Geek Squad Academy Graduation

Geeksquad Summer Academy was AWESOME!  Here are some more pics and some small videos of graduation.  We had most of the students take a survey online and it was very interesting to see what an impact this event had on the kids lives. 

More pictures can be found here

Geek Squad Summer Academy 2008 Atlanta

Since Sunday I have spent every day helping as an instructor at Atlanta's first Geek Squad Summer Academy 2008. This by far is the most meaningful event I have had the opportunity to be part of, in a work related activity. Geek Squad Summer Academy is a program designed to inspire a younger generation to get involved firsthand with technology. This year in Atlanta we are having 4 different classes for the Girl Scouts of Atlanta. There are about 100 "ladies" as Girls Scouts are reffered to attending.  Throughout the 4 days they take classes on how to build their own computer, setup and secure a wireless network, learn about HTML and design a webpage, and are educated on "Green Computing." It’s amazing to see these young ladies put together a desktop computer themselves, power it on and smile in amazement as it actually boots up. They build their own Ethernet cables and understand how to secure a wireless network. They build all sorts of solar powered electronic devices; make gadgets and jewelry out of recycled computer parts. I am one of the instructors for the web class in which we teach the basics of HTML and watch them excitedly build their own "Junior Agent" websites. You can check out mine here
 
Tomorrow is the last day of the event and graduation.  I will make sure to post some more pictures.

Karlie in the Water

Yesterday, Karlie and her Cousins played in the water. She had so much fun splashing around. My favorite picture is of her sliding down the slide on her stomach..I Love It.

I attached a video too.





Love you baby..see you on Monday!

Laura, Karlie, and Janie

Texas BBQ

I am a southern girl, and BBQ is one of my favorite meals. Nothing is more American than some old fashion BBQ beef, pork, or chicken. Yesterday my family and I went to a great BBQ place for lunch. Don't get me wrong, Sonny's BBQ is good but if you want real BBQ you need to visit places that look like this...



I ate a huge beef brisket sandwich, but what was even better was the piece of Homemade Chocolate Meringue Pie that seriously made it worth driving 750 miles to Texas for. YUM!!YUM!!





Now I need to drink water and eat soup for the rest of the trip...yeah right")

Stormy afternoon

Today we had a nice storm blow through our neighborhood. Because we live at the end of the street much of the water comes right down our driveway cuts a canyon in our backyard and joins up with a creek. Here is a video from todays storm.

Tuesday July 8,2008

Hey Baby,

Here are the pictures that I took today of Karlie. We went to Angie's and rode around in the VW Bug.





Also, look what else I found today at Walmart. It's Karlie's favorite thing in the whole world. An Elmo Juice Box with a Straw, Awesome! She loves it!




Hope you sleep well. We miss you!

Love, your Babies!

Our Trip to Texas...Summer 2008

So mostly this is to keep in touch with Mike while we are away so he can see pictures, etc. But everyone is welcome to read and of course comment on these posts.
So yes, I decided to take a trip 735 miles one way to Vidor, Texas to visit family. Karlie and I really needed to get out of the house and do something different. We decided to stop half way and spend the night in New Orleans. I had never been and was totally excited about sightseeing and taking tons of pictures.

Well, we got there, showered up and went to go eat some good Cajun seafood at Landry's, (an awesome seafood restaurant). I envisioned beautiful streets with trees and moss hanging down, statues, pretty much a peaceful evening in Louisiana. When we arrive in downtown New Orleans, the streets were packed due to the Essence Music Festival being in town...so here is what the Essence Music Festival is for those of us who do not know!!
It’s apparently a Black American Empowerment Seminar. The participants included: Tyler Perry, Rev. Al Sharpton, Tom Joyner, New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin, Louisiana Lt. Governor Mitch Landrieu, Lynn Whitfield, Regina Belle, Roland S. Martin, Soledad O'Brien, Dr. Juanita Bynum, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Bishop Paul S. Morton, Bishop Debra Morton, Tye Tribbett and more."
WOW!!

We eventually decided we would still go eat at Landry's just in another part of town. We got lost on the way there...Went through neighborhoods that included houses reconstructed worth $500,000 next door to homes with FEMA trailers in the front yard. Once we finally get to Landry's, the wait is 45 minutes long. We should have turned around and gone to Taco Bell at this point, but we stayed and 25 min. into the waiting period Karlie decided to go pretty much ballistic. I have never seen her act this way. (Well, maybe that one time at Ann and Gary's) She seemed practically uncontrollable! I thought maybe when we got seated she would calm down, but she never did. I told my parents that Karlie and I would just sit in the car and wait until they were done. We went to the car and sat...and Karlie totally calmed down so we went back in. My parents had ordered my dinner, (grilled shrimp, field peas, and dirty rice) and while we were waiting on it I fed Karlie some crackers and water. Finally after about 30 minutes, they brought out my food and it was completely wrong. At this moment Karlie hits her head on the table and goes back to being uncontrollable, so outside again we went. People are of course staring and I am almost in tears. My dad comes and gets Karlie while I go back in to eat my food, but at this point I am irritated and stressed, so I ask the waitress to take my wrong order off of the ticket. Then my parents and I got into a huge fight that we did not resolve before going to bed. It was awesome. Good Times. The next morning we woke up still upset, and drove another 4 1/2 hours. Enough time to make up. ")

Here are some pictures from our road trip there...the first is of my sweet precious angel and the other is of my not so sweet precious angel.")




Love ya Baby.

Laura

The Vacuum Demos Paid OFF!

So as many of our close family and friends know..due to the fact that most of you watched hours of Vacuum Demo's(Thanks again for doing that!)..We are now the proud owners of a Rainbow Vacuum Cleaner Air Purification System"). We finally got our Payoff check in the mail today. Wahoo..It was so worth it. We have used it so much already. Just the other day, Mike shampooed the carpet in the living room..and it looks brand new. My house always smells great too.

Karlie is sick today

Karlie woke up this morning at about 4:30 and right away I could tell something was wrong. She has a fever and has not been herself all day. I could tell she was very miserable, she didn't want to eat or anything. All I can do to console her is hold her as she comes to me as if I have some magic cure. Its funny how a little cold can be so stressful and depressing for a father. As I learn how to be a father myself I have a greater appreciation for my own parents and family. I can't imagine the heartache I have caused them as I grew up. As kids (and even as adults) we truly don't see the efforts that are put into our lives. Nor do we realize the prayers, hopes, and wishes that are directed towards us. I am lucky to have had great parents and family members who have sacrificed much in raising me. Whatever small mistakes were made are overshadowed by the great effort, teachings, and time taken in trying to make a good life for me. I love you all and hope I can come even a little close to raising my own daughters as well as you have raised me.