Norwood Family Pictures

So FINALLY, we got together and did a Norwood family photo shoot. You know...the kind that every yuppie family with young kids is supposed to do ANNUALLY...but somehow I have escaped doing until now... We FINALLY did it in January and the pictures are just phenominal. A pic of the girls is below, but more pics can be found in our "Best of 2011" Picasa album at:
https://picasaweb.google.com/tammy.r.norwood/BestOf2011#


By the way, if you're looking to have family pics done and are in the Charlotte area, I highly recommend reaching out to Kathleen @ www.capturedbykd.com

Caroline's first fishing trip to Myakka

This weekend Caroline got her first taste of fishing at the pond at the Norwood estate in Myakka City. She hauled in a decent sized bass on the first try, and picked up a nice sized brim on her second try!!!

Vacation in the blue ridge (not the smokies)

We just got back from a fantastic North Carolina snow vacation during the 2nd week of January. We could not have possibly asked for a better location, better weather, or better company. The Norwood clan and the Cucchi clan made the 12 hr trek to Valle Crucis NC to spend a snow-filled week in the mountains. We did plenty of fun stuff, but none more fun than sledding down the driveway at the Black Bear Lodge until we were too cold or too tired to do it anymore. The smiles on Bekah and Nick's face in the pic below tell the story...

More vacation pics are at: https://picasaweb.google.com/tammy.r.norwood/VacationInTheSmokies#

I highly recommend the luxury cabin that we stayed in. it was beautiful inside and out - we will stay there again. http://blackbearlodgenc.com/

Best pictures of 2010

I've uploaded some of the best pics from 2010 to the picasa album below. Comment on this blog on which one(s) are your favorites! This one is mine...


http://picasaweb.google.com/tammy.r.norwood/BestOf2010#

Christmas 2010 Pics posted!

Family,

Pictures from Christmas 2010 are now posted on Tammy's Picassa account:

http://picasaweb.google.com/tammy.r.norwood/NorwoodJacksonChristmas2010#

If you have more pictures, please let me know and I will set it up so that you can add them to this album.

First Camp Out - Only five year olds need apply

On the Monday before Thanksgiving, we had our first "camp out" with Bekah and some of her five year old friends - cousin Parker and Nicholas (who graciously brought their dads!). We set up camp outside of the stocked pond in my parents' backyard in Myakka City. It was legit camping - we cooked our food over an open fire, we spent the night outdoors in tents, etc ...but it was somewhat civilized just in case someone needed to run to the house to seek medical care or go to the bathroom.

I was hoping that this scenario would be PERFECT for three newbie five-year-old campers, but I wasn't sure how it would all work out...would the kids have a good time??? would they actually sleep in tents outdoors??? would they be afraid of the dark??? Well, all of that worrying was pointless - they had a FANTASTIC time!!! We fished, we played flashlight tag, we swung until the wee hours of the morning, and we did indeed sleep in our tents successfully.

On the fishing side of things, we took in a good haul...and even got to fight with the three biggest fish in the pond (Parker fought with the big catfish and the #1 big bass; I fought with the #2 big bass). Both Parker and Nicholas successfully brought some fish on shore, while Bekah mainly coached from the sidelines (see post in October for when she hauled in the big bass! ...its tough to beat that experience!).

Click here for a few more pictures of our adventure!

Watching the Bucs game from the luxury suite

At an FCA banquet in September, the Snellings/Cucchi's/Norwood's won an auction for a luxury suite @ Raymond James to watch the Bucs-Saints game on 10/17/2010. We invited a bunch of the leaders and coaches from FCA as well as Pastor Mike and his son, and Shawn & Tiffany Muneio. Below are some pics from the game. Oh yeah...the Bucs lost that game...badly...but even losing was fun in the suite! We also met a new friend at the game - Eileen!

Costa Rica Missions Trip - 2010 Edition

On October 2nd - 10th, 2010 Tammy and I went on a missions trip with our Bible Fellowship group at Idlewild to Tarcoles, Costa Rica. This is the third trip that our Bible Fellowship group has taken to Tarcoles, working in conjunction with Pastor Jamie.

This year's trip combined some service work (painting the roof of a local school), evangelism (door-to-door, on the beach with the fishermen, and at various church services and events), and some good fun (soccer, baptisms in the Tarcoles River, touring the Tarcoles River). We had a great time building friendships, with both the locals in Tarcoles as well as within our own team from Idlewild.

Below is a photo album from the trip:
http://picasaweb.google.com/justin.o.norwood/CostaRicaMissionsTrip2010#

Matthew 28:19 - 20:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Bekah catches the big bass - AGAIN!

While Tammy and I were in Costa Rica on the missions trip (see my next post), Bekah and Caroline spent some time at Grammy and Pappy's house (Justin's parents). Fishing is a required activity when hanging out at the grandparents' place, and Bekah did just that!

This time, Bekah hauled in the biggest bass in the pond - for the second time! (see post on April 10, 2009 when she caught it the first time). Bekah is the only one who has ever successfully brought this fish on shore...and he has grown quite a bit since the last time she caught him!!!!

This catch landed Bekah's picture at the worm store around the corner and landed her in the Sarasota Herald newspaper!

Gators-Bulls game w/ Gary & Cyndi

On September 11th, 2010 - we went to the Gators-Bulls game in the Swamp...the first-ever meeting of our two favorite college teams. Don't be mistaken...Tammy and I bleed orange and blue so we KNEW what team we were cheering for, but we also are Bulls season ticket holders and enjoy the social aspects of hanging out with our friends who are USF alums while watching the Bulls when they are in Tampa. Due to the countless Bulls games that we have been to over the years, we often found ourselves confused...doing cheers for both teams sometimes, before we caught ourselves!

This was the HOTTEST day in Gainesville that I can remember. We strategically bought seats in the shade (note: shade for a noon game starts around row 85 in the west stands), but still people were passing out around us left and right. We probably drank five 20 oz drinks per person during the game just to keep hydrated!

Oh yeah, and the Gators ended up winning the game. The Gators had an anemic offense, but finally put it together in the third quarter.