Waiting for the Garlic to Roast

Chris and Ryan were invited to a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese today. So I got the boys to get their pictures taken with me. It really wasn't that hard. I just had to ask Chris and he ran over.

Ryan was a little more difficult. The first time he I asked him he ran over to the machine but it was out of paper. Sometime during the party they fixed it and I asked him again to get his picture taken. This time he said no. So I told him he could put the money in and push the button. He then ran to the machine.

He had so much fun putting the money in and pushing the button he got two pictures. The funniest part was he had a hold of his tokens the entire time and put all his money in the rides!

Ryan spent all his tokens on rides and Chris spent most of his on games that he could win tickets. So Chris got his brother a toy. He picked out two dolphin gun things. You squeeze the dolphin and a foam rocket shoots off the nose. So during Ryan's nap Chris and I had a show down.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Ken was taking pictures while I was opening my presents. Chris who usually runs from the camera jumped in to get his picture taken with me! I think it turned out pretty good.

Natural History Museum

Monday we picked Chris up from school and headed to the Natural History Museum. It was pretty neat. It was small enough that the boys never asked to leave and large enough to be there for a couple hours.

Chris was excited to get there and see the dinosaur bones. I have to say the dinosaur display was really not that impressive. The bird collection surrounding the dinosaur bones was impressive, but boring.

We all liked the floor that looked like we were walking over a coral reef. Ryan thought he was going to fall through and was very nervous walking on it.

We completed a scavenger hunt inside the museum. Glancing at the sheet it said to find a bunch of different animals outside. We figured they had more little statues then what we had seen coming in so we headed outside and found this neat little path in the woods.

Our best guess is that the path was to look for and learn about birds.

Upon actually reading the scavenger hunt paper it said to head out to the warthog, rub his nose for good luck and then find the animals on the base. So that was the last stop of our visit.

I have to say it was a nice little museum and I learned some new information, but thinking about it a week later I am not all that impressed.

Chris mentioned his five favorite things on our way home from the museum and I just asked him what he liked the best. His reply "the dinosaur bones, the scavenger hunt and the glass floor." Funny, because that was the most memorable part for me too.

Big Oak Park

We headed to Big Oak Park yesterday for a picnic and to play outside. They had a pretty cool playground but I can definitely see how it can get boring quick.

A single ladder took the kids to the top and there was always a line of kids waiting to go up. The slides were definitely fun though. Chris informed us one was faster then the other and when you lay down you go faster. Could he have learned that from us on the water slides?

There was also another playground for the little guys. Ryan played here for a long time until he discovered how much fun the tall slides were.


Of course in between climbing on the playground there were snacks

and some football.

(Chris was about to get tackled.)
Overall it was a fun day. One could easily spend all day at the park. There are also open fields to play in and hiking trails.

That Crazy Weather

Monday and Tuesday we were out playing in the snow....today we were at the beach enjoying the 60+ degree weather flying a kite!

My Little Swimmer

Today we went to the pool at the YMCA. Ken told Chris he was going to take the swim test to swim in the deep end. Chris was a little hesitant but didn't want to say no to his daddy. So he got in the pool and passed!!!!!

I was excited and Ken was excited. Chris acted like it wasn't a big deal. Well, I played in the shallow end with Ryan while Chris and Dad played in the deep end. After a while Chris swam over to me and started jumping up and down in the water and screamed that he passed the swim test.

I am still so excited for him. He is back to acting like it is not a big deal again though.

Lots of Snow!

I can't tell you how much snow we got but we got a bunch. The wind blew a ton in our backyard and at some places it was up to my knees!

The boys were excited to head out and play.

Once we got out there though Ryan could not get through the snow. Ken put him in the sled and pulled him up the hill. I think we went down the hill three times before Ryan was done and wanted to play on the slide.

During this Chris was just trying to walk in the snow. He was having such a hard time.

The wind was still horrible so it was blowing snow in our faces. Ultimately, the boys did not have much fun and asked to go in after about 10 minutes. The only one who had fun in the snow today was Chase.

Hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day to play.