2014 JCCHS Band - 'Into the Light' performance

From the first day that we saw the 'parent performance' of this show, we were amazed.  To take 80 Freshman who had never marched before and teach them all of this in a 2 week band camp is just unbelievable to me!  Apparently we were not the only ones that enjoyed it.  This band went won grand champion at the competition in Milledgeville, GA.  And they also placed ahead of numerous nationally ranked bands at competitions at Habersham, at Jacksonville State University, and at UT-Chattanooga.  This is the band that has put JCCHS on a national stage. They have even been invited to go to London, England on New Years Day 2017!
Jay, you guys were so good.  Everyone talked about how powerful (loud) you were.  Your band just seemed to blow everybody else away.  Above all else, you seem happier than you ever have.  Your love of music is something that I believe will stay with you throughout the rest of your life.  You just let it shine through you!  I love you, and I am SO proud of you!

Riley's 1st Falcons game

Riley has been waiting 10 years to get to go to the GA Dome to watch the Falcons play.  Today he finally got that chance.  We got tickets to see the Falcons play the Arizona Cardinals.  Both teams were in 1st place, so it had the makings of a pretty good game, and it did not disappoint.  The Falcons pretty much dominated from beginning to end.  They ended up winning 29-18.  We got to see Matt Ryan, Julio Jones (who set a career high with 189 receiving yards), and Devin Hester (he is REALLY fast).  Roddy White was hurt and did not play, but we did see him on the sidelines.  For Arizona, we saw Patrick Peterson and the Honey Badger.  Riley really wanted to see Larry Fitzgerald, but he was also injured and did not play. 
We had a pretty good time.  We got there a little early, so we threw a football for a little while in the parking lot.  Then we came in and walked around the dome.  We ended up at an ice cream stand.  I got a brownie ala mode, and Riley got a cherry Italian ice.  VERY Very good!  It was a very good day...cannot wait to do it again!

To see our Falcons game pics, click here

Fernbank Museum of Natural History

I had always thought that Cody would enjoy going down to the Fernbank Museum in Atlanta.  I had went there on a school field trip when i was younger, and just knowing how much Cody likes that type of stuff, I knew that we would have a good time.  So, today when we were looking for something to do, I thought of Fernbank.  Off me and Cody went on our adventure.  Of course we had to stop at The Varsity on the way down to have lunch.  Cody tried one of the best onion rings in the world, but he was not too impressed.  Once we got to Fernbank, we were met by the biggest dinosaur skeleton that we had ever seen.  It was MASSIVE!  Crazy big....3 stories tall, too.  The museum had many dinosaur exhibits.  They also had an exhibit about the different parts of GA and what animals were native to each part.  Cody liked the exhibit on fears....it tested what you were afraid of.  And he also liked the exhibit on your senses...it had a bunch of illusions...and if you know Cody, that is right up his alley.  We finished it off by watching an IMAX movie about the Galapagos Islands, and then we also got to see people perform a Chinese Lion Dance.  All in all, it was a pretty good day for me and Codybug!

To see all of our Fernbank pictures, click here

Nerd Day

I'm not sure that words are necessary to describe this photo.  Today was nerd day at Riley's school, and he went all out with the glasses, bow tie, striped collared shirt, and even had a couple of pens in his pocket!  Oh, and don't forget the hair....got to have the nerd hair!  He is so funny.  He is the life of the party...always!

Jay's 15th birthday

Get off the highway, Jay is driving!!!  Happy birthday Jay!  I cannot believe that you are 15 years old today.  To me, you will always be the sweet little boy that loved to fall asleep on my chest....but let's to try to re-enact that anytime soon, please.  Seriously, over the past 3 years you have started changing from a little boy into a young man.  I could not ask for a better 15 year old than you.  You have grown so much just over the first part of your Freshman year of high school.  I think that band has helped you mature so much, and I'm so thankful that you found your love of music.  I think that it will take you wherever you wish to go with it.

