Flight Lesson

Our youngest asked to pilot an airplane once she turned 14.  So as a combined birthday/Christmas gift, we scheduled her discovery flight.

The instructor was a young and very sweet lady named Alora.  She was perfect for our daughter!  She explained everything really well during pre-flight, allowed the little one to touch all the controls and buttons, and even steer the plane down the taxiways to the runway.

Although a bit windy on the ground, the air was calm at 3000 ft.  Our little one flew the plane on her own for about 45 minutes across Greenville, Easley, Pickens, and Clemson.

Alora took our picture in the back.  Eric and I enjoyed the late afternoon flight watching our daughter soak it all in.

On our approach back to Greenville, the sun was starting to set.  Just gorgeous!

So proud of her first flight!  Now, if she could only come up with about $10,000 and a free day off from school each week, she'd be able to get her private license at 16 years old.  

COVID Holiday

Our family decided to get away for the Christmas holiday at the farm in Texas.  With extremely low air fares, we ditched the plan to drive and decided to fly instead.

While at the farm, our youngest practiced a little time behind the wheel.  Dirt roads are perfect for teaching new drivers!  We did a bit of night driving, too.  Luke was a wonderful and very patient teacher.

Ashlyn showed off a bit of fishing fashion!  She didn't catch anything, but her look was priceless.

She quickly realized the stand-up paddle board was designed for a small child.  An adult board is much longer and provides better balance.

We took a ride down to the barn and walked the fields.  The weather was gorgeous!  Since our phones were with us, we took the opportunity to capture some nice pics for social posts.

Back at the house, we piddled with a few projects, enjoyed cooking, and created a make-shift disc golf course.

We also made time to exercise.  The girls were creative in utilizing their surroundings.

The warm weather allowed us to wear short sleeves for Christmas Mass. Here's a cute selfie of the kiddos.

And before long, our 5-day retreat was over.  Our drive through the country-side was so peaceful!  One of the towns we passed through is famous for their watermelon festival, Ashlyn's favorite fruit.  

Once safely home, it was time for COVID tests before heading back to work/school.  Thankfully, everyone was healthy. 😊

Latest Project

Eric has been testing out a new greenhouse prototype for his winter garden.  This project is designed to use no soil.  No soil = no bugs eating his plants.

Step one:  Create the container and buy seeds.

Step two:  Plant seeds in a shallow egg crate with just enough soil to allow the seeds to germinate and start a root system.  This is the only time that soil is used.  Eric keeps either natural light or artificial light on them 18 hours a day.  

Step three:  Once the seedlings have sprouted, he delicately rinsed the plants and roots of all soil, then placed in his homemade container (yellow lid below) that's filled with nutrient-rich water.  Using the circulation pump from our old fish tank, he installed it into the container to keep algae from growing.  Here you can see the success of his first experiment and the start of a new batch.

Step four:  Trim leaves as needed to encourage continued growth.  Then, enjoy the fruits of your labor with fresh, organic greens!

14th Bday

Our youngest turned 14 today!  Wow, another 12 months planning for this HUGE event, from the restaurant choice to the homemade meal, deciding the cake and the frosting, planning decorations and gifts, what to wear and what to bring for breakfast in bed.  The discussion occurred often, changed her mind, details confirmed, changed slightly again, and finally made official.

But it just doesn't seem like she could be 14 already.  I mean, look how she's snuggling her Christmas Bear while reading a few chapters of her book?  

But her birthday came, despite my attempts to keep her young forever.  Breakfast was hot tea in bed.  The rest she wanted to make when she came downstairs. Waking her up with kisses reminded me of those sweet, soft cheeks 14 years ago.

Her restaurant meal was Texas Roadhouse.  I think she ate an entire basket of rolls herself!  The peanuts, on the other hand, were not served due to Covid.  While that was disappointing, I appreciate the extra precaution to keep patrons safe.

The decorations included a Hello Kitty sign along with several balloons.  My personal favorite was the balloon rocket ship where I drew my picture in one of the windows as an astronaut.

She enjoyed opening up all of her gifts, especially the punch balloon, fruit candies, glow sticks, and Funguns that Eric got her from the Dollar Store.  Oh, and the money from family was great!  She wanted it immediately put in savings.  With socks from Luke and pants from Ashlyn, she'll stay warm all winter. 

Her cake was made using a recipe as a guide, but adjusted as necessary for less sugar, less oil, less butter, and more of whatever she deems healthy (mainly the spices).  It turned out pretty good!  It was a pumpkin cake with pumpkin cream cheese icing.  

Happy 14th Birthday!

Warm Weather

When it's sunny and 60 degrees in December for two weekends in a row, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to spend time outside.

The first weekend, all 5 of us loaded up the bikes for a ride through Travelers Rest.  We followed the trail until it ended..a first!

After the ride back through town, we were parched!  Good thing there's a great watering hole there.  We made Luke buy our beer just so he could get carded.  

The next weekend was a jog (or walk) through downtown Greenville.

The little one hung with me while we looked for my name plate at the Cancer Survivor's Park.

The park is such a beautiful place, even in the winter with all the leaves gone.  

Time to head back and meet up with the fam!  I hear a street taco calling my name.

New Truck

As we said goodbye to the Mustang, we (ie. Dana) wanted to replace it with another vehicle that was a bit more reliable and functional.  Eric needed something that could haul equipment, lawn trimmings, recycles, and the jet ski.  So, it was decided to get a truck.

Looked at Chevys... Fords... local places... out of state dealerships...

Eric wanted a quad cab.  Luke wanted a long bed.  Julia didn't want specific colors.  I wanted it as cheap as possible.  Ashlyn just got bored and started doing hand stands.

It took a few weeks, but we finally settled on a quad cab, long bed, cherry red, Chevy Colorado with a fair price tag.  Everyone wins!

The GT (Good Times)

It finally came time to say goodbye to the GT, the Mustang GT.  It is a car that Eric has driven for 16 years.  Not only Eric, but the older two kids drove it to school and back during their high school days.  The GT was a 2001 model with a 4.6L V8.  Eric and Luke hot rodded the car, so it sounded throaty.  As with any vehicle, if you have driven it for 16 years, you are bound to have had some good times with it.  And we definitely had some good times with the GT.  Of particular fun was drag racing at the local drag strip.  

Eric and the kids were sad to see it go.  Dana, well, she was not so sad to see it go.  Eric spent money hot rodding this car and Dana just did not see the purpose of this.  Plus, the car was LOUD! 

Here is a video of Luke drag racing at a raceway.

Here is the little one giving the GT a hug.

Julia is not old to enough to have a driver’s license, but she has been looking forward to driving the GT for many years.  So, Eric let her drive it in the driveway.  Another good time.

In the end, the GT had 174k miles on it.  The engine had low compression on two cylinders and Eric determined that the piston rings were cracked.  The engine still ran, but barely.  It was a Good Time while it lasted.