Birthday hike at the Fort Montgomery State Historic Site

Wednesday March 17th, after lunch, cake & ice cream we decided to go on a birthday adventure. Maximus loves exploring (as we all do), he refers to it as "going on an adventure". So... we decided to drive 5 miles into the city of Fort Montgomery to check out the State Historic Site. It was here in October 1777, that roughly 700 American soldiers made a heroic stand against 2,100 British & Loyalist troops attacking Forts Montgomery & Clinton. Though losing both forts, a brave American defense disrupted British plans to control the Hudson River. Today, the ruins of Fort Montgomery remain a genuine artifact of war and a testament to the American struggle for independence.

Archeological artifacts found on the grounds!

Revolutionary War weapons

Our birthday man striking a pose on our hike to the suspension bridge.

Maximus skipped his first rock 2x!!!

Dads turn.....
11x!!! Impressive... way to out do the birthday boy!!

Striking another pose....

Maximus the Great is Eight!!!

I didn't make a homemade cake this year and actually Maximus originally asked for a round ball Bakugan cake. He settled on this flat cake & then I decorated it with Bakugan items!

"Battle On"

Maximus's breakfast request was pancakes with chocolate/pb chips! Scott learned this yummy pancake trick on a Triple "D" episode! It's been a big hit in the McGrath household.

His pancake was topped with ready whip, filled with sliced strawberries & bananas and topped with a cherry! Delicious!!

Maximus asked for a jean jacket for his birthday & here he is trying on his new "too big" jacket!

Celebrating Max's Birthday @ School

Cupcakes for his class!
Maximus is wearing his Bakugan pj's for PJ Day at school. The children were celebrating Reading Across America week at school. Maci dressed herself as usual. While walking to school she asked me if it was summer yet. LOL!!
Having lunch with Maximus at noon, the green square is green eggs & ham. It was so digusting. Maximus & Maci both enjoyed it. Just looking at it made me gag!! Eggs should not be in a square... I'm just saying!!

The class sang Happy Birthday & then enjoyed their cupcakes!! The kids didn't need any sugar at all. The whole class was amped up & ready for 2:30 dismissal. Kicking off Spring Break!!

Our "WILD" Child!!

Our sweet CRAZY wild child Maci!! She can go from princess to rock star in an instant!! She told me last week... "I adore changing my clothes" (ADORE is a Fancy Nancy word!). That was her response when I was freaking out over her floor being covered in clothes. She loves Taylor Swift, Hannah Montana & the newest Owl City -Fireflies- . She will blast her music CD's from her Tinkerbell CD player & use her pink maglight flashlight as a microphone! There is never a dull moment. Maci is loud, funny & full of spirit. She hates having her hair fixed. She'd prefer dreads I think!! I simply couldn't imagine our lives without our spunky lil girl!! She stresses us out daily, from falling down the hardwood stairs to climbing the pantry shelves to wanting to dress herself in tank tops, shorts & flip flops in 20 degree weather, "I fine, I not cold." !!! She's stubborn and her expressions are hysterical.

Madonna or Maci??

Our lil ROCK STAR!!

This picture was taken before our new sofa arrived. She loved having the floor space to walk all sassy, shake her shoulders & flip her curls!! My favorite- the pink maglight!!

Watching Hannah Montana perform!

West Point Father and Daughter Dance Saturday March 6th 2010

Every father needs to connect with his daughter, and every daughter needs a positive example of how a young lady should be treated with respect. This past Saturday Scott had the opportunity to escort our beautiful daughter Marlena to the West Point Father Daughter Dance. A priceless memory for them to share forever!! At the dance Scott presented Marlena with a red carnation & read her the poem "The Wonder Kid".

At the dance: photos were taken & printed & Marlena made this frame to put her picture in!

Camouflage Kids Event "Support Through Sports" @ West Point Saturday February 27th

Last year the kids & I attended a Camo Kids event at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. This year Scott was able to come & experience the fun & excitement. We watched our very own West Point Black Knights. The Camouflage Kids mission is to provide an opportunity to the children of military personnel to visit college campuses and attend athletic events. Hoping to inspire the children to challenge themselves academically and athletically!! The entire event is free & a great opportunity for every military family!! We each received a free t-shirt, goody bag & $50 to spend on food. As a side note: we kept misplacing the white envelope they gave us until we realized it had $50 cash ($10 for each person) to spend at the snack bar. Scott looked at me & said, "it's cash not tickets for the food bar." We didn't lose the envelope again!!! The kids thought it was great to spend their $10 on soda, nachos, chicken fingers & cotton candy. We're lucky no one got sick. Just like an Army Soldier our children have Iron Stomachs!!

Saturday February 20th 2010 Maple Sugar Festival at the Hudson Highlands Nature Center

When I was in 4th grade I remember going on a field trip to a tree farm. We went out into the woods & learned how to tap a maple tree to collect the sap to make maple syrup. This was about the time I was obsessed with reading Little House on the Prairie books. In the book, "In the Big Woods" Laura helped her father tap trees & boil the sap to make maple syrup. I thought the whole darn thing was super cool!! When we left we were given a small tree. Seriously, it was just a little stick. That tree is still in my parents front yard today & Scott trims up the branches every time we go back home. It's amazing to see how big it is!! I don't have a picture to post right now, but I'll add one later!! My point in explaining this memory is that on Feb 20th Scott & I took the kids to our nearby nature center for their annual Maple Sugar Festival. We tasted the difference in store bought Syrup & Maple Syrup. Tasted Johnny Cakes (nope they are not flap jacks/pancakes). The kids made a few crafts, listened to a couple of stories by the campfire & Scott competed in a wood tapping competition!! We walked out in the woods & learned about the native trees and the tapping process. Maximus led the way with our tour guide (a combination of surfer/snowboarding dude) & asked so many questions that we had to tell him to slow down a little. Maximus loves the outdoors & nature & it was awesome to see him answering questions & walking alongside the guide talking his ear off!! Fortunately, our guide thought he was the coolest 7 yr old. Brian asked him if he was really just 7 yrs old. He asked Maximus, "hey lil dude are you sure you can't do my job?" Maximus was focused & serious the whole time & even at that moment he just looked at the guide & said no. Brian said..."You will someday!"WOO HOO!! Scott won! His wooden medallion said, "I tap the fastest" wood.Our adventure into the woods to learn the maple tree tapping process! After an hour of walking in the woods & learning a lot about trees we finally tasted the sweet clear sap. For the record Maci was done after 5 minutes of walking in the snow & wanted to go home!! Maximus & his new friend Brian!