Weekend Getaway!

David had a nuc med conference out of town this weekend, so while he was in one city, the kids and I headed to another! We totally enjoyed a weekend getaway with my mom. We stayed Friday and Saturday night in a hotel and thoroughly enjoy our time together. (Though we missed David and Mark!) We spent Saturday morning at the zoo. I think the kids favorite part of the zoo was the playground. It is huge and nice! Josiah's precious little face was very determined as he climbed!
Mackenzie was so proud of how tall she has become. She can jump up and reach things that she could not reach just six months ago.

Josiah was brave as he climbed on the ropes. Last time he was a bit afraid of the ropes...but not this time! Watch him go! (I was too slow in getting over there to get a picture of Mackenzie climbing the ropes. She was already to the top!)

If you look closely at the above picture, you might get a glimpse of Josiah in his bright orange shirt. Yeah, he's the little dot climbing high in the ropes! I think this picture gives you a pretty good idea of the elaborate nature of this playground.

Here's Mackenzie climbing/crawling across the green ropes. Both kids loved climbing and exploring the playground.

Josiah, Nona (my momma), and Mackenzie watching the African elephants.

A trainer had it pick up a huge log while we were watching.

And, of course, the giraffes. Aren't they elegant?!

Josiah, Nona, and Mackenzie.

I had trouble deciding which one of these two I liked the best, so I uploaded them both! This picture is in front of the giraffes, though you can't see them because I was zoomed in on my mom and the kiddos! :)

Then, on Saturday afternoon, we swam! The kids swam 3 different times over the weekend. While they swam with Nona on Saturday, I got to go shopping all by myself! Thanks, Momma!

As you can see, the kids LOVE the water.

I have enjoyed seeing how much improvement they have both made in their abilities to swim over the past few months. We hope to get some more lessons this summer. For now, the extra time in the pool was great practice for them! I am thankful for a fun and safe weekend. I am thankful for the time with my momma! :)

Fall Activities

Seems like we've had a busy week, but busy in a wonderful way! On Monday, Mackenzie and I made Thanksgiving Turkey Treats just like we did last year. We got the idea from Family Fun Magazine, and Mackenzie was featured in the March 2009 issue of Family Fun in the mailbox section. However, this year we were not just making them for fun. We got a grade for them! :) No worries, we received 100%. Her Kindergarten class is talking about the sense of taste and community helpers, such as bakers. The assignment was to make/bake something together, bring enough for each classmate, and tell the class how you made them.
Mackenzie was very proud of our Turkey Treats.

We had fun making them together, and I had fun carrying them down the hallway and into the classroom on Tuesday morning! The oooh's and aaaah's were so much fun! :) (These are not hard to make. Simple use Oreos, Candy Corn, Whoppers, and Icing as glue.)

Last night we went to Boo at the Zoo, which has become an annual tradition. The kids began the evening tired, so they really had no desire to pose for cute pictures for me! I liked this one of David and the kids walking toward Trick or Treat Lane, though.

Because of the huge crowds, we were able to take the free shuttle bus (big yellow school bus) from our van to the zoo entrance and back to the van when we were finished. Check out Mackenzie's (ladybug) loot!

Here's Josiah (ironman) enjoying his doughnut on the bus ride back to the van. He ate his doughnut and David's, too! Guess that was supper?!

Today David came home early so that I could go attend a Fun Friday craft time with Mackenzie and her classmates. I am her room mom, so I've been coordinating which craft and which parents (three at a time) are there to assist with the craft. We do this once every two weeks, and this was my first time to go. I love it!!! In the above picture, the kids are dancing the coordinated moves that go with the song, "Counting on God." It was priceless. The 19 second video I got of it does not do it justice, but I just might try to upload it anyways!

Above is Mackenzie sitting at her seat after finishing the pumpkin face craft. I read the story of the Pumpkin Parable to the kids after we finished the craft.

Here's Mackenzie with Avery right next to her and two other friends (Madison in pink and Kenzie in white), as well.

Left to Right: Kenzie, Madison, Audrianna, Avery, Mackenzie. Mason and Raley in background.

The entire class, except for one child who was out sick, with their pumpkin faces on their heads.

The finished product!

A sweet picture of the whole (almost) class! Mackenzie is loving Kindergarten. :)

Zoo and Friends!

Josiah, Mackenzie, Abby, and Jonathan were so excited to see each other at the zoo last Tuesday!
Both girls turn five this month, and the boys are only 6 months apart. Watching them all play together was so much fun. Oh how we miss having them right next door to us! Sweet kids.

