LEGO KidsFest!!!

 It came....the closest event there is resembling a Lego Convention. NERDS UNITE!

 For weeks, we were all excited.

 Parker could barely sleep.

 We drove for 2.5 hours to Raleigh, NC and joined about a 

BILLION kids and adults who all love 

or enable someone they love to collect all things Lego.

 The Lego KidsFest boasted THREE ACRES of Legos, 

including building stations, competitions, shopping, 

enormous Lego statues, and lots of screaming, happy children 

and their exhausted parents.

 The statues were AMAAAAAAAYZING! 

This Lightning McQueen was 350,000 legos and weighed 3 tons.

 This is the Brick Pile. Basically a dump truck 

came into the convention center, 

dumped a heap of bricks, 

and all the kids jumped in and started building.

 Monochromatic brick build: featuring the cheddar cheese assortment.

 Parker literally screamed when he saw the 

another building station with the bricks in his all-time favorite color.

 Parker had a hard time at the Lego retail store 

deciding what to spend his allowance on. 

He saved for weeks!

 This is Creation Nation. Everyone gets a small base plate 

and they can create whatever they want, 

which is then placed on the map of the U.S.

Parker got so excited he broke out in his customary 

Heat Rash of Excitement, so we knew he had a great time!

Yearly Camping Trip

 The first weekend in October, we stuffed the car to the gills 

with all our camping gear and hit the road for the mountains.

 We spent Friday afternoon-Sunday afternoon at a new campground

which proved to be the best one EVER:

 Perched on the banks of a stream!

On Saturday morning, we embarked on a 3.4 mile round-trip hike up a serious mountain to view the falls.

 Lots of scenic views along the way 

(and resting spots for those boys who seemed to get tired a lot!)

 Parker almost had us convinced to turn back, 

but we kept creeping up the side of the mountain. 

If we hadn't, we would have missed this:

 Or this!

 It took three hours to get up and back.

 Ah! We reached the top!

 Parker enjoyed the hike, but honestly, the kiddo really came along for the S'mores.

 And the fire-cooked breakfasts.

 And the excuse to get really dirty and whittle a stick for hours.

Parker is 12!!

Just LOOK at this handsome boy!
(Don't tell him he looks like Justin Bieber...he will run away screaming.)
For his birthday. we wanted to do something different.

The day before his birthday, we hiked up to the Great Falls of the Potomac River
with Parker's grandparents, Adam & Heather.

It was gorgeous!

Adam & Parker on an outcropping of rocks built on Olmstead Island,
smack in the middle of the Potomac.

Parker and his new aunt, Heather

Who needs a haircut?

After the hike, we invaded Adam & Heather's apartment for the official birthday celebration.

Oh the JOY! The RAPTURE!

He was pretty thrilled by the gifts-Legos, model cars, and an art porfolio.
Thank you G&G Williams, G&G Hancock, and Aunt Rachel!

A MONSTER cupcake with 12 green candles...the BEST color ever,
as maintained by Parker.

On the morning of Parker's birthday, we attended the Sunday morning performance
of Jeremy's music group, Polaris. Jeremy had a surprise musical number
for Parker--an acoustic performance of "Always," which was a lullaby
he wrote for Parker after we found out he was going to be a boy.
He sang that song to Parker every night for YEARS after he was born.
It's always been a special song, and it brought tears to all of us when he sang it.

THEN we stopped by the BEST local donut shop EVER
and stocked up on all the different flavors.
Birthdays are pretty much the only time
Parker comes in close contact with THAT much sugar.

The next day (after sleeping off a sugar high) was the FIRST DAY of school!
Even though he was wearing the "coolest" shirt ever
(although anything with lime green and black have earned this distinction),
he was NOT happy about starting 7th grade.
So far, it has turned out to be much better than he anticipated.
He has a new, bigger locker, nice teachers, and new and old friends.

 The next weekend, he had a sleepover with his best friends, Kyle (left) and Michael (right).
He had a growth spurt over the summer, and now he is taller than his buds!
He is now towering over them at 5'2" and 102 lbs.