It's All Happening at the Zoo!

Michael and I have been wanting to get back to the zoo before the schools let out and before it gets too hot. Well, we met one of those criteria!

Since Michael is finally finished with his crazy work project, we headed to the zoo yesterday morning. It also happened to be the warmest day of the year so far, just our luck! It was just the four of us, so Michael and I were on our A-game!

(The family that wears hats together, stays together??)

Our plan was to arrive at 9:00 when the zoo opened and stay until lunch and then come home for nap. Thanks to rush hour we were a little behind schedule, but that didn't end up mattering anyway. The place was pretty empty when we got there, and, actually, stayed pretty empty (unless you are counting the MILLIONS of field trips). It was still better than a weekend.

I like the zoo in the morning because the animals are actually DOING things. We were really lucky this time; we saw/heard the male lion roaring, the baby elephant splashing, the giraffes eating, and, oh yes, the POLAR BEARS SWIMMING.

We have been to the zoo probably four times since the polar bear exhibit opened, and each time Michael is desperate for the bears to be in the water so he can see them from the underwater tunnel. He was set for disappointment this time too since the bears were not cooperating when we were checking them out above ground. By the time we got to the underwater tunnel though: TA DA!


Ok, so now you know Michael and I enjoyed ourselves, but what about the kiddos? Well, we decided that they had a good time, but they couldn't have cared less if there were actually animals at the zoo. What did they like? Well, Colin liked the 1,000 school buses we saw on the way there, he liked the grasses and leaves that grew along the paths, and he really, really like the water in all the exhibits. Like it so much that he kept trying to get IN the water.
Checking out the cement termite mound:


He totally wanted to get in with the fish:


And Gillian? Well, she like pushing the stroller, picking grasses along the path, and playing with the binocular stands at each exhibit. I accidentally took a picture of the ground, but it's pretty cool with Bean and my shadows in it:


Using the binoculars:


Despite the fun at the rest of the zoo, the kids REALLY had fun at the children's section of the zoo. Especially the slides. Bean was wicked fast on those slides too! Fast down the slide, then ZIP back up the steps again. She was hard to keep track of! She tried out a few of the animal statues, briefly. She was already climbing off the camel:


Here is Colin climbing the "wall" that served as the stairs for one of the slides:

Is it any wonder they were tired?

Oh, they did end up being interested in some animals. On our way out, the elephants were in the elephant house and we could get about 15 feet away from them. Much more interest then! We had both kids making lots of elephant noises!
Look at this cute baby!

All in all, very fun, if not a little hot. We're planning to go back at least one more time this summer!

Self Family Portrait

Pretty good, right?

Alternative Bean

Gillian was rockin' the stocking cap that's in her dress up box today. Minus pants. That's how she likes to roll.


We thought she looked like a little snowboarder.

I (w)on(e) the Sandbox...

The Kids love the outside... they love the it! This gave Lea the idea that they needed to have a sandbox. So on Saturday we drove down to the local K-Mart where Lea had it on good authority that they had Turtle sandboxes for rock-bottom prices. After searching around the inside of the store, we finally managed to locate some turtles outside in the garden department. After picking up a turtle and a mini-picnic table (and some flowers), we headed home for a nap. Well, the kids took a nap, and I went to work, but to each their own.

After work, a nap, and dinner, we went to Lowes and bought our sand. By the way, Colin LOVED Lowes too. The reason: THEY HAVE A WHOLE SECTION DEDICATED TO CEILING FANS! He was in Heaven! Despite the fact that the natives were starting to get restless we headed over to Rita's for some ice and ice cream.

The next day, after the kids' afternoon nap, we went out and used the sandbox for the first time. It was a hit:


I took the liberty of procuring some miniature excavation equipment for the kids when we were out at Wal-Mart earlier in the day...

Colin thought it was great:

While Bean thought it was fun, she did need to take a break and mow the lawn with bubbles:

You Scream, I Scream

We all scream for ICE CREAM. Well, maybe not ALL of us.

It was a beautiful day in Pittsburgh on Saturday, so we took good advantage of it. We picked up a sand box for the kids, some flowers for the deck, and played on the playground and in the backyard. After dinner, we ran to Lowes to get some play sand, and then on for some ICE CREAM!

Colin and Gillian have both tried ice cream before, but they've never had cones. Time for that to change! We stopped at our local Rita's and placed our orders! Gillian really enjoyed it, I think! She dove right in!


Colin grabbed his right away, and said, "Mmmm, num, num." And PRETENDED to eat it. More, "Mmmm, num, num." No eating though. We put the kids down in the back of the car to eat their cones. And Colin immediately climbed over TWO rows to seats, leaving his cone in the dust, so he could "drive" and push buttons.


Gillian was kind enough to hang out with her parents and eat some ice cream.


Well, Michael and I enjoyed our treats anyway.
(Colin's untouched ice cream)

How to Wrestle Alligators (AKA My Mother's Day Photos)

I had a lovely second Mother's Day! I was certainly better rested than I was for my first Mother's Day. That, in itself, is enough reason to celebrate in my book.

We had a pretty low key day; up early with the kids and waiting for the Grandmas. We also had Uncle Stevie and Aunt Emily visiting for the weekend, so it was a full house by 11:30. Grandma RoRo, Grammy Lynn, Grandpa Frank, Uncle Stevie, Aunt Emily, Michael, Colin, Gillian, and I met Uncle D and Aunt Mercedes for lunch. Yes, a large crowd. We had a nice, but not speedy, lunch and headed home.

I drank tea and watched the TiVo during naptime while Michael mowed the lawn. After the kids got up, we bundled up and played outside for a while. Then dinner and bed for the kiddos. Michael was nice enough to treat me to a movie COMPLETELY of MY choosing in the evening. I chose "It's Complicated," and I really enjoyed it. Michael did not. I think this is my new Mother's Day tradition!!

Before lunch I asked Michael to try to get a picture of the kiddos and me. Um, this is what we got:




Aaaaaannnndddd, the winner!


Yeah, 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

Bubbles and Babies

Some of C&G's favorites right now are baby dolls and bubbles. Colin kind of likes the gear that goes with the baby dolls, like the stroller and the pretend spoons, but Gillian is REALLY loving the baby dolls right now. She likes to carry them every where, feed them, put them in an old sleep sack, put them to bed. It's pretty cute. Daddy got some pictures of her on the deck with her stroller the other night. She was trying to make the seat belt buckle work and she was making some funny faces.



(She looked so sweet in her summer dress! She really enjoyed it too, as she would much prefer to be naked anyway!)

Both kids really like bubbles too. We have a few different bubble delivery systems. Colin has a bubble mower, they have a little spill proof bottle and wand, and they have a really cool tiger that blows awesome bubbles when you squeeze him. Colin was using the old fashion blow-on-the-wand model on the deck the other night. I'll add that he DID wear a shirt with these overalls on Friday, but he had been stripped down for dinner and only the shorts got put back on. (I am just not a glutton for laundry anymore, so they eat naked when it's warm enough!)

Couldn't you just EAT HIM UP??? (And pardon my rear end in the background. Thanks Daddy.)






Fun times!