Animal Center Field Trip

Our playgroup met for a little field trip today to the Helen Woodward Animal Center. We got to meet four animals, a miniature horse, box turtle, white dove, and a black chihuahua. The kids had fun touring the facilities. I found it amusing that Nick was more into the garbage truck that was in the area instead of the animals, but he still had a good time running around. At the end, we visited the adoption area. Paige was really into all the kittens and I fell in love with a sweet five month old australian shepard/lab mix (the picture does not do him justice). However, we did not bring home any furry friends. Not quite ready to add another member of the family.

Strawberry Shortcake

When Kris came to visit, he brought a cookbook for Paige from her Aunt Michelle. It's a cookbook for kids with lots of colorful pictures. I told her to look through the book and to decide which recipe she wanted to try first. Of course, she went straight for the desserts and settled on strawberry shortcakes. So given the May Gray outside, we baked our shortcakes, whipped up some cream, and all the while tried not to eat all the freshly cut strawberries.

Got to have the recipe out for reference.

Rolling out the dough. Then we used a heart-shaped cookie cutter.

Waiting for the cream to whip and practicing patience.

The finished product.

Little Fish

A few months back we joined our local athletic club. Brian has gotten back into playing tennis, I've started some fun, high-energy exercise classes, and the kids have turned into fish playing in both the toddler pool and "big pool", as we like to call it. They cannot get enough time splashing around in the water and it's been a great thing for us to spend time together there.

And thanks to Uncle Kris for taking these great pictures. We had a blast with Brian's brother in town last weekend to celebrate Eric's graduation. Brian is in charge of that posting soon to come.

In the Bleachers

Today we took in a Padre game with our friends, Nicole and Terry, with their son, Pete, and Linda and Mike, with their kids, Lily and Joe. We bought tickets out in the bleachers to give the kids more space to roam and be free. They have a huge sandpit area and directly behind the bleachers is the "park in the park". Amazingly, the game was a quick one, only two and a half hours long. And, the Pads won, woo-hoo! They are on a hot streak right now.

Nick enjoys a hot dog and juice box.

Paige enjoying the sand and sun.

Thanks for the group picture Terry!

Water Table

I made my first purchase using Craigslist today. I've been on the hunt for a water table and really did not want to buy one brand new. So, after a couple of weeks of searching, I finally found one. This one goes for about $75 new and I got it for $35. I tried to get her to go down to $25, but to no avail. She pulled the, "I've had four phone calls and I'm certain I'll get my asking price." So, I was probably too quick to buy, but the kids were already trying to play with it while I was negotiating. I couldn't resist. As soon as we got home, we set it up and played happily until Paige and Nick were soaked and needed a changing. At which point I thought to myself, now why did I buy this?

Cake Deco Part II

In my last two classes, I learned how to do a rice paper drawing and a Raggedy Ann doll. Both were much easier than I thought they were going to be and I'm so glad I learned these techniques. I think they will help me create awesome birthday cakes for the kids. I only have one class left. We will be learning how to make roses. Good thing is I will be able to freeze them for future use. Spiderman was made with the rice paper drawing, traced from a coloring book and colored in with piping gel. Raggedy Ann was outlined with a toothpick and completely covered with buttercream icing.

Pinky 2.0

I never thought it was going to happen, but it did. Paige lost Pinky. Last Friday, we went out for a walk in the stroller, Paige brought Pinky with her, and when we got home, POOF, gone. When we went to go look for her a couple hours later, she was nowhere to be found. We retraced our steps a half dozen times. We put up "Lost" signs for our beloved Pinky on our route, nothing. In some ways, Paige handled it better than I did. I was sad about the whole thing. Whenever Paige said, "Mom, Pinky's lost", I thought I was going to shed some tears. So, in an effort to make myself, and of course Paige, feel better, we went to the store to pick out a new Pinky. I was relieved to find that Paige had enough warmth in her heart for a new lovey.

Captain Nemo

When we got Nemo, we named him Captain Nemo, Dog of the Sea (yes, his full official American Kennel Club name) after the infamous character in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Surprisingly, Finding Nemo, wasn't even out yet. He was the spunky puppy out of the bunch and immediately we were attracted to his confidence. He tinkled on Brian's shoe at first meeting, what does that tell ya?

Today Nemo turns seven. He's considered a middle-aged canine although if you come in to contact with him, you'd never know it. When most people meet Nemo, they think he's about two years old. All the while, Brian and I will respond, "Yea, we're still waiting for him to mature." Somehow, it hasn't quite happened yet. So for now, he'll remain the eternal puppy and the biggest baby in the house.

Open House

Our local police station hosted an open house this morning and we thought it might be a fun thing for the kids. Boy, were we right! They had a great time checking out all the police vehicles: the SWAT truck, the mobile unit, motorcycle, and old-style cars. There were a couple of horses as well. We even got to tour the inside of the station. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the holding cells because they had arrested two burglary suspects (the bad guys) earlier that morning. The station is brand new and has been open for about a year now. It was great that they opened it to the public and had a good turnout in return.

Teacher Appreciation Week

Tomorrow Paige and I will be presenting Miss Kimberly with a handcrafted card, gift card to Starbucks, and a bundle of homemade lemon bars in appreciation of all her hard work. Inside the card I wanted to include some of Paige's thoughts on why she likes her teacher so much. The conversation went as follows:

Me: "Paige, why do you like Miss Kimberly so much?"

PJ: "Because I love her."

Me: "Well, why do you love her?"

PJ: "Because I like her."

Me: "Well, why do you like her?"

PJ: "Because I love her."

Apparently this was all I was going to get. Guess she wasn't in the insightful mood today.

Blooms

I know Spring has arrived when I start sneezing and when the yard goes nuts. Getting rid of the grass in the front was the best thing we could have done because now we have a gorgeous blanket of purple blooms everywhere. It brightens my day to look out there each morning and as I pull up in the car. The birds and the bees are also enjoying the multitude of blooms.