How to handle the Big One (aka the East Coast Earthquake)

On Tuesday afternoon around 2 PM, there was a 5.9 earthquake centered in Mineral, VA.  It was felt anywhere from Montreal to Atlanta.  Here is how the DeVault household fared:

Craig:  He was at work and saw his monitoring moving back an forth a few inches.  Plus, all of his bobble heads in his office were shaking.  He originally thought something happened with the maintenance workers who were on scaffolding on the outside of the building.

Heather:  She was at home with Mark.  She was in the bonus room and all of the hung pictures started shaking and making a loud racket.

Mark:  He was at home with a respiratory cold.  He was about 30 minutes into his afternoon nap.  All of the picture rattling really woke him up.  That was the end of his nap.

Jack:  He was at daycare.  He was in his nap.  He slept through the earthquake and didn't wake up till 4.  In fact, he slept better with the earthquake than expected.

Who handled it the best?  I say Jack.

Power Tools and the boys

Saturday afternoon, after the boys nap, we anticipated it was going to be rather quiet.  We thought incorrectly.  Our neighbors hired Bam Bam Landscaping Services to work on their yard.  A one person outfit, named Bam Bam, was cleaning up the natural area between our houses.  He was using a weed eater as well as a hedge trimmer and a pole saw attachment.  He did a fabulous job.  The boys went outside onto the screened in porch and were just mesmerized.  They sat there just watching him work.  I think the infatuation is more than just lawn mowers now. 

We can't take our eyes off of the man running the power tools.

He really is cleaning it out Jack.  - Mark

You know it.  - Jack

You want me to put my arm around Mark, Mommy?  - Jack

Mommy, I got my arm around Jack now.  Should I open my eyes?  - Mark

A day with the Crawfords

On Friday, Heather's best friend, Jenn Crawford, was in Raleigh with her husband, Ben, and their two kids, Lydia and Jay.  After Craig, Jack, and Mark got home from SAS, we met up with them at Red Robin for dinner together.  The Crawfords, who moved from Winston-Salem to Charlotte a little over a year ago, were in town visiting some friends during the day and then were going to spend the night with us. 

After dinner. we came back to our house and the kids played together for a while before bed time. 

This morning, Heather and Ben made a great breakfast of pancakes, turkey bacon, and eggs.  After breakfast we all went to Marbles.  In grown-up talk, Marbles Kids Museum is a hands-on, minds-on museum that inspires imagination, discovery and learning through extraordinary adventures in play.  Everyone had a great time.  Jack and Mark played hard.  They really enjoyed everything they saw and did. 

Check out my vegetables I grew in my garden.  - Mark

Jack investigates the stretcher in the ambulance.  "Mommy, I don't think I ever want to be on one of these." 

This train table is really cool.  Man, we need one for the house.  - Mark

OK, so I can play with the water.  Excellent.  - Jack

I am way ahead of you.  - Mark

Landon Donovan, watch out.  Here comes Jack and Mark.

I have to make a save just like Cam Ward.  - Jack

Do you want me to go port or starboard?  - Mark

Jay and Lydia after lunch.  Sibling love at its best.

Heather and Jenn with the kids.

The happy family after a great morning at Marbles.

It was really good to see them.  It is hard to believe that it has been a year since we last saw them.  Don't be a stranger, Crawfords.  

Future CPAs?

Last Monday, Mommy took Jack and Mark to Progress Energy to visit her coworkers in the Accounting Department. Everyone loved seeing the boys and how much they have grown. Mommy really had a good time "showing off" her boys! We were there for a hour and a half, before we had to leave in order to get to daycare in time for music class!  Enjoy some pictures from our visit:

The Progress Energy SEC Reporting Group (Ben, Kevin and Naudain) with Jack and Mark. Obviously, Mommy's not in the picture as she was taking the picture. Kevin is substituting for Rebecca, since Rebecca was on vacation and Kevin was previously in her position.

"I think if we work together we might could draft Management's Discussion and Analysis - Results of Operations as good as Mommy does." - Mark

"Mommy, look what we did and let us know if you think any edits need to be made. Not bad for a first draft!" - Jack

Jack taking a phone call for Mommy at work.

It takes talent to be able to use a calculator upside down.

A Wild and Wooly Saturday - Fire Trucks and Footballs

We got early yesterday with a full day's agenda in front of us.  We started with the annual NCSFA South Atlantic Fire Rescue Parade at 9 AM.  We went downtown and saw about 25 fire trucks and ambulances, from 1940 and 50s models to the most up to date models.  We had a lot of fun.  When the fire trucks turned their sirens on, it scared Mark a little bit.  He wanted to be next to his Mommy, which we can all understand.

Daddy and his boys waiting for some fire trucks.

Jack and Daddy watch the fire trucks come by.  It is awesome.

The fire trucks seem to never stop.  Lots and lots of fire trucks.



The sirens on the fire trucks scared Mark a little.  Here is how he wanted to watch the parade.

After the parade was over, we went over the Raleigh Convention Center and took a closer look of the fire trucks.  The boys were even able to get on some of them.

