Bustin' Dust

Gabriel discovered the joys of using our Dirt Devil yesterday:

Today, we went to Sophia's and Marissa's (Gabriel's friends') house to play for our MOMS Club Family Night Out. We had a great time. They have the best toys, like a driveable Corvette with a working radio and sound effects, and a train that rides on an actual track in a circle. They also had a moonwalk, but most of the kids were too excited by the other toys to use it. Since we left our camera there, we will have to post photos later.

In medical news, we have been hit with yet another unusual event. P was bitten yesterday morning, presumably by a fire ant, and developed a severe case of hives a couple of hours later. Even her ears and palms were swollen, and worst of all, the wedding rings had to come off so they wouldn't have to be cut off. As a result, she has been under the considerable influence of Benadryl even since. Is it wrong to have washed down the last dose with a white Russian?

Number One Fan

The Intimidators continued - well, started - a winning streak today with a victory over the Isotopes, 20-8. It was a mercy after 5 innings. Their number one fan, Gabriel, sported a fan jersey with the first baseman's name on it. Here are photos of the front and back (we fixed his ears after we took the first photo). Notice how he prefers to wear Daddy's hat rather than his own and how he wears it low over his eyes. We think that's adorable.

It was fun to be all geared up as a family for the game (although Grammie and "Pa-Pa" didn't get the memo) and to wear our duds out for ice cream afterwards.

On a totally unrelated note, we have decided that Terry O'Quinn is the white Samuel L. Jackson. We guess that makes him the Hardest Working White Man In Show Business.

Happy Mothers Day!

We hope that all you Mommies, Grandmas, Great-Grandmas, and Godmothers have had a wonderful Mothers Day! Our celebration started on Saturday when the Kelly/Angle females had afternoon tea at Tea at Seven Springs. It was such an interesting experience, because it was the epitome of Southern culture and not only was the food fantastic, but the atmosphere was as well. They encourage the ladies to wear hats (provided), and they also have clothes for all ages, including all accessories.

For dinner, we Angles went to Vincent's, a great new Italian restaurant in Marietta. It is a place where we dress a little better than usual to visit, but for some reason there was an astounding number of trucker hats and NASCAR/sleeveless/beer t-shirts. The dinner and the service were fantastic - linguine with pesto sauce for M, chicken saltimboca for P, and chicken fingers and fries for G which he did not eat, of course - but the parenting was not the most fun ever. We will just say that we wanted to raise an energetic, joyful, adventurous, intelligent child and we are succeeding on the energetic part. Oh, and the highlight of his behavior was when he sneezed directly onto the disapproving woman at the next table. Come to think of it, maybe she deserved it for being so uptight. Her child looked like way too serious for a child her age (but darn if she wasn't cute anyway).

Today, we had brunch at IHOP, because we Kellys used to go to the one on Woodward (or is it Coolidge?) for several years and P always loved the chocolate chip pancakes, although she had a Belgian waffle today. After about 5 cups of coffee, P inexplicably needed a nap so we headed home for her and Gabriel's nap. When we woke up, we went for a hike with Mom and Dad at the Kennesaw Battlefield. We found a new section of trail that complements our usual route and found that it was a pretty strenuous hike but great fun. Gabriel had a great time in his carrier and was sure to greet everyone we passed:

Later, Matty made a spectacular dinner of tilapia with a garlic thyme butter sauce and Thai jasmine rice, with fresh salads on the side. The fish was so good that we ate the salads last!

It's been a busy few days, because yesterday was the Race for the Cure for M & P, then tea and church, and the day before, we had Gabriel's friend Mak over for much of the day. They didn't interact a whole lot, but they were both very well behaved, especially at the park, where we saw a movie with some more of their friends. Notice his cool new shirt - what little you can see of it, anyway:

Happy Mothers Day!

Bouncy Bouncy

Saturday was our March of Dimes walk in Paulding County, on the Silver Comet Trail. It was supposed to be 4 miles, but it really didn't seem like it. Gabriel even walked the last part of it:

Later that day, we wanted to do something a little different, so we went to Chuck E. Cheese's to play on the rides. We spent a grand total of $3 (we'd already had anticuchos/shish kebabs/meat on a stick - for dinner) for about an hour and a half of great fun. Gabriel got really into driving the bus there, but it must be an intense experience to drive with the big mouse himself sitting in the back seat, hovering over your shoulder! There was actually a screen Chip could watch to see the street he was driving down to get the kids to school.

Today we checked out one of the many indoor inflatable playgrounds in the greater Atlanta area with Gabriel's friend Christopher and Mommy's friend Lisa. It is called The Jump Off, and it has slides, an obstacle course, moonwalks, and a snack area. Parents are allowed to go in with the kids, so we all had a great time and a great workout. After a while, Gabriel started to really enjoy the moonwalk, but he never did get into the obstacle course, which is a little more closed in. Maybe next time. Christopher was not into the whole inflatable thing, but he loved the Batmobile!

We think it's worth mentioning for those of you who have been watching the news and might be wondering that Dad (A) is okay. The shootings of the Fairfax County officers did not occur at his location, but he was involved with the Medivac efforts. He is a hero in our eyes, and we're very thankful that he is okay.

Happy Cinco De Mayo!

Gabriel is going to be a daredevil when he grows up. The kid won't eat anything other than oatmeal and Cheerios on a normal day, but today he decided to eat very spicy salsa with a knife. Ay!

We never did show a photo of his boo-boo. He is still wearing the band-aid although his stitches are long gone, and he loves to show it off to everyone. He is a very brave boy. Here is a picture:

Happy Birthday, Emily!!!

Oh crap, she's 21! As they say, "Alcohol may be a factor." We think that will apply to anything that happens. Stay safe, Em!