Alrighty, so if it hasn't been birthday related, it hasn't been blogged about recently! In between all the festivities, we've had lots of other fun stuff going on.
* We had a playdate at Catchair and a trip to the Pizza Hut buffet with Alicia, Christa, and all the kids.
* Strawberry picking!! Followed up by homemade strawberry ice cream [thanks Ms. Christa!]. Oh and Alicia & Christa surprised me with a birthday candle on this playdate [I know I'm not supposed to be talking birthdays anymore, but it was super thoughtful!].
UPDATE: I forgot to mention that we told the kids they could pick a strawberry to eat since they were being good and all. I didn't think to educate them on how to pick and what to eat; I looked over to see Abby eating strawberry - leaves, stem, and all. Yumm!
I also wanted to comment on Andrew's flirting with our Abby-girl! I must have caught him at least four times saying something along the lines of "Here Abby, I brought you strawberry." While they are very cute together with their matching blonde curls and blue eyes, don't waste your time buddy, she's not dating any time soon :)
* Ryan's preschool friend Seth's birthday party at the other Catchair and then dinner at "Welcome to Moe's" with Daddy.
* Touch a truck. The kids love these sorts of events. Favorites included the tow truck since you could pull his horn and the Cobb EMC truck who had a bucket that you could get in. And of course it was even better with Aunt Lolly and Uncle Brian there too!
* Saturday morning soccer has been going super well. Ryan is LOVING it and is so confident out on the field. He loves playing with his friends, Anna Wynn and Sam. He's scored a few goals and this past Saturday he scored a goal and won the medal for the week, go Ryan!
* Ryan and Mommy had a Mother-Son Date Knight at Chick-fil-a. As you'd expect, they went all out and we had a great time. There was a balloon man who made Ryan a sword and Ryan even said hello to the Cow! [Daddy and Abby had their own date next door at McDonalds :)].
Monday, April 30, 2012
"I spy something yellow!!"
Our newest favorite car game is I spy. Ryan always starts with "I spy with my little eye something ..." He's very good, although he can be tricky sometimes. He likes to pick stuff in the backseat that I can't see while driving! And Abby loves to play too. It's always yellow though; "I spy something ... Yellow!" She thinks about it, but it's always been yellow. Ryan and I will usually guess one or two things before she'll say a very emphatic yes. I don't think she has any particular object in mind, she just waits until we've guessed once or twice before agreeing. Often times it's for something out of sight or that wasn't around when we started guessing. She just loves being part of the action.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Abby's Baby
Abby sure loves her babies. And her speech constantly amazes me. Yesterday she was trying to carry two babies into the car, but she couldn't climb in the door [and letting Mommy help her isn't even an option]. So she handed me a baby and proceeded to get in the car. Meanwhile I set the baby in her carseat. When she worked her way over there, her whole face lit up and she exclaimed: "There's my baby in my carseat!!" [yes she said all six words very clearly and excitedly].
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Happy Birthday Party to Abby
Alrighty, I think this might be the last birthday post! You'll have to bear with me; three birthdays in nine days means lots of birthday fun!
We had Abby's birthday party Saturday afternoon. It was a monkey themed party since she loves her stuffed monkey so much. Once we picked the theme, we realized it really was perfect for her. She loves her monkeys, she already has a monkey shirt she loves to wear, she does the cutest version of "no more monkeys jump bed," and both she and her big brother are silly monkeys :) In line with the monkey-ness, we had a monkey- bean bag- banana toss, banana bread muffins, banana pudding, monkey cupcakes, and all sorts of monkey decor.
Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for coming early to help us finish up frosting cupcakes, hanging decorations, setting out drinks, cutting fruits, cooking baked beans, and all sorts of other last minute details. We grilled out burgers & dogs and had all sorts of other fun munchies. We are blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family members to celebrate with; there were seventeen kids running around! Abby had a great time with all her little buddies, especially Anna Wynn & JJ. Those two adored her and followed her around most of the party. Ryan loved having lots of his friends around too including cousin Maxim, yay! And yes, Abby did burn herself a bit on the candle. Despite having blown out candles before, she apparently was so focused on taking a bite she forgot about the flame. Oops! But after a two second cry, she moved on to eating the cupcake and all was better again.