I LOVED watching the kids pair off and hold hands as they walked through the zoo. Jonathan and Josiah are easy to see....if you look in the top right corner of the picture, you can see Abby and Mackenzie also holding hands! Too cute.

Here's Abby and Mackenzie enjoying some time together while playing on the playground at the zoo. BTW, we loved going to a zoo in another location. That was a fun adventure, as was the drive there! We loved the time we had together with our dear friends. :)

Random June Catch Up

Sorry that I've been so behind on blogging lately. Here's some of our June pictures taken since we got home from our trip to Arkansas. Enjoy! (I decided not to attempt to do a huge Arkansas post. Too overwhelming! Just know that it was a good trip and a fun time was had by all.)We used some birthday money to buy a tent! Then we camped out in our backyard...for a couple of hours. By 10:45pm we were all four back in our beds inside the house! Mackenzie decided she was a little nervous outside. Josiah agreed. David and I liked the idea of being in the cool instead of in the yard on the hottest day of the year thus far-HA. :) Fun family memory, though. We'll definitely do it again sometime.
Here's Mackenzie peeling her cucumber that she picked from our garden. She picks 'em, peels 'em, and eats 'em! I have to say, it's nice that she can peel them herself this year. Anyway. Cucumber makes a great snack when you're taking a break from playing in the sprinkler on a hot day.

Here's an updated pic of the garden.

This past weekend I looked out the window. The above picture is what I saw. I loved it. Josiah was so focused on mowing our yard while David mowed the neighbors yard. I am reminded that children don't miss a thing. Nothing. They notice our examples: the good and the bad. I pray daily that what my kids see will help them in life instead of harm them.

Mackenzie joined Josiah in mowing our yard while David mowed the neighbors. Just precious!

What better refreshment is there for after you mow than a fudge bar?!

Today we headed to the zoo with our friends, Lauren and Allison. We had so much fun!!!

(Lauren, Mackenzie, Allison, Josiah)

They spent most of the time together like this! Hand-in-hand. Precious friendship. They were easy to keep up with this way, that's for sure! We enjoyed seeing some animals together, then on to the kiddie play area.

The four kids enjoyed the water area. Cindy and I enjoyed visiting!

Mackenzie's in the background, while Lauren and Allison (with Josiah peering over) checked out the frog that sprays water! Such a fun time. Summer days have so much to offer. Almost more than one can take in! I am thankful for fun opportunities and friendships.

Our Week

"Back-Pack, Back-Pack," for you Dora the Explorer fans out there, that tune will ring a bell! David and the kids found these at the mall. Being the huge Dora and Diego fans that they are, David and the kids couldn't resist!
Mackenzie and Josiah proudly wore their new backpacks around the mall the rest of the evening!
Laundry, anyone?
Silly, Girl!
Messy, Boy!
(Now you see why we only use finger paints just before bath time at our house! Perhaps it should be called "body paint" instead of finger paint. Ha.)

The kids and I spent the morning at the zoo while David was at work. Sure made the day go by fast and it was fun, too!
A fun week, and a fun weekend ahead! (Umm, I don't really know what we're doing this weekend, but I'm sure it will be a good one since it is a three day weekend for David!)

Have a blessed Labor Day Weekend, Everyone!!!

The Zoo!

This post is a week late, but better late than never, right?! So. A week ago today Josiah and I took Mackenzie to "school." She was delighted to be there, and Josiah was a little lost without her. On our way out of the school and back to our van, I asked Josiah what he wanted to do with the day. He did not miss a beat in saying, "I want to go to the zoo." Okay...I had never been to the zoo at 9:30am, but okay! Let's go! Here is Josiah, enthusiastically marching to see the elephants.
Josiah with the giraffes.

Josiah intrigued by the river otters splashing, playing, and swimming.
A huge tortoise eating a watermelon. Did you know that they only eat twice a week because their metabolism is so slow? And it only takes them about 15 minutes to eat something the size of that watermelon, rind and all. Wouldn't ya know we walked up just in time to watch it eat! :)

The whole day was like that: perfect timing to enjoy each animal to the fullest. The black bear was prowling around, the penguins were swimming, the birds were flying, the prairie dogs were digging, the water buck was in the water hole, the elephant and giraffes were in plain view, the lions were making a deep guttural sound that kinda sent chills down your spine and made you grateful they were in cages, the ostrich was pacing near the fence, the rhino poked its head out to say hello, the chimps were anxious to show off their 1 month old baby, the red pandas also had a baby in the cage, and on and on it goes. I have never seen the animals so active at the zoo. I don't know if it was because of the time of day we were there or the fact that the weather was cooler, but I am certainly grateful for a wonderfully fun day at the zoo with my precious little man.