Siskey YMCA Pool in Charlotte Part I

Monday I went to Charlotte with Mom and Hayden to visit Brandi, Chad and Asher. Aunt Brandi took me to this really awesome pool at her local YMCA. It was the best pool I've ever been too, by far. Thanks Aunt Brandi (see I said Brandi).

This giant frog head/tongue was a water slide. I was very excited to give it a go. I stepped up to explore and.....

...thought maybe I'd give it a try later.

And I did try it later, making it down to the bottom in one piece. Excellent!

Siskey YMCA Pool in Charlotte Part II

They made me take off my swimmies and put on a vest, I'm not sure why, but I didn't mind so much, as you can see in this photo.

Check out this playground in the middle of the pool. I want to thank the genius who thought of combining a pool and playground! Two of my favorites things all rolled up into one! I loved that orange slide!

It was very fun to swim in such shallow water. When I needed to, I could put down my feet. It was so big, there was so much room, I could swim for miles.

Horsin' Around Earthshine

While Hayden was zipping, mum and I entertained ourselves. I really did enjoy watching the zipline, so we followed them a bit, and then found some animals to play with too.

Steve is the hero of the day, saved that lady from spending the rest of her days dangling from a line.

The heat and humidity does wonders for my curls. At least, that's what mom says!

Ziplining can be very seroius business, especially in the heat. Can you believe that lady, she didn't make it all the way and Steve had to go out and get her, very serious.

Great Balancing Rion! I made it all the way across without falling, two times. The zippers were actually right above my head crashing into a rope web of sorts, so I had a great view from here.

"Rion!", said mum. "Stay away from that goats bum! Yuck!"

"But mum, it's so fun. When I touch his tail he swings it around and around really quickly."

Getting Ready to Fly Thru the Treetops

Last Saturday me, Mum and Hayden headed out to Earthshine, you know, the place where mum and dad got married, cause Hayden had a date with the zipline. It was a very fun morning out.

Make sure you do it right, don't want any accidents!

"Me too?" (that's exactly what I said)

Manly man ready to take on the Earthshine zipline.

Hayden Zips

19 Months Old

A note from mum: Tomorrow Rion turns twenty months old, so this post is a bit behind, like alot of things in our life, but eventually everything gets completed. Rion is growing so fast, I can't keep up. Our summer has been so full of outside activities and day trips, but often the most fun we have together is just hanging out in the front yard, laughing at the simple things, like climbing on a red wagon.

Jump One-Almost

Jump Two- Success

Bear Sightings

I swear, it is a bear! Look closely, very closely. It was a rainy morning and we were headed down the mountain after a visit to Ma and Pa's house and as we rounded a corner, there they were. Two bears! It was so exciting, mum fumbled around with her camera trying to get the shot, and she did, just "bearly"-hehehehe! I went back to Ma and Pa's just three days later with Dad and Hayden and we saw another one in their backyard, but no camera was available. Bears, bears, everywheres.

Crusader's Uniform

Put me in coach, I'm ready to play. Or do I need to shorten my shorts a bit?

Saturday at the Asheville Nature Center

Mum and I spent Saturday morning at the Nature Center over in Asheville. It was my second trip, a much warmer visit than back in February. I loved running around on the trails and watching all the animals. The next few posts show some of what I got up too on our morning out.

Hurry up Mommy, let's find the bear!

Big Bad Wolf, what a crock. They looked like dogs, sweet, medium sized puppy dogs. I don't understand their bad reputation. I can even howl like a wolf, although the wolves didn't seem impressed, oh well, off to find the river otters again, now they know how to party!

Farmer Rion

The Nature Center isn't just animals and snakes, it also has tractors. Score!

Close Encounters

Does anyone like snakes? I do, for the most part, tough guy that I am. Don't worry, this python was pretty tame, and his trainer was always close at hand. Obviously, the python is not native to N.C., although several other snakes are, and there have been many sightings this summer, especially at the Shoals in Dupont.

Blog Follower

I guess I'm a bit full of myself, I love my own blog. Hayden helps me log-on and check-out all the exciting videos of me doing cool things. The video's are my favorite. I want "more, more, more." I love to watch them over and over and over, so does Hayden and mommy, I think.

Coontree Part 4 "Friends"

Lisa and Lucy joined us for some fun at Coontree later on. Hayden helped them climb the rocks. Lucy is only 5, but very brave. She jumped right in, with Hayden there is help her of course.

Hayden and I had fun building a dam together. All in all, a great morning out!

Coontree Part 3 "Cold Water"

Ok, it's my turn to get in. This isn't so bad. It's nice and cool, I mean it is a very hot July day.
Ok, I've had enough now, get me to the shore, pronto!

Coontree Part 2 "Hayden Jumps"

Coontree in Pisgah Forest Part 1

Cousin Hayden is my hero. Watch him climb these big, gnarly rocks at Coontree on Friday.

He made it!

Mimi's Garden

Take a tour of Mimi's garden, lush and full of veggie delights. The entrance is wrapped in yuumy, sweet grapes, step inside and see what else you can find.

Blueberries!

Green Peppers

Tomatoes! Yum! I'll save some for mum and dad. There are also lots of zucchini's, I'm sure Hayden wants a piece of that action.

After Dock Birthday Festivities

I'm often get jipped when it comes to dessert, but this time Mimi slipped me a cold, refreshing popscicle. Thanks Mimi!

Low Country Boil for the Birthday Dinner: Shrimp, Sausage, Potatoes and Corn in Old Bay Seasoning, YUM!
A friendly game of horshoes. Mum and Dad beat-up on Grandpa and Chad, mum was on fire. Of course the later game of Corn Hole was a whole different story! Grandpa and Grandma, the beginners, were on fire!! Dad and Pop-pop did good too. Sorry, no photos of the corn-hole, they made me go to bed, so I missed all the action.

What's a guy gotta do to get some food around here? I guess I'll just help myself. And you'd think they could take some of this get-up off, I'm not going to drown in taco dip for the love of Jake!

Mum's Birthday at the Lake

This is THE LIFE!!!! Grandpa and Grandma come to Mimi and Pop-Pop's, fun!

This a picture of me with Don Johnson, I mean Dad. I love swimming in the lake!

The girls hanging on the dock, Lesa, Brandi, Chanley and Mum.

Mum's Birthday Pal

Odin Clevend was born on the 10th of July, 2008. Mum was born on the 10th of July, 1972, you do the math. They celebrated together on the 9th of July at the Shoals. Odin's mum brought yummy cupcakes, hats and bubbles. It was a fun pre-celebration.

Hayden's Morning Off

Hayden has been a work horse since his return from NYC, as Kiwi Gelato has been busy (a great thing of course, I need a college education). Daddy let him have the morning off last Thursday, so we too a trip to Dupont Forest. Mum and me went straight to Fawn Lake. Hayden took the long way to the lake via push bike.

Hey Pasty Boy, HIGH FIVE!

Watch out Rion, my brakes aren't working well.