Thanks to everyone who came to party with us and made Abby's birthday such a special event! We appreciate each one of you!
Happy Birthday Baby Girl!! We love you!
We had Abby's birthday party Saturday afternoon. It was a monkey themed party since she loves her stuffed monkey so much. Once we picked the theme, we realized it really was perfect for her. She loves her monkeys, she already has a monkey shirt she loves to wear, she does the cutest version of "no more monkeys jump bed," and both she and her big brother are silly monkeys :) In line with the monkey-ness, we had a monkey- bean bag- banana toss, banana bread muffins, banana pudding, monkey cupcakes, and all sorts of monkey decor.
Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for coming early to help us finish up frosting cupcakes, hanging decorations, setting out drinks, cutting fruits, cooking baked beans, and all sorts of other last minute details. We grilled out burgers & dogs and had all sorts of other fun munchies. We are blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family members to celebrate with; there were seventeen kids running around! Abby had a great time with all her little buddies, especially Anna Wynn & JJ. Those two adored her and followed her around most of the party. Ryan loved having lots of his friends around too including cousin Maxim, yay! And yes, Abby did burn herself a bit on the candle. Despite having blown out candles before, she apparently was so focused on taking a bite she forgot about the flame. Oops! But after a two second cry, she moved on to eating the cupcake and all was better again.
Thanks to everyone who came to party with us and made Abby's birthday such a special event! We appreciate each one of you!
Happy Birthday Baby Girl!! We love you!
Monday, April 23, 2012
Happy Birthday to Coleson!
Not only that, but happy 30th birthday!! Welcome to being old my Dear!
To celebrate Coleson's birthday, we spent last weekend down in Atlanta. Most of the events were a surprise, so that was fun. We dropped the kids with Nana & Pop-Pop at about noon [thank you!!] and started our adventure with some delicious pizza at Taste of Italy. It could have something to do with being pregnant, but that was some good pizza :) From there we headed to Atlanta. We first went to the World of Coke. I tried my best to come up with something fun, but not too touristy since we do live in Atlanta and all [and Coleson refuses to do the segway tour with me!]. So seeing as it's been at least fifteen years since either of us have been to Coke, we've never been together, and the kids wouldn't enjoy it, it seemed like a good choice. It was nice to do something just the two of us. We saw the vault that contains the secret recipe, a 4-d movie [fortunately since I'm pregnant we got to sit in the stationary seats; those things looked wild!], and lots of Coke memorabilia. We sampled Coke from all over, which was a lot nastier than I thought it'd be! By the time we got to North America and classic Coke, my taste buds were shot. While lots of fun, it's crazy to think that you have to pay them to advertise to you all afternoon long!
After that we headed to our hotel - the Intercontinental Buckhead [thank you to Barbara & Jim for hotel points!!]. It was a beautiful hotel and pretty cool to realize we'd been there before for an Imedex Christmas party. We relaxed for a bit before heading to Maggiano's for dinner. It was the closest place we could walk to and the food was very good. We were surrounded by high schoolers on prom night which we hadn't expected; that'll make you feel old!
The next morning we walked to breakfast at Caribou Coffee and then to Buckhead Church. Buckhead is part of Northpoint, just like our church Watermarke. The building itself was amazing - set back in a surprisingly lush area with beautiful trees. To use the space best, they built up with four or five stories and floor to ceiling windows. The music, lights, effects were all crazy good and the opener was right up there with any concert I've ever been to. Of course it's too far away and we love our church, but I'm so glad we got to visit and now I'm even more excited for our future, permanent location!
Thanks again to Barbara and Jim for making Coleson's birthday surprise possible! We really appreciate the hotel points and the babysitting!
