Father's Day...

We had a great week this past week.  AM surprised me with little notes and gifts all week long.  Emilie made me some pictures, and a handprint mold...and Pete gave me an awesome pic with a really nice note on the back. 

Ann Marie and I are extremely fortunate to have had two rather easy (at least to me!) pregnancies, and, the result of that, two healthy children.  I look at these two kids each day, and I often have to remind myself at how they look at me.  They look at me the same way I looked at my dad 30+ years ago.  I'm really the only consistent male figure in their lives right now, and it's up to me to mold them into the best persons that they can be.  To teach them respect, manners, honor, patience, character, and fun! 

We were in Greenville a few weeks ago for Connor's first sacrament.  Their priest told the congregation, and specifically them, that they are simply here on the earth to Know the Lord, to Serve the Lord, and to Love the Lord - so that they may enjoy eternal life with him in Heaven.  I thought that was a great saying to those children, and hope that I can teach my kids (and, for that matter, myself) those same things as they grow into the person that God has planned for them.

So, as time moves on, and these little ones keep growing up on us (I can't believe that Em is almost 3!), I hope that my wife, and someday my kids, realize that Father's Day is not really about them thanking me...it's more about me thanking them.  I don't need gifts, I don't need a day alone on the couch, I don't need to get to sleep in (well, maybe that wouldn't be so bad)...I just need them to know that I love them so, and will Always be there.  I will never be the world's best dad, but I'll keep trying every day to be better...and enjoying the ride along the way.  AM, Em, and Pete, you're the best. 

Happy Father's Day, indeed...

Good weekend!

We had a great weekend this past weekend. 

Friday night - dinner at Muss & Turner's with Jen and Lee King.  Place never disappoints
Saturday - Phi Delt golf tourney for Matt...birthday party for Emilie and Pete
Sunday - to WP for Anna's christening.  All 14 Edwards/Wrights were in attendance, as well as Robert, Patty, and Justin.  Anna did great in the service, needless to say.

I don't think that I have hardly any pics from the weekend, other than this one as I was leaving to go on Saturday morning. 

Emster rockin' the beads and daddy's shoes, on backwards of course.
You'd think they'd get them on the proper feet around 50% of the time...
not even close.

Pete's also considering the idea of taking off...

Randoms...

Been a bit since I've posted.  All is well at the new house.  I've been meaning to take some pics of the "finished" product...but it's still not quite finished yet!  David has to come back and do a couple of little things, then I'll put some pics up.

In the meantime, there's some misc. pics from recently that AM took that I wanted to get up here...

our first dinner in the new digs! 

Emilie and her good friend Avery Podraza in Avery's
dress up clothes

Girl loves her a pair of shades...and loves to break
them too!

lil' Pete is a bit smiler

just a typical evening at our house.  Em and Pete
barking at each other.  Lots o' fun, until the dude
gets a wad of her hair!

hanging out in Em's room

something's funny!

One week to go...

We are down to the last week of renovation work.  They are staining the hardwoods today and tomorrow.  We then just have some small things to do, like:

• Install the backsplash
• Put the new furnace in
• Touch up paint
• Get all the appliances and A/V stuff working.  Of course, we already had to have a service call on the refrigerator, which is now fixed...and now the dishwasher.
• Misc stuff - repair back patio, replace door knobs, install furniture toekicks on cabinets, install disposal, replace kitchen window, install light fixtures, a little electrical, etc.
• Clean it
• Move all our furniture back in!

These pics are from yesterday morning.  The granite is in and the floors were about to get sanded. 

coming in the back door - new Mud room

in the mud room, looking into the kitchen on the left

walking thru the mud room, in the office.  You can see the A/V central
down in the bottom right corner.  We found a spot underneath the
stairs to build this out.

coming thru the foyer now, looking into the kitchen.  All the appliances
are in (thou not all necessarily working yet!)

in the foyer looking into the den

in the corner of the den, looking into the new dining room.  Notice
the nice work on the cauffered ceiling by David

in the den...another look back into the kitchen

in the dining room, looking back into the kitchen. 

Oh, and the Hydrangea is starting to bloom very nice outside!

We're getting close!

Mother's Day...

We had a good weekend around town this weekend.  Swim lessons on Saturday followed by some exercise at Marist.  Church on Sunday, brunch at Goldberg's, and then some golf/soccer/duck pond action Sunday afternoon. 

We've got a lot better photos on the big camera, which we'll add to this post at some point, but here are a couple of random's from the weekend...

Daddy and Em setting a torrid pace on the track at Marist

Emilie getting all of her imaginery friends a drink with a spoon in it

This is a little video of dinnertime last night.  Emilie is performing her best Lion impression.  That little girl trips Pete out...

House updates...week 7

David is 6.5 weeks into the job, and likely getting really tired of us.  We were hoping we might be done by this time next week, but it's going to be 2 more weeks total.  We're getting closer every day, though.

The legend himself, David Brown, squeezing in the refrigerator

Refrigerator on left, and Warming Drawer/Oven/M'wave on right

West Point with the kiddos...

AM was on a b'rette trip to Charleston (getting some "time off" I think for the first time since Em was born!), so I headed to West Point this past weekend, to hang out with the 'rents for a bit.  We had a good time.  We went to Mexican on Friday night, and let all Nanna and Pops friends oogle over the kids.  Of course, I ran into a couple of people for the first time in forever - Crispen Maddux Lott and family, and Connie Billingsley.  We played a little golf on Saturday, and then went to feed the "duckies" at the dam.

On Sunday, we just went to church and then lunch at the club.  Then, back to Atlanta.  

Emilie on #1 green. 

Taking a lesson out of the Sam Snead playbook - putting from the side...

Pops showing the little lady how to bag 35 ftrs...

Emilie taking off down #5 fairway after Pops

On #9.

Headed to #9 green with my caddie...

Picking the ball up out of the hole...

this is pretty much how the round went.  Pops and I trying to make a
couple of birdies (we scrambled poorly), but it was like putting on a
putt-putt course with moving obstacles...

While we golfed, Pete went walking with Nanna.  Boy is growing up!

The "highlight" of the trip was these cicadas, who have burrowed out of
the ground for the first time in 13 years.  These guys are about 1-2" long,
and have been living underground for 13 years.  They come to the surface,
only to live for a couple of weeks.  During their time above ground,
those that can do it fly to the treetops and hiss.  It was an amazing
noise that you heard all over town all wknd.

Saturday afternoon, we went out to the dam to feed the rather aggressive
"duckies" as Em liked to call them.  These guys would pinch the heck out of each
other in going after food.  As Emilie said "they are NOT being nice!"

Em tossing some food at the geese.  Pete is on me in the Bjorn laughing
at all of this

there were about 25 total

Surprisingly, Emilie got on the ground with them, but wouldn't let
go of Nanna's leg.

the left side of West Point dam.  They were generating, and the water
was humming.  We walked up near the dam where the fisherman are (on
the left of this pic), but didn't see them catch anything...

On Sunday morning...Emilie doing her best Princess Kate imitation

This butterfly simply would not move!  Emilie stood right over it, and
it didn't move at all.  Look how big it is, compared to my shoe.

Finally, the little lady sleeps.  She fell asleep about 2 blocks into the ride back
to Atlanta. 

Thanks again Nanna and Pops for a great time!