he's qualified

Today it became official. Paul played in a qualifying tournament today at Brier Creek, and his score secured him a place in the 48th North Carolina Amateur Championship which will be held at Raleigh Country Club June 12-15. He is, of course, thrilled to have "made the cut" and is excited about playing in this tournament.

Yes, he's been playing quite a bit of golf this year. Anderson and I know this is a great passion of his, and God has certainly gifted him to play this game. As long as he puts in good quality time with the boys and gives me shopping days and mani-pedi days, we are more than happy to support his pursuits in golf. He won't find more devoted cheerleaders anywhere else!

castle bay golf tournament champ

On May 4th, Paul played in the Carolinas Golf Association one-day tournament at Castle Bay Country Club in Hampstead. I am pleased to announce that he won the tournament! I think he shot a 71. He plays in a two-day tournament this weekend at Keith Hills, so he is hoping to win that one as well.

Here's a picture of our champion that was posted on the CGA website.

Prince Caspian

Tonight, Bennett saw his first movie in an actual movie theater! Paul, Anderson, Bennett and I saw the movie, Prince Caspian, together tonight, and we all loved it. Bennett sat through most of the movie, but Paul was kind enough to take him out for a diaper change and to play "dames" (aka games) in the arcade when he got wiggly. This was a sacrifice for Paul as he knows how much Anderson and I LOVE The Chronicles of Narnia. Anderson made sure he read Prince Caspian himself before we saw the movie, and since it has been awhile since I read it, I had to keep asking Anderson questions during the movie. Thankfully, he was fairly patient with me.

Anyway, we highly recommend this movie and the book! If you aren't familiar with The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, read them!

I'm still in love with Aslan. His character is based on Christ, and his love and power in the stories make me cry every time.

my (guitar) heroes

Most everyone under the age of 35 knows about the video game "Guitar Hero" for the Nintendo Wii. Our entire family loves playing this game. In case you don't know how to play, you have a guitar that is synchronized with a video where you "rock out" to various songs, playing the notes as they are given to you on screen. The more accurate you are, the higher your score.

Bennett has now learned how to join in the fun. He gets Anderson's old toy guitar while Anderson plays the game and pretends as though he is playing right along. Actually, I am pretty sure he thinks he IS playing along. Anyway, here is a photo (although a little blurry) of them playing together.

lotsa boys...

Today the testosterone-to-estrogen balance in my world was even more lopsided than usual. My two nephews, Jackson and Andrew, came to play at our house.

We went to Jackson's tee ball game late this morning and had lunch with the entire family (minus Paul who was golfing and Christopher who was working in the yard). All of the grandsons then went to Anna's house to play but ended up with me after Bennett woke up from his nap. We finished off the day with hot dogs and strawberry shortcake at Laura's house where the boys continued to play. We all should sleep well tonight with all of the outdoor playing that went on today.

I took some pictures of the boys while they played today. Andrew still doesn't like to smile for my camera, but he really is a happy kid! Evidently, "Nanny" has figured out how to get him to do it, but I haven't.

gone fishin'

I just had to officially document a momentous occasion in our family which occurred yesterday evening. Both Paul and Anderson caught their first large-mouth bass in our pond (Anderson caught one, Paul caught two). Believe it or not, I was the first to catch one in the family while fishing just before Bennett was born. None of us have caught the "big one" yet, but we'll keep casting our lines every chance we get.

I'm sorry to say that no photo could be taken of the fish since I was in the kitchen cooking dinner at the time, but I'm sure once the boys catch a sizeable bass, they will keep the fish out of the water long enough for a snapshot.

proud parents

Today, four bluebird babies hatched from their eggs!!! They are so ugly yet so adorable! They are tiny gray "things" with very little hair whose beaks appear to be the biggest part of their bodies! I told the boys that we could only check on them once a day so that we don't disturb Mama Bluebird too often, but I have been sneaking out the door several times this evening to make sure all is well in the nest. There is still one egg that hasn't hatched.

Both Mama and Papa are tending their babies. I know this because Mama flies out of the nest each time we open the front door. Even though she seems to trust me, when I brought the camera out tonight to try getting a picture of her babies, she summoned Papa, and he perched on the tree by the porch, then starting flying about and chirping loudly like I have never heard before. I assured them I just wanted a photo, took the picture, then left them alone for the night.

Here are pictures of our new neighbors, the Bluebird family. Some are blurry, but at least you can see "our babies"! They were all taken in the evening when the lighting is not at all favorable for clear pictures with our camera. One picture is of the eggs, one is of Mama, and the other is a picture of the newborns.