Coleson's actual birthday was yesterday. We celebrated with a big family brunch and my awesome mother made us hiffakickles, yummmm! Thanks to Dad for manning the griddle of bacon, sausage, & eggs and to Mom for the hiffakickles. After Abby's party on Saturday, I was exhausted and I couldn't have pulled off brunch without their help. And as an added surprise to Coleson, the Isbell family showed up. Thanks for driving all the way out to Canton; I know it meant a lot to Coleson to have David there to celebrate with us [and I got to see Farah, yay!]. After the gang all left, we collapsed on the couch, watched some tv, took naps, and just tried to recover. We had a nice, casual dinner at the Mexican place. Coleson's mom was able to join us for that and we all had fun singing Happy Birthday to Coleson, trying on the sombrero hat, and sharing bites of his ice cream dessert.
So now we are both officially in our 30's and old! I hope you had a wonderful birthday my Dear and I look forward to many, many more fun birthdays with you! I love you!
To celebrate Coleson's birthday, we spent last weekend down in Atlanta. Most of the events were a surprise, so that was fun. We dropped the kids with Nana & Pop-Pop at about noon [thank you!!] and started our adventure with some delicious pizza at Taste of Italy. It could have something to do with being pregnant, but that was some good pizza :) From there we headed to Atlanta. We first went to the World of Coke. I tried my best to come up with something fun, but not too touristy since we do live in Atlanta and all [and Coleson refuses to do the segway tour with me!]. So seeing as it's been at least fifteen years since either of us have been to Coke, we've never been together, and the kids wouldn't enjoy it, it seemed like a good choice. It was nice to do something just the two of us. We saw the vault that contains the secret recipe, a 4-d movie [fortunately since I'm pregnant we got to sit in the stationary seats; those things looked wild!], and lots of Coke memorabilia. We sampled Coke from all over, which was a lot nastier than I thought it'd be! By the time we got to North America and classic Coke, my taste buds were shot. While lots of fun, it's crazy to think that you have to pay them to advertise to you all afternoon long!
After that we headed to our hotel - the Intercontinental Buckhead [thank you to Barbara & Jim for hotel points!!]. It was a beautiful hotel and pretty cool to realize we'd been there before for an Imedex Christmas party. We relaxed for a bit before heading to Maggiano's for dinner. It was the closest place we could walk to and the food was very good. We were surrounded by high schoolers on prom night which we hadn't expected; that'll make you feel old!
The next morning we walked to breakfast at Caribou Coffee and then to Buckhead Church. Buckhead is part of Northpoint, just like our church Watermarke. The building itself was amazing - set back in a surprisingly lush area with beautiful trees. To use the space best, they built up with four or five stories and floor to ceiling windows. The music, lights, effects were all crazy good and the opener was right up there with any concert I've ever been to. Of course it's too far away and we love our church, but I'm so glad we got to visit and now I'm even more excited for our future, permanent location!
Thanks again to Barbara and Jim for making Coleson's birthday surprise possible! We really appreciate the hotel points and the babysitting!
Coleson's actual birthday was yesterday. We celebrated with a big family brunch and my awesome mother made us hiffakickles, yummmm! Thanks to Dad for manning the griddle of bacon, sausage, & eggs and to Mom for the hiffakickles. After Abby's party on Saturday, I was exhausted and I couldn't have pulled off brunch without their help. And as an added surprise to Coleson, the Isbell family showed up. Thanks for driving all the way out to Canton; I know it meant a lot to Coleson to have David there to celebrate with us [and I got to see Farah, yay!]. After the gang all left, we collapsed on the couch, watched some tv, took naps, and just tried to recover. We had a nice, casual dinner at the Mexican place. Coleson's mom was able to join us for that and we all had fun singing Happy Birthday to Coleson, trying on the sombrero hat, and sharing bites of his ice cream dessert.
So now we are both officially in our 30's and old! I hope you had a wonderful birthday my Dear and I look forward to many, many more fun birthdays with you! I love you!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Happy Birthday to me
So Tuesday nights are our small group nights and Nana was watching the kids last night for us. As a birthday present to me, she offered to have the kids stay and spend the night so I could sleep in on my birthday. And I must say that was AWESOME!!! She dropped Ryan off at preschool and then brought Abby home and I slept ten hours last night, yay! So when I picked Ryan up at noon, it was the first I'd seen him on my birthday. His teacher, Ms. Kathy, walked him to the car and wished me a Happy Birthday. I said something about oh no, did Ryan tell everyone. She said he was very proud of his Mommy's birthday and yes, he'd told everyone. That was pretty cool in itself, but then Ryan jumped into the car and climbed over to me. He gave me the biggest hug ever and wished me a Happy Birthday. Quite possibly the best birthday present ever. Thanks Buddy, I love you!!
