Gem Mining!!

A superbly gorgeous day here in the mountains of North Carolina ... so we decided to have an adventure with the boys ...

Grandfather Trout Farm & Gem Mining

The trout pond with the HUGE fish in it!

Austin is selling us on something!

Getting all set up in the mining tent ... buckets of dirt and screens ...

Nana's friend, Mr. David, getting us all set up

Sorting it all out ... one for you, one for him, one for the other, one for Paul Paul ... etc., etc.

The look of absolute adventure & delight

Always in motion ... Austin found the most of all! He was amazingly FAST at it too!

Magical Cade. He came up with emeralds even when no one else could even see them!

D I S C O V E R Y ...

Totally engaged ... and a spectator who's dad explained to him "there's no crying on vacation"! What a GREAT line! ;-)

"Is this one, Paul Paul?"

The emerald King

Emeralds, rubies, sapphires and I can't remember what else ...

T R E A S U R E !! (it's hard to tell, but he's holding his treasure bag next to his belly)

The winner of the most treasure found is .... A U S T I N !!!!

The winner of the one who is photographed the most with his eyes closed

(on purpose) is ... C A D E !!!

Waiting for Mr. David to identify the gems ... beautiful beautiful day!

Waiting is the HARDEST thing to do at this age ... they did a GREAT job

The cutest grandpa in the whole world ... PAUL

and it ends as it began ... only braver by now!

It was a GORGEOUS day and the boys we so well behaved!! We had an absolutely DELIGHTFUL experience here. They kept thinking they were rich and could buy stuff with their gems. (!) We tried to explain polishing and cutting and facets and all that ... but they didn't really care about it. SO CUTE! We went for BBQ afterward and they all ate like champions. Turns out gem mining makes you have quite the appetite! And banana pudding tops things off JUST RIGHT according to the boys. A great time had by all!!

Until next adventure,

Paul Paul & Nana

Camp Out on Ms. Beth's Mountain!

This is "Miss Kitty". She showed up on Beth's doorstep with a belly full of kittens. All she wants to do is eat and sleep ... right in front of the food dish! She's very sweet. We're waiting on the delivery.

This is Beth's Bungalow. If you look right inside the door, you can see her angel I mosaiced for her. Her front door is a gorgeous blue, but the glare was too much to photograph it. This is the bungalow we "house sit" for when Beth is out of town. It's a very calm and healing place.

These are the 3 amigos. This was upon departure from the top of Beth's mountain where we'd camped over night last Saturday night. The photos on this post are in reverse order because I'm too tired to think and I loaded them backwards. But hey, everyone is fed, bathed and in bed having sweet dreams! That counts for something! :-)

Beth and Cade pulling out tent pegs with heavy equipment!

Christian watching the camp break down and conducting his very own symphony, no doubt!

Austin helping Paul with tent folding. He's one heck of a helper!

Austin going into Ms. Beth's mansion tent to help break down ...

No doubt there is a lesson on life going on here ...

The view is exquisite! Paul is doing some weed whacking here ...

The pied piper. He spent a lot of time cutting, sanding and blowing into the bamboo seeing which had what pitch. Then he bound them together and made an instrument which he ended up gifting to Beth. She was absolutely thrilled.

Sleeping boys ... Austin on the left, Christian on the right.

Cade slept in the mansion with Ms. Beth ... no one had to be lonely! This is one sleepy headed boy!

Austin learning how to fan the camp fire so we can have s'mores!

Paul at dinner! Foil, with new potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, onion, bell pepper and hamburger with cheese in the middle ... "hoboes" .... YUM!!!! Perfect camp food.

Cade and Ms. Beth at dinner!

Austin & Christian at dinner!

Camp Beth . . . the kitchen, dining area

Ms. Beth's two room mansion. The boys were ultra impressed with this tent! As well they should be, it was quite a hit! Could've fit the whole gang in there!

Paul (having his first beer of the season) and Christian trying to make his bamboo a musical reed. Also, Christian and Austin's tent in the background ... however it ended up next to our tent on the other side of the camp. ;-)

Paul & my tent with the privy in the background. (objects are not as close to each other as they appear! thankfully)

Ms. Beth and Cade tending to the cook fire for dinner.

