Chuckie Cheese

 We took Talus and Baden to Chuckie cheese today ... Both boys do these sports throwing games really well ... and skee ball also.

 Chuckie Cheese himself came to have a photo with Talus and Baden !

 Pizza lunch - happy boys - Talus had almost 200 tickets and Baden even more!

Self timer - fun fun fun!

Fort Monroe

 We drove further and explored Fort Monroe - notice the moat around it!  Largest stone fort built in the US - French engineer - southern most point of the Union Army in the Civil War.

 A painting from the 1800's - busy place!

 Modern Day photograph - notice the beaches on the right - we ran and played for a short time - Tal and Baden got soaking wet!

 Baden and some cannon balls.

 Beautiful old, large Magnolia tree - Robert E. Lee and his new wife, lived in a building like this one - he was at the fort for three years.

At the view point - we could see ships in the bay - really in interesting place.  Very educational - three slaves escaped and got to the fort asking to fight with the union army .... General Butler decided they were 'contraband of war' and not subject to the Fugitive Act that demanded they be returned ... actually said Virginia was no longer a part of the US!  In two weeks over 900 men, women and children got to the fort for protection and freedom!

Last of the Army Transportation Museum

Grandpa looking at a big chopper - it was funny to us how many Native American names the Army Helicoptors had!

 More of the airplanes exhibit.

 This is a walker thing - can haul over 500 pounds over uneven terrain - etc.  Boys said it looked like Star Wars ..

Sure enough, when we read further - the Army stopped testing - using 50 gallons of oil a minute was "a big flaw" - the the logging industry and Hollywood films continued!!
 

The display for the planes had this wire mesh walls - but you can't seem them very easy and it looks like the door is just standing without walls!

More fun in Virginnia

 Em and boys in the observation tower ... looking at a truck from the Vietnam War - truck called the Eve of Destruction - and the song was playing!

Here's Baden looking at the inside of the truck - big bullets!

 Tal looking at the same truck - kind of sad how many things we use to kill others - but they are trying to kill us, right?

 This is one of the outside displays - trucks, there were also planes, boats, and railroads.

 More of the trucks exhibit.

Emilee, Talus and Baden at a huge wheel on a landing thing.

Fun in Virginia

On Tuesday, Aug 29th - we flew to Richmond, VA to visit the Pikes - Today - Wed, Emilee and the boys took us about an hour south to Fort Eustis - their security gate had us give our IDs then get out of the car and they had soldiers check it - under the hood, in the trunk, etc.  never had experienced that before.

The Army Transportation Museum was really interesting .. at least to Grandpa and me ....Tal and Baden got a little bored - they had been there before.  Baden asked me:  Is Grandpa going to read every sign?

Outside the front door was this big airplane tire - of course Tal and Baden climbed up on it!

This old Buick was found in the jungle after WWII - it had been used for lots of things - captured by the Japanese and still ran!

This was an interesting display - - some where in WWII the allies captured a country that had lots of railroads still intact -- so the US military figured out that the rims of a 2 and 1/2 ton truck could replace jeep tires and then they could run on the rails!

This display was telling about many things - the only one I remember is the gas cans ... apparently the British cans were called Flimsy - and the US ones needed a wrench and some other tool to open them -- the best cans were the German ones that they captured!  the very best design so the US adapted them and copied them!

More fun in CO

 After dinner we went back to Parker and Faye, Emma and I made HollyHock Dolls - she is such a fun girl. I loved her flowers on shirt and shorts!

 Christian was shooting hoops and Clark climbed up the basketball standard - he is all boy!  Emily said he is a wanderer - spends time at friends without telling anyone where he is - even eats dinner!

 Precious Ruby - we are so happy to get to hold her and welcome her to the family!

 What a busy family!  Could never get everyone all together for a picture!  Saturday we had lunch at Chic-Fila so we could see Maddie ... then she was working the Drive- in window - so I walked up and gave her a goodbye hug!

 Savanna went to work also - and the rest of us went to a movie!  Cars three - really cute show.  The baby slept the whole time.

We want to take current pictures of all our family with us - Thanks so much to all - we had a lovely trip...plus BYU won their football game.  We watched a recording at Sue and John's before she took us to the airport to fly back to Utah.  Thanks to Polly for picking us up in the dark of night!

Trip to CO 2017

 Thursday, August 24th, we loaded up the Montana truck on this trailer and drove to CO - Kurt is going to take care of it while we are gone ... Maddie is happy to drive it to work at Chic-Fil-a and school.

 We stayed overnight in Grand Junction, CO - next morning saw this square rainbow - picture doesn't do it justice - pretty cool.

 Another rainbow in front of the road - above the semi truck.  It is a very pretty drive - I-70 over high mountains!

 Meeting Ruby!  She had just woken up - Kurt and Emily were both running errands when we got there - nice to unload the MT truck and take the U-Haul back - notice Emma in the background playing.

 Grandpa and Sheffield taking a quick nap.  Emily and Maddie took the Shaved Ice shed to a School Carnival and the rest of us went out to dinner at Cafe Rio - we brought some back home for Emily and Maddie.

 The "My Three Sons" outside of Cafe Rio on the railing - such wonderful, handsome boys!

 Needed the girls to have their picture taken also!  Three of the five beautiful Smith Sisters - missing oldest and youngest... Maddie and Ruby.

Faye asked if I would take a picture of her missing tooth!  of course - she said the tooth fairy gave her $6.00 - I told her that her Dad got .25 when he lost a tooth!  Then she asked me if I thought Fairies were real ... I told her that I think Fairies are really, really fun!  She laughed.  We are planning a fairy camp when I get back from Russia.

Georgia's Fourth Birthday

 Georgia's blowing out the candles on her Birthday Cake!

 She really had a good time opening her presents - she went out to dinner at Pizza Pie Cafe with her Mom and Dad - then picked out a huge jar of pickles and princes wand at Walmart.

 Cute Georgia opening more presents.

 Her cake - she had picked out red velvet ... then she wanted blue - so her awesome Mommy made both!

Also used chocolate filling and then vanilla icing!  the best of both worlds!

Millie's Birthday 2017

 Beautiful Millie on her second birthday - she likes her new Church Bag!

 The Fairbanks girls love 'noodles' .. and Lindsey had a great noodle bar for their birthday celebration.

 It was fun for the younger children to have tables and chairs outside to eat on - in the shade.

 Millie blowing out the two candles on the left -- Georgia already had blown out the four on the right!

 Happy birthday to two wonderful cute girls!

 Sadie has completed all of the beginning embroidery squares - she is going to make a pillow out of them with help from a Fairbanks aunt.

She really did a great job ... so fun to teach hand sewing skills to the next generation.