Happy Birthday to you Abby
A bit belated ... but Happy Birthday Abby!! Our sweet Baby Girl turned two on Friday the 13th. It's hard to believe she's already two!! Abby had a great birthday and really loved all the attention she got :) While she may not fully understand the concept of birthdays, she certainly knew it was hers and that everyone was making an extra big deal about her! She walked around all day saying "Happy Birthday to You Abby!" So cute.
We started the day at McDonald's for breakfast with Grandma. Abby asked for yogurt and ate every bite. And Grandma even brought cupcakes too, yumm. The cashier gave Abby a My Little Pony kids meal toy that she carried around the rest of the day.
From there, we headed to the pediatrician for her two year checkup. She did very well, especially when we realized she didn't need any shots! She weighed 26lbs which is in the 40th-something percentile and was just about 34ins tall, the 50th percentile for height. Her head is still of course in the 90th percentile. Her kidneys look great and we'll actually be able to go to Ryan's pediatrician from here on out for basic checkups and sick visits, yay!! We love her doctor, but we haven't been thrilled with the rest of the practice and we won't miss the 45+min drive to Dunwoody! We'll check back in with her doctor when she's about 3 1/2yrs just to make sure the kidney's still growing correctly and we'll still have the urologist too.
After lunch at home, naptime, etc, we went out to dinner with Daddy to Chick-fil-a: Abby's choice! I'm still amazed that at two years old she communicates so well and knows so many places & people & whatnot :) She ate every bite of her kids' meal: six nuggets, applesauce, and milk. We came home and gave her some presents; her favorite was a little pink water bottle. Kids are silly! Grandma & Grandpa then joined us for some chocolate chip cookie, oreo, brownie, layered, yumminess, dessert! Abby even helped sing along to Happy Birthday.
What a wonderful day of celebrating with plenty more fun still to come! We love you so much our sweet Baby Girl! Happy Happy Birthday!!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Ryan on hair care
This actually happened about two weeks ago, but I've meaning to blog about it since I thought it to be pretty funny. I was straightening my hair in the bathroom when Ryan asked what I was doing [even though we talk about this every time I do my hair, he still likes to ask :)]. So I explained that I was straightening my hair and said something along the lines of: "Mommy likes her hair straight and flat but when I get out of the shower it's big and poofy."
Ryan's response: "Oh, it looks like Abby's hair!"
Poor Abs.
Ryan's response: "Oh, it looks like Abby's hair!"
Poor Abs.
Monday, April 16, 2012
the Petting Zoo
We have a pretty cool little farm near our house where you can walk through and pet all sorts of miniature animals. We've always enjoyed it and I've taken Ryan several times. The only downfall is it's crazy expensive! So when poor Abby came along, Mommy couldn't justify the cost of three people [we could seriously go to Catch Air eight times for unlimited play for the price of the three of us to go once and even if you try to pet the animals slowly, you're still done in about half an hour].
But I had a feeling Abby would love it and so I decided a couple of months ago that I would take her for her birthday. And that's just what we did. While Ryan was in preschool last Wednesday, Abby & I had a mother/daughter date to the petting zoo. And wow, did she ever love the animals! I was so glad we went! She was right up there petting little sheep and goats and baby cows. She would pet them and feed them and say hi & bye and wasn't even bothered when the big bullies of sheep tried to pin her in the corner to get her bread. She didn't care too much for the pig [and seeing as he was standing in his super nasty water trough, I was okay with that]. She also didn't like the turkeys, but I remember that from taking Ryan; those things are ugly, big & apparently super scary to kids!
So happy early birthday to my sweet Abby girl!
