Enchanted Rock

The first Saturday of Christmas break we were blessed with glorious weather. We loaded up the Bronco and headed for the hills. We thought altitude lift was in order. Enchanted rock is one of our favorite destinations because is it an easy hike with beautiful views. Enchanted Rock was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1970 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The Rock is a huge, pink granite exfoliation dome that rises 425 feet above ground, 1825 feet above sea level, and covers 640 acres. It is one of the largest underground rock formation uncovered by erosion in the United States. Our little Samuel revealed his inner mountaineer by wandering to the top of Enchanted Rock all on his own power. Mom helped him out when she was impatient with his study of every hole in the rock (“Look at the elephant, mouse, giraffe… footprint!) or worried about him tripping. He asked if he could jump into everyone of the 50 some puddles we encountered along the way. Owen took photos of the sun shining on the rocks and of the vernal pools: islands of vegetation living in pits on the rock. Owen and Caleb strapped on their headlamps and headed into a small cave. Caleb ventured into the small tight places on his own, scrambling up wet tilted boulders. We had worked up hearty appetites so we headed to Stonewall Pizza in Llano- the boys polished off a whole pizza on their own and ended it with beautiful scoops of Bluebell Tin Roof ice cream. We ended the adventure with a walk through the Starry, Starry Nights Light display at the park by the Llano river.

Caleb's Creations

Halloween 2009

Orange Octopus (aka Samuel) rescues baby ducks and chickens.
Meanwhile Captain America (aka Caleb) slides down to save the day.

Austin Museum Day

Sunday was the free day at all the Austin museums. We went to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. It was fun to see what interested the boys. Samuel was most impressed with the elevator and the giant star sculpture outside. Caleb found an astronaut suit and an old computer from "Ground Control" at Houston that had been converted into a trivia game. His evening prayer included thanksgiving for swords, guns, cannons, and cannon balls. Owen stood looking at the engine of a WWII Plane forever. I enjoyed the Indian artifacts and the cowboy outfits the most. When we got to the car I said "That was kinda fun" Caleb looked at me in shock. "What do you mean, kinda fun? It was really, really, fun!" Later that night and into Monday Samuel went around asking everyone, "Did you have fun Daddy? Did you have fun at the Zeeum, Calebey?."

Sheri music (off top of my head)

I deleted this from my facebook profile because it was silly having it there. Now that I reread it I'm thinking huh? and what about?

Bands, musicians and artists of interest or influence, no particular order:

Alison Krauss, Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac), Ella Fitzgerald, Adele, Bonnie Raitt, Billie Holiday, Deborah Harry (Blondie), Annie Lennox, Doloros O'Rioran(Cranberries), Grace Slick, Patty Smith, Suzanne Vega, Carole King, Nora Jones, Six Pence None the Richer, Larry Norman, Randy Stonehill, The Lost Dogs, Don Omarruce Cockburn, Mike Stand (altar Boys), Undercover, Mike knott (77's) Gene Eugene( Adam Again), Simon And Garfunkel, Over The Rhine, Sam Phillips, Six Pence None the Richer, Terry Scott Taylor (Daniel Amos), Elton John, Dave Matthews Band, Pil Keaggy, Steve Taylor, Scattered Few, David Bowie, U2, Johnny Cash, The Police, The Clash, The Call, Creedence Clear Water Revival, The Crossing, Third Day, Dolly Parton, The Andrew Sisters, Rich Mullins, Led Zepplin, The Eagles, ACDC, Brian Setzer, Queen, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Nat King Cole, The Kinks, Dire Straits, Emmylou Harris, Kansas, B52's, Dixie Chicks, Iggy Pop, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Cat Stevens, They Might Be Giants, Janis Joplin, Neil Young, The Doors, James Taylor, Lou Reed (Velvet Underground), The Indigo Girls, The Ramones, Aretha Franklin, The Romantics, The Cars, The Eagles, Yo Yo Ma, The Doobie Brothers, Harry Chapin, Woodie Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie, Elvis Costello, Joan Baez, The Carter Family, John Denver, Five Iron Frenzy, Tracy Chapman, The Poques, George Fridrec Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Pachelbel, Felix Mendelssohn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Haydn, John Williams, ....... Okay, somebody stop me.

