Drew's birthday party

After our basketball game and late breakfast, it was off to Chuck E Cheese for Drew's birthday party.  Their friend at Children's House and Cardinal Charter Academy, Drew, had turned 6 and was having a birthday party.  The boys were excited about going there.  They had never been there before and we had told them there was games and pizza.  The boys saw some of their friends from both Children's House as well as from Cardinal Charter.  They all had a great time together.

Here are some pictures from the party:

Skeeball time.

The next Russell Wilson?

Hey, who is stuck up there looking out?  Oh yeah, it is Mark.

2 hands on the wheel Mark!  2 hands.

Both boys favorite game.  Basketball pop-a-shot!

Race time.  Ready! Set! Go!

Time to eat.  Pizza time! (mac and cheese for Jack)

Mark, Drew, and Jack

Returning all of the tickets we won so the boys can get a prize.

Krispy Kreme for breakfast

This past Saturday, we went to Upward for another basketball game.  The boys played really well.  They were able to come back from a slow start (down 10-2) to come back and tie the game at 18 in the last minute.

After the game, all of us were hungry.  Mommy and Daddy had not eaten yet and the boys had just played basketball.  We decided to go to Krispy Kreme for a quick breakfast.

Now, Mommy, Daddy, and Mark all love their doughnuts while Jack refuses to try them.  But today he was intrigued, especially by the one with the sprinkles on them.  So we got a dozen and took them home.

They were so good.  Here are some pictures from the breakfast:

Ready to eat some doughnuts.

I love doughnuts! - Mark

Let's try this and see what these taste like.  - Jack

Pruning the Crepe Myrtle in the front

When we bought this house 10 years ago, we had two  pretty crepe myrtle trees in the yard.  The one in the back yard was cut down 18 months ago as it had gotten really tall but a couple of the branches were going rotten.  So we decided the cut the whole thing down.  Plus, it allows the boys some more room to play in the back yard.

The crepe myrtle in the front yard is a really gorgeous tree.  It has one problem.  It has grown so much that the limbs were laying up on the roof and the side of the house.  Therefore, we decided to prune it back to 6/7 feet.  We meant to do it last year but for some reason February was a little crazy and we wound up not having time to cut it down.

But this year, we had time.  Granna and Grandpa helped Daddy chop the tree down and and get it into small enough chunks that the city will pick up.

In the end, the tree looks very good and is ready for a new season of growth.

Here are a couple of pictures of can happen with a bow saw and some clippers:

Now where should Daddy cut next?

This branch needs to go.

Done.

Time to clean up.

Super Bowl 49

Sunday, February 1 was a national holiday.  Not really, but it certainly is treated as such.  That day was the Super Bowl.  This year, it was the Seattle Seahawks vs. New England Patriots.  Both teams were the top seeds in their conference and the nation was ready for a really good game.  For everyone in our house, the team to choose from was very easy.  We all were pulling for the Seahawks.  There were 3 former Wolfpackers on the team:

QB Russell Wilson

RG J.R. Sweezy

K    Steven Hasuchka

We were all hoping for a repeat title as the Patriots, well they are nothing but cheaters.  First we have Spygate, now we have Deflategate.

Well, the boys were really ready for the game. We went up to Granna and Grandpas for the game.  The plan was to let them watch the first half and then send them to bed.  But they talked us into keeping them up for the whole game.  The funny thing is that after Wilson threw an interception at the goal line from the one-yard line with 20 seconds to go Mark looked at us and said "Why didn't they run the ball right there?"

None of us have a good answer for that question.

The boys were very disappointed that Seattle lost, but they are still very happy they were able to watch the whole game.

Here are a couple of pictures from the party:

Pajamas and Tostitos.  Just your normal Super Bowl party.

Mommy and the boys watching the game.

Excited boys with Seattle winning the game in the second half.

Shock at the interception.  Can you believe they threw the ball?

Maw Maw's birthday

February 1 is MawMaw's birthday.  She turned 83.  For the weekend, she came up to Raleigh to see everyone.  In particular, she wanted to see the boys play their basketball game.  She came up with Roger and Evi.  They all were very much looking forward to this basketball game.  They enjoyed seeing them play baseball last fall and now they were ready for basketball.

The boys played very well at their game. The season is halfway done and they really have improved.  It has been neat to see the improvement of not only Jack and Mark but the rest of the team as well.  The team played one its better games of the year and wound up winning the game to run their record to 4-1 (although the scores and records aren't kept).

After the game, we went back to Granna and Grandpa's house for a birthday lunch.  We had one of MawMaw's favorites, pizza, along with some birthday cake.  Everyone had such a good time.  And to top it off, we were all able to see NC State hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer in overtime to win an ACC road game at Georgia Tech.

After the State game, Maw Maw, Roger, and Evi had to get back to Gastonia.

Here are some pictures from the day:

Friday night relaxing with Grandpa.

Starting for the Knights, Mark DeVault

Myers (in red) had no chance getting the ball with Mark guarding him.

Jack cutting across the court to pick up the ball.

Is Bingo an adult game?  Nope.  

Happy Birthday Maw Maw!

Jack and Mark watch over her shoulder as Maw Maw blows our 83 candles.

Mommy and Maw Maw

A long, exciting day means a nap for Mark.

Friday Night Fun

For the past few months, on the weekends, the boys have enjoyed spending the night in each other's bed.  They love it.  And they surprisingly sleep very well.  They don't talk and stay awake for long.  It is not uncommon for them to go to bed and then Mark all of a sudden needing to go to the bathroom.  And when Mark gets back to the bedroom, Jack is already asleep.  But then when they both are asleep, they are so cute.  Check out this picture.

Sleepy time at the DeVaults