But I had a feeling Abby would love it and so I decided a couple of months ago that I would take her for her birthday. And that's just what we did. While Ryan was in preschool last Wednesday, Abby & I had a mother/daughter date to the petting zoo. And wow, did she ever love the animals! I was so glad we went! She was right up there petting little sheep and goats and baby cows. She would pet them and feed them and say hi & bye and wasn't even bothered when the big bullies of sheep tried to pin her in the corner to get her bread. She didn't care too much for the pig [and seeing as he was standing in his super nasty water trough, I was okay with that]. She also didn't like the turkeys, but I remember that from taking Ryan; those things are ugly, big & apparently super scary to kids!
So happy early birthday to my sweet Abby girl!
Tacos and Rock Stars
Last week Ryan had his first taco! Mommy, huge lover of Mexican food, is very excited about all the possibilities this opens up :) I took the kids to Moe's for lunch last Monday because it was where I wanted to go; Ryan of course wanted Wendy's & a cheeseburger and nothing to do with his usual quesadilla. So when we got there we looked at all the pictures and he settled on a taco, although he was adamant about no lettuce on it! He ate every bite, as did Abby with her quesadilla. It was a very fun lunch with my babies!
In other news, Abby is becoming quite the princess of fashion. Both kids love wearing the sunglasses that the Easter Bunny brought them. They look amazing of course. However, Abby takes it to a whole new level. She likes to pick her own headbands in the morning with no regard for colors or matching. She will also usually add whatever bracelets [or anything else that will fit her wrist] that she can find. And the occasional necklace too. Keeping in mind she did this all by herself, here's one of her looks from last week:
In other news, Abby is becoming quite the princess of fashion. Both kids love wearing the sunglasses that the Easter Bunny brought them. They look amazing of course. However, Abby takes it to a whole new level. She likes to pick her own headbands in the morning with no regard for colors or matching. She will also usually add whatever bracelets [or anything else that will fit her wrist] that she can find. And the occasional necklace too. Keeping in mind she did this all by herself, here's one of her looks from last week:
Monday, April 9, 2012
Easter Weekend
Happy Easter everyone! We celebrated by hanging out some more with Maxim and crew on Saturday morning. After playing and eating lunch at Nana & Pop-Pop's, we headed back to our neighborhood for an egg hunt. The kids had a great time and I was very impressed with how well the egg hunt was done. Abby was all about it! At one point she set her basket down freeing up both hands to gather the eggs as quickly as she could! Ryan and Maxim did great as well. Despite trying to slow him down to save eggs for everyone, Ryan collected twenty-four eggs! I think the neighborhood must have supplemented the egg donations as they were everywhere. We enjoyed playing on the playground for a few minutes and visiting with our neighbor friends.
Saturday night we went to the Easter service at church. Ryan was a little out of whack what with going to church on Saturday and all, so he just came into the service with us. It was great fun having him in there with us actually. We loved watching him get into the songs and wave his arms around! He sat calmly during the service and colored with some supplies Ms. Ericah brought him.
Sunday morning the kids went to Nana & Pop-Pop's while we volunteered at church. Then we joined up with the whole family for brunch and some Easter games. The egg toss got a little out of control [surprise] and we all had a good laugh watching Coleson and Nana chase each other around the yard. We also had an awesome cheering section - the kids were so cute waving the flags from their golf set. Ryan then went home with Grandma & Grandpa to plant flowers while the rest of us napped :) They then joined us for a yummy steak dinner, thanks!
Happy Easter to all and happy spring!
Saturday night we went to the Easter service at church. Ryan was a little out of whack what with going to church on Saturday and all, so he just came into the service with us. It was great fun having him in there with us actually. We loved watching him get into the songs and wave his arms around! He sat calmly during the service and colored with some supplies Ms. Ericah brought him.
Sunday morning the kids went to Nana & Pop-Pop's while we volunteered at church. Then we joined up with the whole family for brunch and some Easter games. The egg toss got a little out of control [surprise] and we all had a good laugh watching Coleson and Nana chase each other around the yard. We also had an awesome cheering section - the kids were so cute waving the flags from their golf set. Ryan then went home with Grandma & Grandpa to plant flowers while the rest of us napped :) They then joined us for a yummy steak dinner, thanks!
