Mammoth Cave Tour

The website says to book early, so we booked our 10:30 cave tour 3 or 4 weeks ago. The tour is limited to 118 people.

We spent 30 minutes in the room before we went to bed. This is what we woke up to.

The hotel had a great breakfast, we filled up on waffles and sausages, and left at 9:30 for the park. The front desk recommended we leave early because the park doesn't plow or salt the roads (Kentucky looked to have received about 1/4" of snow overnight).

The parking lot was pretty empty when we got there, but there were still 104 tickets available when we bought ours. They must not have sold many of those.

We parked and I walked over to check it out.

Really?

The First Reinhardt Roadtrip

Camille and a friend rented a condo in Orange Beach, Alabama for the month of February. On Thursday we hopped in the van to visit them for a few days planning on making the 1,000 mile trip over 2 days.

We left Grand Rapids at 4:30 for a hotel near Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. In the morning we will tour the cave, make a few other stops, and be in Alabama by 10 or so. The kids are psyched!

An encounter with Max's teacher

Bobbie Jo just returned home from the "Ranger Rally", a fundraising walk for Max's school. Apparently Max's teacher pulled her aside while she was at the school.

The students took a reading test yesterday and Max got a 900 something. He told his teacher he was concerned that he only got a 900, she reassured him that he did just fine.

When Bobbie Jo asked what a '900' meant, she was told "he was basically reading at an eighth grade level". His teacher is getting some books from the 4th grade class and putting Max and another boy together to read at this higher level.

I am so proud of this kid!

My First Day (by Max)

Found this in Max's desk when we went to curriculum night tonight.

Lily's Tantrum

She wanted 2 books before bed. Not 1.

Shortly after this she threw all of her stuffed animals all over the room, climbed into bed, and fell asleep.

Happy Father's Day!

These two

Bobbie Jo works this weekend, and the rain today has kept us inside. I've been trying to get some of the electrical work finished up in the basement, and these two have been playing together all morning.

They are closer than any two people I have ever met. Right now Max is helping her draw a 'ninja star'. She has requested a "blue element one". He's so patient with her.

I hope they stay this close forever.

Upgraded grocery-getter

In 2007 my Nissan was totaled in an accident. Hoping that we would someday need a bigger car, I took Bobbie Jo's Saturn and we bought a used Pontiac Vibe. Sometime over the following few months was when we found out Max was coming our way.

I'm on my second new car since that Saturn, and Bobbie Jo is (was) still driving that Vibe. It was in serious need of oil, a wash, tires, brakes, and probably general service. We hadn't had it in the shop in a few years. It didn't smell very good either.

We have entered a new era, and bought this monstrosity. It's an incredible vehicle; dvd, bluetooth, remote start, power-everything. We already have our first road trip planned for this summer, and I hope there are many more to follow.

Hey kids, don't trash it too bad. Because when you want to borrow the car.......

He did it!

Yesterday I got Max riding his bike. Previous attempts have all been failures, he would quickly give up, and had no interest in trying.

This time was different. He tried hard the whole time, and after every fall he got right back up and back on the bike. I'm so proud of him! We've got more to work on, but the hard part is done.

Watching him go for the first time, made me feel like the best dad in the whole world.

Happy Easter