her food in a blender by the end of the week.

Brian's 11th Birthday Party at Adventure Landing

Brian had his 11th birthday party at Adventure Landing in Raleigh. Since it was raining (and snowing!) the outdoor mini-golf and go-karts were canceled and a double dose of laser tag and video games was the flavor of the day.


The gang's all here.


1) Make wish. 2) Blow. 3) Count girl friends


Brian's bowling cake tasted as good as it looked.


The hunt was on in the laser tag arena.


Cece had a blast playing laser tag with the boys.

NASA Astronomy Days at the Science Museum

We went to the NASA Astronomy Days at the Raleigh Museum of Science today. The kids got to look through various telescopes at the Sun, make rockets from 2-liter bottles and launch them using compressed air and meet a real astronaut (Roger Crouch - flew on STS-83 and STS-94).

Here are some photos of the day


Cece checks out the Sun. The telescope has a filter that eliminates all but a very narrow band of light allowing the viewer to safely view the Sun. All the kids got to look through several different telescopes to see various filters (and even a satellite capturing noise from space).


Launching a rocket starts with picking out the perfect body. Nose cone color is the real key to success.


Brian gets his rocket wings ready for flight. Proper design is critical to a successful launch.


The Astro Rangers get ready for launch.


Looking skyward to track their launch. The rockets went up, with a pop from the compressed air. After soaring to a height of nearly 30 feet they came back down to terra firma.


The post-launch rush to check the structural integrity of their designs. All three survived their initial launches.


The kids meeting Astronaut Roger Crouch. He flew on STS-83 and STS-94.

Sure - I'm an adult (more or less) ... but it was pretty cool to meet an astronaut. These guys strap themselves in just feet above hundreds of thousands of pounds of fuel and launch at thousands of miles an hour into space. SPACE! Come on! These are "Real Men" © and it was pretty fun to meet one. [-Robert]

Pinewood Derby 2008

The Pack 216 2008 Pinewood Derby was Saturday, January 26. Brian and Ben both participate with cars of their own creation.

Brian's Big Red Machine sports a classic racing profile, high rise intake and pin stripping.

Ben's Blue Streak, a derby-favorite "wedge" design, features flames, lightning bolts and a hornet decal that lets everyone know that this car is fast.

Brian turns 11!

Brian choose to go to Fudrucker's on his b-day. It's a favorite place of his. When we got home he opened a few presents, and we had cupcakes.

DC New Years 2007/2008

Some of the highlights from the DC trip over New Years 2007-2008...


The kids with Lincoln.


The family taking a rest at the WWII Memorial on the Mall.


The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History


The boys with C3PO and R2D2 at the temporary Smithsonian Museum of American History (located on the 2nd floor of the Air & Space Museum)


Waiting to catch the Metro to get into DC. We would drive from Woodbridge, VA to the Franconia-Springfield Metro station park-and-ride and then ride the metro to DC.


Happy New Year 2008!!!


The main gate at Mt. Vernon (the home of George Washington)


The kids out back at Mt. Vernon. We arrived just as Mt. Vernon opened and were the first group to tour (the third people to enter) and basically had the place to ourselves for the first 2 hours. Because it was the holiday season the third floor, closed 11 months of the year, was open. Photography was not allowed inside the home or museum so we only have exterior shots.


After the tour at Mt. Vernon we sat by the fire sipping hot cider and having a ginger cookie with docents in period clothes.


Brian gets the courage to down a jalapeno at the Hard Rock Cafe in DC.