Happy Easter to all and happy spring!
fun with Maxim
We spent the past four days with cousin Maxim and it was been a blast! Maxim and Auntie Sarah arrived in town on Thursday and we met them in Cumming for Catch Air & Pizza Hut. The kids had a great time playing together and Abby immediately took to Auntie Sarah, her new bff. She would even throw herself out of my arms for Auntie Sarah! After play, play, playing and eat, eat, eating we all came back to the house for naps and quiet time. Later in the evening Auntie Sarah left for a movie and we had a sleepover party with Maxim, yay! After a quick dinner, we rode bikes for awhile. Abby's tricycle officially became an outside toy and she did pretty well for her first real attempt at pedaling. As long as she was on a slight downhill and Daddy was following behind her, she was fine :) Then all three cousins enjoyed splashing in the big tub and convincing them to go to sleep after such an exciting day was no problem at all!
We started Friday morning eating breakfast at McDonald's and playing in the playplace. Yumm, pancakes! We then enjoyed walking Target [remember those earlier posts about swimming pools and playgrounds? didn't happen! just in time for Maxim's arrival the weather went overcast and down into the 60s, boo.]. Friday night featured a double date dinner for Mommy, Daddy, Auntie Sarah, & Uncle Christian. A delicious dinner at Pure was followed by walking downtown Woodstock during a street festival of sorts. Thanks to Grandma & Grandpa for keeping our babies for us! They had a blast dying eggs; Abby had the blue hand to prove it!
We started Friday morning eating breakfast at McDonald's and playing in the playplace. Yumm, pancakes! We then enjoyed walking Target [remember those earlier posts about swimming pools and playgrounds? didn't happen! just in time for Maxim's arrival the weather went overcast and down into the 60s, boo.]. Friday night featured a double date dinner for Mommy, Daddy, Auntie Sarah, & Uncle Christian. A delicious dinner at Pure was followed by walking downtown Woodstock during a street festival of sorts. Thanks to Grandma & Grandpa for keeping our babies for us! They had a blast dying eggs; Abby had the blue hand to prove it!
Thursday, April 5, 2012
lions and tigers and bears
On Monday we had another one of our crazy adventures with Ms. Christa and Ms. Alicia and seven kids! I love these ladies and their families and I love that they love having fun and making memories! We've been friends for years and now our kids are growing up together and I'm really enjoying watching them become friends too.
Our recent day at the zoo was one such crazy adventure :) Thanks to Christa and her awesome season pass for getting us all in for free!! Despite the spring break crowds and circling the zoo parking lots for over thirty minutes, we eventually found parking almost a mile away! [and I'm not exaggerating. We asked Christa's smartphone for walking directions to the zoo]. After a quick picnic by our cars to avoid bringing everything we owned into the zoo, we were off. Two double strollers, three big boys walking, and a mile to go :) The kids did great though. Of course there were a few moments here or there, but those were expected. Honestly, there were far fewer of those then there could have been and overall the day was very successful.
The first highlight was the meerkats. I'm not sure why but the boys really took to them. They were super cute and Ryan's mentioned them several times the last few days. From there, the giraffes were the next big hit. They were hanging around right by the fence, so close to us! There was even a baby giraffe snuggling with his mommy. By far the best of the day was the panda bears. This was Ryan's third time at Zoo Atlanta and the first time I've ever seen the pandas awake. They were so playful and totally showing off for us! One of them even walked right up against the glass twice while we were watching. The kids loved it! Ryan hasn't stopped talking about the panda bears. And he even remembers the details, such as they are inside now because they don't like being hot in summer [they have an indoor area that's kept at 61 degrees]. The elephants were the other big success. They were also in great spots for viewing and one came right to the fence and looked straight at us. The kids were so cute lining up on the fences and trying to get as close as they could. And calling out "Hi!!" to the animals.