Introducing Beth ... our hostess and mountain camp owner! We are so very grateful to her for having us up to the mountain and letting the boys gain the experience of primitive camping in a very safe and comfortable environment.

The gorgeous view from the campsite.

Setting up camp ... SO much fun to watch the excitement in the boys eyes and hear it in their speech. What a TREAT!

Upon arrival ... setting up camp! All the anticipation has finally come to pass!

We all had such a wonderful time. We didn't actually get to the mountain top until about 4:30. It was perfect timing. By the time we had things set up it was time to start the cook fire. By the time we ate it must've been 8ish. Then we started the camp fire in the big pit for the smores and dancing around the fire things ... GREAT fun. We sang and played until we couldn't hold up, then we all crashed, slept hard and woke early. We had coffee and tea, hot chocolate and breakfast, broke down camp, packed up, cleaned up the site and left. I think we were back to the house by 12 noon. It was a PERFECT experience for 3 little guys who don't usually go camping. Left them wanting more! Maybe another night before they leave. We'll see!?!

Next post should be about gem mining...well, more like panning for gems. We're behind on the posts a little, but you'll get the picture!

Happy Trails!

Paul & Cheri

The Breakfast Club

Sausage biscuits, yogurt, cantaloupe & chocolate milk (on the back porch - such an easy clean up!)
Christian Giovanni Hall - 6 years old on August 6th, 2009

Jonathan Cade Adams, 7 years old as of February 9th, 2009

Austin Michael Adams, 9 years old as of June 18, 2009

We are on way to Beth's mountain. We are going to have a major cook out, camp fire, camp out! So ... if you don't hear from us, no worries ... we're slaying dragons (or something)!

Cheers! Paul & Cheri (Nana & Paul Paul)

Boys are Back in Town!

Sorry about the light quality ... I really MUST read the manual for this camera. ANYWAY, soccer bopper on the front lawn. SO funny ... we all giggle in a gaggle! (If you enlarge these, the expressions on the faces are lots of fun. just double click on the pic)
A bundle of boppers! Believe it or not, Paul is behind this power package! Can you tell we'd been playing outside all day in the CRATERS in the yard! Boys and dirt ... perfect for the most part! Guess I'll get some of the OXY detergent I see advertised!

These guys had NO trouble hangin with the goats! Fearless, is the best word I can come up with for Cade. (if you enlarge this pic you can see Austin in the background inside the lean to trying to grab a baby goat! One finally came running out, bleating his little head off! :-)

Austin was a bit more tentative but totally interested.

Christian was NOT interested in the least, but tolerant of our enthusiasm and was sporting a VERY cool lightning bolt in his hair and a great outfit!

Cade got a lesson in holding baby goats the proper way ... as Austin just listened and took in the info ... not really wanting to put it into use right now. Something to do with having to support their little boodies ... not his cup of tea as you can tell by the expressions on their faces. teehee!

But Austin didn't mind petting the babies ... and Cade (ever the adventure seeker) didn't mind petting Paul! They are quite entertaining, I must admit!

Down by the stream ... using walking sticks and Indiana Jones intuition (I hope)

SOOOO fun to watch them work out how to maneuver the rocks and such. Christian was the one who was a tad tentative here. He doesn't like wet shoes much ...

A perfect "Tom Sawyer" moment ...

*we had grilled hamburgers, baked beans and cantaloupe for dinner

*we all had baths and/or showers before we went to bed

*we all slept very well in the 57 degree night

*I'm currently at work

*Paul & the boys came by and are out doing a small plumbing job for Caroline

Keep your fingers crossed that their afternoon adventure is fun for all!

* we are hoping for Otis to come by with his BIG earth moving equipment and put dirt into the craters ... then the boys will really have something to do!

Will catch up later in the weekend

I have next week off of work so I can properly organize Summer Camp at Nana and Paul Paul's house! Stay tuned ...

Happy weekend to all!

Paul & Cheri

Goat Watch - Summer 2009

They're almost tall enough to see over the grass ... but they hop every where they go! Bunny goats! HA! So funny to watch :-)
They are absolutely precious little things! Great entertainment.

As you can see, they're still itty bitty ... but they have grown! This one is the runt (petite princess, rather).