This is a fire truck front seat.  Where is the door?  - Mark

I don't know, but I am a honorary youth officer and I will get to the bottom of it.  - Jack (notice the Youth Officer badge sticker Jack is holding)

I will drive us to Krispy Kreme, Mark.  - Jack

Daddy, look at the big fire truck over there.  - Jack



Since we were already downtown, we took the boys somewhere they have never been (and Mommy and I haven't been in at least a decade).  We took them to Krispy Kreme...and the HOT sign was on.  Yummy.  Nothing better than a hot, sugary Krispy Kreme doughnut.

After we went home for lunch and a nap, we went to Carter-Finley Stadium for Meet the Pack Day.  At Meet the Pack day, we can get autographs and pictures with players, coaches, and cheerleaders.  The boys really enjoyed going to where they can see ball being played.  They didn't quite understand why no one was playing though.  However, one of the safeties is an invited walk-on freshman, Josh Stanley, who goes to our church.  I taught him when he was in 8th grade on Wednesday nights.  Man, I am getting old.  We got our picture made with him.  Before we left, the boys said they needed to have their picture made with some cheerleaders. 

The boys with the next Wolfpack superstar - Josh Stanley #24 Freshman Strong Safety

Earl Wolff, #27 Senior Strong Safety smiles at the boys.  Has there ever been a better name for a Wolfpacker?  I think not.

Mark and Jack with the cheerleaders.  Mark is upset with Mommy, as he told us later he was getting a phone number.  And Jack didn't want to look at the camera as he was smiling at the cheerleader.  (Smart boys we have).

All in all, it was a great day!





Machu Picchu

Sorry I haven't gotten to these yet, but while in Peru we went up to Machu Picchu.  This place was lost around 1620 and was only discovered 100 years ago.  It was one of the most beautiful and awesome places in the world.  It truly is one of the 7 wonders of the world. Here are some pictures from the trip:

Peru Rail took us to Machu Picchu.  The train ride has been chosen as the second most scenic train ride in the world.

The first look I had at Machu Picchu.  Really cool!

Me and Machu Picchu. 

Look at the terraces.  How they Incas came up with that I have no idea.

80% of the stones have not been touched up at all. 

Look at the drop off.  No hand rails anymore.

Who is the strongest guy here?  I think it is the guy in the middle.

This was a steep climb down.  Luckily, no one had any problems going down.

Me and a llama.  Now that is cool. 

8-8

8-8, August 8th seems to have become a special date for our family. On 8-8-08, we had our 2nd IVF procedure done. It was also the opening ceremony of the summer olympics that year. I remember it very well, because as I laid around recovering from the IVF procedure, I enjoyed watching the olympics! Then, 8-8-09 was my official due date when I was pregnant with Jack and Mark. And, then 8-8-11 was our appointment with the cardiologist for Mark. We got GREAT results! We were so relieved to hear that Mark's heart is completely normal and healthy. He just has an innocent heart murmur, which is nothing to be concerned about. He will most likely outgrow this by the time he is a teenager. There are no restrictions on his activities at all - it is as though they never heard a heart murmur. The cardiologist listened to his heart and confirmed just from listening that he didn't think there were any concerns. Then, he proceded to do a EKG just to take a look at his heart and make sure that everything was functioning properly and that his heart looked normal and healthy. We were so pleased with this report and feel so very blessed to get this good news.  So, now we'll just have to wait and see what 8-8-12 has in store for us!

Infatuation with Lawn Mowers

According to freedictionary.com, the definition of infatuation is:  a foolish, unreasoning, or extravagant passion or attraction. This perfectly describes Jack and Mark's feelings about a lawn mower. These boys LOVE lawn mowers! Jack and Mark are ALL BOY and I love it! These guys LOVE lawn mowers, balls and big trucks! Seriously, could they be any more boyish!! It's so much fun watching them develop their personalities and interests! So, in honor of their very strong feelings about lawn mowers, here are some pictures to document.

Admiring Grandpa's lawn mower!  FUN!

Jack helping water the plants.

Mark got to hold the pull cord on the lawn mower. Jack wouldn't get near it to touch it!

Daddy's Arrival Back in the US!!

On Saturday, we were all so excited to go to the airport and pick up Daddy. We had made lots of preparations for his arrival. Mommy ordered special shirts for the boys to wear to the airport. Also, on Friday night, we had arts and crafts time and made signs to take to the airport. The boys loved hand-painting the signs! Here are some pics from the airport!

What cute shirts Mommy got for us!

Check out our signs, they are awesome!

Yeah! Daddy is back home safely!

The happy family is complete again!

Pictures from Peru

Now that I am back in Raleigh, I am finally unwinding and getting back into the normal routine.  I do have some pictures of Peru that I wanted to show everyone.  It was a fantastic trip.  One of the best weeks in my life, although I am really glad to be home with Heather and the boys.

The view from the hostel where we stayed in Cusco.

My man Enrique asking for a ride.

Victor, my brave little man, enjoying the sun while telling me to move him "rapido rapido."

I am in front of the 12 sided rock, one of the most important symbols of Cusco. 

This lady is waving her red pillow we won playing Bingo.  She was so happy she won it.

The hotel on the property where we stayed at sunrise.

One day I worked on the side of the mountain helping to create a soccer field.  Hard Hard work.

Sunrise on the last day we were in Cusco.