In addition to the animals, we enjoyed ice cream, riding the train, taking lots of photos, reading the map, and all sorts of other fun. Ryan really took to the park map, telling us which animal was next and always trying to plot our course. There were a few times I wanted to grab the map away and tell him to focus on the living animals in front of him! But he's so super book-smart and inquisitive and that's just who he is and I am constantly amazed by him! Ryan asked immediately to ride the train, so I showed him the train on his map and how it was at the end of the circle we were making. We cut it a little too close though; we barely made it on the last train of the day. I shudder to think what would have happened if we'd missed it; I would have been the worst mom ever for letting him down like that!
The kids had such a great time at the zoo and hanging out with their friends. The three big boys stuck together like glue and had so much fun, while Abs and her friend JJ shared a double stroller. And then when they finally got to walk, they hung out together too. Abby wore G's monkey backpack/ leash for awhile [don't judge me! I know before kids I used to think leashes were only for dogs too!]. Abby was so cute with her monkey and really enjoyed the freedom he gave her. And when JJ got out of the stroller, we had her hold onto the monkey tail. The girls thought this was great fun and it relieved a tiny bit of the stress associated with having the two of them loose!
After shutting down the zoo [you'd be amazed at how long it takes all those kids to walk up to the front of the zoo and then to all use the bathroom one last time], we made our mile long trek back to the cars. When we got home, it was straight to the tub, a quick bite to eat, and bedtime. What an exhausting day! But such a fun day with lots of wonderful memories!
Our recent day at the zoo was one such crazy adventure :) Thanks to Christa and her awesome season pass for getting us all in for free!! Despite the spring break crowds and circling the zoo parking lots for over thirty minutes, we eventually found parking almost a mile away! [and I'm not exaggerating. We asked Christa's smartphone for walking directions to the zoo]. After a quick picnic by our cars to avoid bringing everything we owned into the zoo, we were off. Two double strollers, three big boys walking, and a mile to go :) The kids did great though. Of course there were a few moments here or there, but those were expected. Honestly, there were far fewer of those then there could have been and overall the day was very successful.
The first highlight was the meerkats. I'm not sure why but the boys really took to them. They were super cute and Ryan's mentioned them several times the last few days. From there, the giraffes were the next big hit. They were hanging around right by the fence, so close to us! There was even a baby giraffe snuggling with his mommy. By far the best of the day was the panda bears. This was Ryan's third time at Zoo Atlanta and the first time I've ever seen the pandas awake. They were so playful and totally showing off for us! One of them even walked right up against the glass twice while we were watching. The kids loved it! Ryan hasn't stopped talking about the panda bears. And he even remembers the details, such as they are inside now because they don't like being hot in summer [they have an indoor area that's kept at 61 degrees]. The elephants were the other big success. They were also in great spots for viewing and one came right to the fence and looked straight at us. The kids were so cute lining up on the fences and trying to get as close as they could. And calling out "Hi!!" to the animals.
In addition to the animals, we enjoyed ice cream, riding the train, taking lots of photos, reading the map, and all sorts of other fun. Ryan really took to the park map, telling us which animal was next and always trying to plot our course. There were a few times I wanted to grab the map away and tell him to focus on the living animals in front of him! But he's so super book-smart and inquisitive and that's just who he is and I am constantly amazed by him! Ryan asked immediately to ride the train, so I showed him the train on his map and how it was at the end of the circle we were making. We cut it a little too close though; we barely made it on the last train of the day. I shudder to think what would have happened if we'd missed it; I would have been the worst mom ever for letting him down like that!
The kids had such a great time at the zoo and hanging out with their friends. The three big boys stuck together like glue and had so much fun, while Abs and her friend JJ shared a double stroller. And then when they finally got to walk, they hung out together too. Abby wore G's monkey backpack/ leash for awhile [don't judge me! I know before kids I used to think leashes were only for dogs too!]. Abby was so cute with her monkey and really enjoyed the freedom he gave her. And when JJ got out of the stroller, we had her hold onto the monkey tail. The girls thought this was great fun and it relieved a tiny bit of the stress associated with having the two of them loose!