This one is a boy ... and he's very precocious. He leads the other 2 around with great confidence! They do a lot of running (hopping) and climbing up on the cables. Guess that's what goats do! DUH! They also chase mom for milk ... poor mom ... she spends a lot of time "shaking them off" ...

This is the middle one (I think) ... cute, cute, cute! Mr. Boone, who is the owner, is so proud of them. It's very sweet to see a big ole' gruff farmer so touched by a baby animal.

Cool blue eyed little things.

On Glover news front:

The boys arrive tomorrow!! Summer Camp at Nana & Paul Paul's officially begins when their little feet touch ground at our house. Hope we're ready!

Roots have been cut out of the craters (thanks to a couple of local guys from Central Mexico and Paul). It is amazing how much 3 grown men can do in just 2 hours. VERY impressive.

Otis was slated to fill the dirt back into the craters today ... hope that is happening!

Fill dirt will be ordered as soon as that's accomplished. Moving right along!

Paul's garage (treasure trove) has been organized and is looking AB FAB!

Most of the grass is mowed.

Back porch is clean and ready for summer camp activities and accommodations.

Our friend Sean, the one who had the brain surgery is home and doing GREAT. Amazing, brain surgery Friday, home Monday ... up and about Wed. WOW! less than a week. AMAZING!!

Paul is supposed to be finishing the loom today/tonight so we can put it in its place in the living room and begin our weaving lives. (I am a weaver)

Happy Mid week! Life is good!

Blessings to all,

Paul & Cheri

Austin Adams turned 9 years old!

Our first born grandchild, Austin, turned 9 years old on June 18th. As everyone always says, I can't believe how fast time has flown!

Austin is our "thinker". He is always assessing things and trying to come up with the best angel or strategy. He loves information, and is anxious to report each piece he knows! For example, his dad and Melissa took him gem mining for his birthday! COOL! He told me EACH detail down to the price of a bucket of gems (small and large bucket) and which gems he found in his bucket and which he kept, etc.

Also, in direct contrast to academia, Austin is an athlete. He runs fast(est) and works HARD. His body is one lean muscle mass and his mind is set on "go". It is very hard for Austin to be still ... sleeping is the only time. He is much more concerned with "doing" and what order things will be in than resting! He is ultra coordinated and quick to learn the moves and rules. He is often frustrated with the lack of that same quality in his team mates!

AND, Austin has some very incredible dance moves which he was demonstrating at Jon's wedding and which we have pictures of for evidence. His rhythm was excellent and his showmanship qualities were right up there! (Probably in his genes some where with all the artists on his dad's side of the family tree.)

Austin is also a very good older sibling. He takes excellent care of Cade, who is 20 months younger than he is. He is very cautious with him and very content to be the news reporter who reports Cade's every move. Also the sweetest older brother a guy could ask for. He makes sure Cade is protected, safe, warm, and taken care of. A perfect mix of love and sibling-ness!

We are very proud of our 9 year old grandson, Austin. It is our distinct pleasure to be his grandparents and we welcome his precious little soul in to our lives. God bless you Austin and a very Happy 9th Year to you!!!

Happy Birthday Austin Adams!

Nana & Paul Paul

Happy Father's Day!

We really just want to wish all you Fathers out there a very Happy Father's Day!

Perhaps a reminder here of how truly important fathers really are . . . how much of who we are is credited to these guys? In my case it's gobs and bunches. I'm lucky. Here I am over half century old and I still am a daddy's girl. Yep, even though my father has passed on, I still absolutely adore and respect him. Paul also with his father, who is thankfully still here amongst the living and doing pretty darn good!! Happy Father's Day, Mel!! And to Paul himself a dad, Happy Father's Day honey.

I watch with great interest as my son has become a father, and a very good one at that. And also as my son-in-law has become a father, also a very good one. One of the very sweetest things is to watch these men hug these little children they've created. You can honestly feel the love they have for these little boys. And for that I am ever so grateful in knowing that our grandchildren will grow up adoring and respecting their fathers too. So as I gush with pride I will also throw out a Happy Father's Day wish to Jon & Victor, who are doing fabulous jobs with their roles in fatherhood.

And to all the rest of the dads out there ... all the best for a wonderful day filled with relaxing father's day activities. Whatever might make you happy dads for a day!

Happy Father's Day,

Paul & Cheri