Erin in Georgia

I wanted to show Erin around downtown Columbus. We went for a little drive and then walked down the Riverwalk:

Several kayakers (is that a word?) were out that day. Erick and David wandered down by the water to get a closer look at the action:

This is a sculpture by George Goddard to commemorate an "act of kindness" that occurred here in Columbus in 1883. A woman got her skirt caught in some machinery, and out of the torn lining fell her life savings. The lining of her skirt was the safest place to keep her money. As a result, her company decided to work with employees to help them protect and save their money. Columbus Band and Trust is a result of that effort:

Erin and I also visited the National Infantry Museum. I had never been. It was very cool. There were displays from every war in which the US participated. I recommend visiting if you get the chance. It's totally worth the $5 recommended donation:

On Erin's last day, before heading to the airport, we went out of our way to see a real plantation house in Alabama. It was a fun little drive with the kids since they had the day off:

I had such an amazing time with my sister. I look up to her in so many ways. She is such a great friend and confidant. I have missed her so much! Someday, I hope we will live closer together, but until then, I will settle for many more visits like this one. 

Andersonville with Erin

One day while Erin was here and the older kids were in school, we decided to head down to Andersonville National Historic Site. On the way, we passed a few cotton fields. Having never seen a cotton field up close, I had to stop and grab a photo or two:

Andersonville was the location Camp Sumter, a Civil War prison. It was a terrible place where 13,000 Civil War Soldiers died in only 14 short months, most from starvation or disease. 

Look, Erick had the day off!

This is a reconstruction of a portion of the prison wall. It also shows the types of shelters that prisoners would make for themselves - if they were lucky enough to find/have the provisions to do so:

Many monuments now stand nearby to honor those who died here:

This is Providence Spring. A natural spring burst through the side of the hill just inside the prison wall. It saved many prisoners from dying of thirst:

Andersonville is also the home of a National Cemetery. You know how I love cemeteries. Especially military cemeteries. This is the resting place many Soldiers from the Civil War and other wars since:

There is a mystery in the cemetery regarding this bird. No one knows who attached it to this headstone nor why. But it is now a popular attraction for anyone visiting the cemetery:

Erin came to visit!!

Erin came all the way to Georgia to visit me! It was so good to spend time with her. My favorite time with her was playing Redneck Life and just talking and being together.

She flew into Atlanta late at night, so we stayed at a hotel close by and spent some time in town before driving home the next day. 

We went to the Coca Cola Factory in Atlanta. My favorite part of our tour was trying soda flavors from all over the world. I was surprised by the difference in flavors from one continent to another. Some were so gross, I don't know how they could be popular.

My girls build robots

My girls Joey and Bailey were invited to participate in a robotics team at their elementary school this year. They helped design, build, and program a Lego robot. They programmed their robot to go through a mini obstacle course. The obstacles resembled common challenges that occur during natural disasters. The robot had to clear debris from a runway, removed downed power lines, etc. It was all done on a small model. 

In November, the robotics team (The Dexter Eagles) competed at Columbus State University against other teams from around Georgia and Alabama. 

Here is a photo of my girls with their robot: 

Here are the tables where the robots did their thing:

Everyone made posters to show spirit and cheer on the Eagles:

It turns out (Erick and I didn't know this until competition day) that Joey was the team captain. She was always at the competition table, and she punched the programs into the robot before each obstacle.

Bailey's big debut came later in the day when the team competed in a research competition. The team had researched volcanic eruptions, and came up with a way to protect buildings from collapse under the weight of large amounts of ash. Their team decided to share the information is a skit format. Bailey was a news reporter:

There were a lot of schools in attendance, many of them consisted of older kids from middle school. The Eagles gave it a valiant effort. In the end, they came in 27th place (I believe).

In other news, the Eagles received a "call-back" for the research portion of the competition. They presented their research a second time to a second group of judges:

In the end, Joey and Bailey's team won the Research Award! It was a huge accomplishment for them, especially considering the number of schools that competed. Way to go Eagles!

My girls were so excited!

UPDATE January 2014:
Because of their accomplishment, the Dexter Eagles were called back for the next level of competition in January. The format changed somewhat, so the tables were in the Auditorium onstage. There was a camera showing the models and the obstacles. See Joey on the big screen?

I didn't bring my good camera this time... too bad. Joey and Bailey did so great! Their robot improved immensely. They competed against an equally large yet tougher group and moved from 27th place up to 15th place. Great job Eagles!

Unfortunately, they did not receive the Research Award a second time.

I am so proud of my robot-builders. Joey and Bailey learned so much and had such a neat experience. I'm so glad their elementary school offers such opportunities through their gifted-education program.

Halloween 2013

To decorate for Halloween this year, we painted pumpkins. TJ made a Frankenstein, Bailey a mummy, Joey a spider's web, and David... well, see for yourself. Ha ha

We put the pumpkins on the front porch, where the local squirrels attacked and destroyed them slowly one by one...

On Halloween day, we went trick-or-treating around our neighborhood with our friends Bobbi, Eric, and Jack. Joey was an 80's rocker, Bailey was a gnome, TJ was a ninja, David was a lion, and our friend Jack was a penguin.