After shutting down the zoo [you'd be amazed at how long it takes all those kids to walk up to the front of the zoo and then to all use the bathroom one last time], we made our mile long trek back to the cars. When we got home, it was straight to the tub, a quick bite to eat, and bedtime. What an exhausting day! But such a fun day with lots of wonderful memories!
a little bit of life
We've spent the last few weeks loving the beautiful weather! I just love love love spring and sunshine and being outside. This past weekend was devoted almost entirely to yardwork and I must confess that I really enjoy it. For better or for worse though, there won't be quite as much yardwork as normal for me this year :) Instead I did what I could in the yard and then sat in my chair in the sun and ate ice cream and read a book, it's tough being pregnant! Thank you Coleson for making our yard looking super awesome!!
Our playdates have also turned outside: the park, the zoo, kiddie pools in the backyard [in early April!!!]. And while not a spring-themed playdate, I must mention that we had a girls' playdate at Catchair one day last week while Ryan was at preschool. It's been fun getting to know our new small group, esp since this one is almost all girls - who would have thought three or four years ago that there'd be more girls then boys in our lives?! Abby loves her little friends, Olivia and Emma, from our small group and I love that she has girl-friends her own age. They are so cute playing together and they had a blast at Catchair and then at Chick-fil-a.
We've also picnic'd at Central Park with Ms. Alicia, Ms. Christa, and their kids. Speaking of Abby and girl-friends, Abs and her little bff, JJ, were sooo sweet holding hands and running through the playground. I love watching those two interact! And we had Madeleine and Baby Alex over to play in the backyard one day. [I forgot to mention it's spring break, hence the large number of recent playdates]. Yesterday we set up the two kiddie pools and in the morning we played with Ryan's friend Seth from preschool and his family. Then we headed back out again after naptime and splashed some more. We've eaten outside several times, including hosting our small group social / cookout. What a nice evening with friends, good food, cornhole, and a spectacular lightening show in the distance. We joined Grandma & Grandpa for lunch one day and a walk / bikeride with Riley. Hmmm, Coleson accused me yesterday of being a social butterfly, perhaps he was right! Have I mentioned that we love being outside in spring??
The rest of spring break includes the fun and excitement of Cousin Maxim's arrival! Ryan's had today on his calendar for weeks! We're also looking forward to plenty of Easter fun. Ryan had his Easter egg hunt / party at preschool last week, but I'll include that in an Easter blog later :) Happy Spring Break and enjoy the sunshine!!
Our playdates have also turned outside: the park, the zoo, kiddie pools in the backyard [in early April!!!]. And while not a spring-themed playdate, I must mention that we had a girls' playdate at Catchair one day last week while Ryan was at preschool. It's been fun getting to know our new small group, esp since this one is almost all girls - who would have thought three or four years ago that there'd be more girls then boys in our lives?! Abby loves her little friends, Olivia and Emma, from our small group and I love that she has girl-friends her own age. They are so cute playing together and they had a blast at Catchair and then at Chick-fil-a.
We've also picnic'd at Central Park with Ms. Alicia, Ms. Christa, and their kids. Speaking of Abby and girl-friends, Abs and her little bff, JJ, were sooo sweet holding hands and running through the playground. I love watching those two interact! And we had Madeleine and Baby Alex over to play in the backyard one day. [I forgot to mention it's spring break, hence the large number of recent playdates]. Yesterday we set up the two kiddie pools and in the morning we played with Ryan's friend Seth from preschool and his family. Then we headed back out again after naptime and splashed some more. We've eaten outside several times, including hosting our small group social / cookout. What a nice evening with friends, good food, cornhole, and a spectacular lightening show in the distance. We joined Grandma & Grandpa for lunch one day and a walk / bikeride with Riley. Hmmm, Coleson accused me yesterday of being a social butterfly, perhaps he was right! Have I mentioned that we love being outside in spring??
The rest of spring break includes the fun and excitement of Cousin Maxim's arrival! Ryan's had today on his calendar for weeks! We're also looking forward to plenty of Easter fun. Ryan had his Easter egg hunt / party at preschool last week, but I'll include that in an Easter blog later :) Happy Spring Break and enjoy the sunshine!!
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