Halloween 2008

October 31, 2008 - Tucker went trick-or-treating for the first time ever!!!! Tucker has always went to Granny's church for Halloween, but this year he decided he wanted to go trick-or-treating. We didn't think it was going to happen after our doctors visit on October 30 for strep throat, but the shot did the trick and Tucker was able to go on a short neighborhood trip. He was Super Mario this year - love the moustache. We also roasted hotdogs and marshmallows with the Hinsons and Granny & Papa while the kids went trick-or-treating. The weather was perfect for a campfire. It was a fun night! Tucker and Papa carved the pumpkin while he was out of school with strep throat.

Betsy's Birthday Celebration!

September 22, 2008 - Cousin Betsy Clair celebrated her 11th birthday at Granny and Papa's house. We had a fun family cookout and enjoyed the beautiful day. Tucker's favorite part was the huge clown cookie!

School Days!

September 20, 2008 - Tucker and mom have been back to school for four weeks now. Yes, we were "out of school shape", but things are getting better. Tucker loves being a 4th grader and was thrilled to find out he would be in Ms. Luce's room. AIG classes are keeping him busy and it took lots of work to get him organized. Tucker and his speed stacking buddies performed at Piedmont's football game during halftime. It was very exciting! Outside of school, Tucker has been taking golf lessons at Emerald Lake and has enjoyed their youth clinic that is held each Saturday during September. Dad is loving Tucker's new interest in golf!

July 2008

Tucker and Mom had an awesome July together. Lazy days of sleeping late (don't tell Dad), playing Mario Kart (yes, Mom stinks), being real life "Cooking Mama's" (we have lots of meals in the freezer to prove it), trying to keep the Wii Fit lady from yelling at us about our weight, and some day camps too! Tucker has taken two sessions of swim lessons at Wingate, a 4-day tennis camp at Wingate with cousin Betsy, and a week long horse camp with Betsy while staying at Granny and Papa's house. Things are winding down in the Guignard home as Mom frantically (okay, maybe not so much) tries to finish her summer cleaning and Tucker tries to avoid the "S-Word" (yes, SCHOOL). Every summer I say that Tucker and I have had the best summer together yet - and every summer it just gets better!

Go West with Mickey!

June 11-22, 2008 - The Guignard family planned this vacation in January of 2007. We have been counting down for way too long! We had an amazing time. Aunt Pammy, Uncle Tom, Cousin Maggie, and Cousin Betsy joined us for the fun. Ken, Sue, and Jordan also made the journey. This would be the second Disney cruise that the three families have sailed together.

We flew to Long Beach, California on June 11 to begin the first part of our vacation. The Hinson and Guignard families would be staying in the Disney Grand Californian Lodge until June 15. The hotel was amazing. It was connected to Downtown Disney and the two parks. We loved being able to walk to everything. Those of you that have been to Walt Disney World in Florida will understand the difference. We had been warned that the parks would be much more compact and the castle would be smaller. We still weren't prepared for that tiny castle, but we absolutely loved everything about the parks. The Guignards had a 4-day park hopper pass and visited the parks everyday. That still left time for relaxing by the amazing pool. Temperatures in Anaheim were lower 80's with no humidity. Considering that we had left North Carolina with temperatures near 100, we thought we were in heaven!

Billy and Jennifer celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary on June 12. What a wonderful way to celebrate the day! How will Billy top this gift next year???

On Friday, June 13, the entire gang went to see the Atlanta Braves play the Anaheim Angels. It was a lot of fun. We couldn't believe how many Braves fans were at the game. Yes, the Braves won!

Father's Day was Sunday, June 15. Tucker had a great time sneaking to the store with Mommy to buy matching Disneyland shirts for the whole family. Billy loved it! Tucker also picked out a "Soarin" pin for his dad since this is Billy's favorite ride.

The best part of Father's Day was the fact that we were leaving on the cruise! The Guignard's love cruising. The Disney Magic was on the West Coast in 2005 and we knew that if it ever returned that we wanted to be a part of it! The Disney Magic will only be in Californina this summer. The weather was beautiful and we couldn't wait for the cruise to begin!

We really had a magical week with Mickey and his friends. The Mexican Riviera was beautiful, but we decided that we prefer the Caribbean. The first port of call was Cabo San Lucas. We took a cataraman ride out to the Los Arcos. What a beautiful and amazing sight!

The next port of call was Mazatlan. Everyone decided to spend the day enjoying the boat. This was our hottest day! We cooled off in the pool and enjoyed Minnie's Fiesta Party that included real Mexican band and churros!

The last port we would visit was Puerto Vallarta. The Hinson and Guignard family enjoyed the day on a Pirate Ship. We had a fun day and took lots of dramamine! Everyone's favorite part of the day was the banana boat ride at the private beach. We ended the day with Mickey's Pirate Party. He even shot off fireworks from the cruise ship! Yes, even Bear wore his pirate clothes!

We were all sad to see our amazing "Go West Vacation" come to an end. Tucker's picture below really sums up the way we all felt! We made some great memories with our friends and family. Let's start planning our next trip!!!!