First of First

Caleb is having his first week of first grade. He is thrilled to see his friends and meet his teacher, Ms. Alexander. We are so proud of Caleb's enthusiasm and confidence, he seems like such a grown up boy. Contrary to his parents opinons that he wear a "collar" shirt on the first day of school, Caleb insisted on his new t-shirt with fighting Judo guys and the caption "HI YA! Nice to meet you!". Samuel is unhappy with the change and keeps walking to the front door and saying, "Let's go get Buddy! Let's go to school and get Calebee, I want to talk to him!" Sheri is excited to have some time alone with Samuel, and is planning activities and outings to keep him entertained. Now if Samuel would take a nap, perhaps we could get the house organized again. Outdoor activities are currently restricted to the morning because of unbearable heat. The drought has now caused city wide water use restrictions. Tonight I carried buckets of the boys bath water out to pour on my shrubs. The back lawn looks like a giant bed of straw and we've lost one bush in the front. Today there was a quick rain storm that completely missed our neighborhood- as usual. We anxiously await some indication that autumn exists.

End of the Summer Adventure

Saturday, Owen and Caleb had an epic end of the summer adventure. They started the day with a cave tour at Longhorn Cavern then went Kayaking and cliff diving at Inks lake. They stayed up late for a star party at Canyon of the Eagles Observatory. Caleb was able to see the Milky Way for the first time. I think there may have been some ice cream eating somewhere along the way as well. Yesterday we all kayaked at Inks Lake. All four of us in the same kayak! We were able to boat right up to Great Blue Herons, Egrets, Turtles, and ducks. Owen defeated his fear of heights for good when he jumped off of the top of a cliff. Caleb and I stuck with a lower cliff that was just extreme enough for a six year old (and a not so extreme mommy). Samuel floated around in a life jacket on his back. I would let go of him and he would grin from ear to ear. We were never brave enough to put Caleb in a Kayak at 2 years old. I was so proud of Samuel. He sat so still and just looked around with wonder. Maybe next time Caleb and I will tackle the high cliff jump and I will release my grip on Samuel long enough for him to paddle around on his own.

Caleb's Creations

MYSTERY OF THE GOLD COINS
BY CALEB FOWLER

CHAPTER 1
THE BAG OF COINS

Once upon a time, there was a man. He bought a bag of chocolate gold coins. When he tried to eat one of the last ones he discovered it was real. He kept trying to buy things with the coin that were just for him. Every time it would turn back into a chocolate coin. When he finally bought something for the good of his whole family, it didn't turn back. He passed on the bag of coins to his sons and wife and the same thing happened to them too. Then one night something very strange happened. Giant ants came into the house and took the gold coins. The next morning they woke up and discovered the missing gold coins. They spotted the giant ants that had taken them in the middle of the night and ran after them.

CHAPTER 2

THE ANTS

The ants had made the coins and put them in the bag. They thought the man’s family was going to destroy the coins. The ants were bringing the coins back to their queen who was the one in the colony that had made the coins. These ants and their queen had not always been giants. One day, their mound got hit by an asteroid. The asteroid was made of a substance that had never been discovered on earth. This mound was by a sidewalk in downtown Austin, Texas. Many people lived there. The people were frightened more than they could ever imagine. They were terrified when the asteroid hit the ants and they grew humongous- as big as cars. All the people thought that the ants were Fire Ants, a type of ant that bites and swarms when their mound is touched. The terrified people evacuated out of the city. The people didn’t know that the mutant ants were friendly, so they ran away as fast as they could. The ants were left in a deserted city. They were mad that the people had left the city.

CHAPTER 3

THE MAN THAT STAYED

The ants soon discovered that one person had not evacuated the city. This young man loved Austin and didn’t want to leave. He was not afraid of the ants because they had never killed or even touched one per person. He was an expert on ants an entomologist. . He figured out that the giant ants were not Fire Ants, but another kind of ant which is harmless to humans. The queen ant had become magic when the asteroid hit. There was a part of the asteroid that had magic on it because it had been from a planet where aliens had put a spell on it. The queen of the ants knew that humans loved two things: gold and chocolate. She made gold coins and put a spell on them so that some day she could reward the one man who had not evacuated the city. The ants went underground for many years. People slowly came back to the city. They had forgotten all about the ants. The people repaired the city and everything went back to normal.