For your birthday, we went and ate Japanese (your favorite)with Aunt Sue.  Of course, they had to call Japan and get extra rice shipped in for you to eat!  Mom took you to get your learner's license.  Your driving is still a ...uh...work in progress.  But we are working on it.  I love you buddy!

Click here to see Jay's birthday dinner pictures

Zoo Atlanta

I finally convinced everyone to go to Zoo Atlanta today.  Apparently I'm the only one that enjoys going to the zoo...even though, I must say that by the end of the day, everyone seemed to have enjoyed themselves.  When we first walked in, the first animal we saw was the elephant.  It just so happened that it was taking a great BIG poop at the time we walked up...and when an elephant takes a poop, he takes a BIG one.  Then he peed enough pee to fill up a bathtub.  Needless to say, you boys were fascinated.  Then we ran to watch the gorillas get fed...that may have been the neatest thing that we saw all day.  They were throwing apples to gorillas from the top of the building, and the gorillas were catching them just like they were human.  Mom got freaked out...1 gorilla dropped it's apple on the ground, then picked it up and wiped the dirt off of it before it ate it.  We saw all the animals....monkeys, rhinos, giraffes, lions tigers, bears, SNAKES, and pandas.  The snake building freaked me out.....MY ANACONDA
don't want none of that!  We had a fun day, but it will probably be our last trip to the zoo for awhile.  I won't be able to convince you guys to go back anytime soon!

To see all of our Zoo Atlanta pics, click here!

Mom's 40th birthday

Today is Mom's 40th birthday!!  You cannot tell by this picture, but she is really happy.  Mom would never say it, but this was an important birthday for her because her mom died when she was 40.  Me and mom celebrated her birthday by spending the night in Atlanta at the St Regis hotel.  We dressed up and walked to dinner at Seasons 52.  It was one of the best dinners that we ever had.  This hotel room was pretty swanky.  It even had a TV inside the mirror in the bathroom!!  When we got home, you boys had decorated the yard and the house with birthday signs....AND when mom got out of the car, you guys just bombarded her with silly string.  And, of course, there was the traditional ice cream cake with a clown on it!

I hope you boys realize how lucky that you are to have the mommy that you have.  I pray that one day you see the sacrifices that she makes to make sure that you boys have absolutely EVERYTHING that you need....no matter what it takes.  She truly is amazing!  Happy birthday, Jen.  We all love you and appreciate you.

Click here to see Jen's 40th birthday pics

Riley Luke Sleepwalker Baugh

Tonight, Riley wasn't feeling good...running a little fever...so Jen gave him some medicine before he went to bed.  Next thing we know, here he comes down the steps in his t-shirt and underwear.  I'm sitting in the recliner in the living room, and I asking what he is doing.  He responds, "I'm tired."  So, I figure that he is just going to get him a drink of water or something.  He proceeds to get in the cabinets and takes out a sharpie marker, a BBQ brush, a tervis straw, and spoon.  Then he writes our last name on the BBQ brush with the marker.  Then he just goes back to bed.  Needless to say, I have requested a dose of whatever Jen gave him that night!

UGA game - NIT Tourney

Tonight, me and Riley went to Athens to see the UGA basketball team play Vermont in the opening round of the NIT tournament.  But first, we stopped atvThe Varsity and ate dinner.  We had great seats...we sat on the 2nd row behind the Vermont bench.  Charles Mann scored a career high 29 points, and UGA won to advance to the 2nd round.  Riley sure di have fun at his first college basketball game!

Snow Mountain

We had been wanting to take the boys snow tubing for a while.  But we just had not had the opportunity.  Finally we got the chance, and we went down to Snow Mountain at Stone Mountain Park.  Every winter, they transform the park, and they have all the snow fixings.  Tubes, snow machines, etc.  We got to ride the tubes for an hour...they had single tubes and family tubes....we rode them all.  They went pretty fast, too.  Very fun family day!  We ALL enjoyed it!