Odyssey of the Mind World Finals - University of Maryland

May 30 - June 5, 2008: Tucker's Odyssey of the Mind team at Unionville competed at the World Finals in Baltimore, Maryland. There problem was "DinoStories". It was an awesome experience for everyone involved. The team placed 14th out of 46 teams from around the world. They were disappointed but grateful for the opportunity to experience so many things. Pin trading was the hot topic at the OM Finals. Tucker has a towel filled with pins from across the US and several foreign countries. We spent two days in Washington, DC and one day in Baltimore. We took a Duck Tour of DC, toured the Capitol, rode the metro, and even saw the White House in a thunderstorm. The team even went to the Baltimore Orioles vs Boston Red Sox game and had a great time! Tucker had an incredible OM experience this year. He will never forget the friends he made and the fun they had.

Let's Go Racing!

May 17, 2008 - The Guignard family made their annual trip to Lowes Motor Speedway for the Sprint All Star Race. Tucker wore his Jimmy Johnson apparel and was ready for a win. Too bad he was asleep when Jimmy Johnson finally led a lap!!!! The best part of the race is our time together at our "tailgate party". We really look forward to this event every year.

Third Grade Zoo Field Trip

April 24, 2008 - Unionville's entire 3rd grade class headed to the Columbia Riverbanks Zoo for a day of fun. Parents were encouraged to come along for the fun. Mom had never been on a field trip with Tucker - it was fun! The weather was beautiful with temperatures in the 80's. These pictures are of Tucker's class. His teacher is Mrs. Comer.

Spanish Spelling Bee???

April 23, 2008 - Tucker had an exciting day at school. He did a book report on Sydney Rella (yes, that's a boy's version of Cinderella) and was required to dress up for the presentation. Sydney Rella wanted to be on the football team instead of going to the Ball. Tucker's class had a fun time with their fractured fairy tale unit.

The afternoon was the moment Tucker had been waiting for - okay, not really. He doesn't really enjoy "stinking Spanish", but he had won his class Spanish spelling bee so he was off to the school wide competition. Granny was able to go cheer him on. A Spanish spelling bee involves being able to write the word correctly on the board and then being able to spell the word using the Spanish alphabet. Tucker finished in 10th place after writing "octubre" correctly but saying the last "e" incorrectly. We were proud of him! Maybe we need to take a trip to Spain! Tucker has suddenly gained an interest in that "stinking Spanish" class!

Odyssey of the Mind State Champs

The Guignard's travelled to ECU on Friday, April 4 for the North Carolina Odyssey of the Mind Competition. We were so glad that Cousin Betsy was able to join us. Tucker's dinosaur team competed on Saturday. Greenville received over 3 inches of rain on Saturday, so you can imagine our day! The dad's did a great job loading and unloading the props in the rain. Tucker's team were first place in the Dinostories division! We could not believe it. They will represent North Carolina in Baltimore, Maryland in Odyssey of the Minds World competition the first weekend in June. At the very end of the awards ceremony, the OM judges recognize one team out of over 100 NC teams as the most creative and innovative - the team that truly exemplifies the Odyssey of the Mind concept. This team receives a very prestigious award and an invitation to the world finals (because they may or may not have placed). Tucker's Unionville team received the award! This is truly an awesome recognition. OM has been an unbelievable experience for Tucker.

Happy Birthday to Tucker!

Tucker's 8th birthday was April 3, 2008. He celebrated with cupcakes with his class at school and with his OM team. We had a dinosaur party at home to celebrate Tucker, Aunt Pammy, and Granny's birthday all at one time. We can't believe how fast the years have been. It really seems like yesterday that we were carrying him and that black box around!

We've Got a Terrific Kid!

Mrs. Comer, Tucker's third grade teacher, nominated him for Terrific Kid. Parents were invited to have breakfast at the school during the recognition ceremony. This is what Tucker's teacher wrote about him:

"Tucker is such an amazing student. He is so excited and enthusiastic about everything we do. He excels in academics but also in other activities like OM and Speedstacking. He is also very kind to other people."

Tucker was thrilled! Mom and dad were just happy to finally be the proud owners of those bumper stickers!!!

Dinosaurs are Furr-Real!

March 8, 2008 - Tucker was one of 28 students at Unionville chosen to be on the Odyssey of the Minds team. His team's problem was to explain why dinosaurs are extinct - in a fun and creative way. After months of practice, his team placed first at the regional competition at Wingate University. Tucker loved Odyssey of the Mind and made some awesome new friends. Next stop - ECU for state competition on April 5, 2008. Cross your fingers for a win!

Go Speed Stacker!

March 1, 2008 - Tucker once again competed in the cup stacking tournament at Parkwood Middle School. Stackers from all over the state come to compete - including "Emma the World Champ". Tucker had an awesome day and came home with two medals. It really is amazing to see how fast Tucker is with those cups. Mom and Dad just need ear plugs. Practice continues as he is preparing for 2009 competition! A special thank you to Mrs. Card his PE teacher who started a cup stacking club this year.