Field Trip Journal - Zoo Trip

What can I say? The weather was perfect. The last day of our year pass. Daddy's last day of work at his job. The kids have been begging. All good reasons to hit the zoo for a fun field trip.


Our first stop was the Siamang jungle gym where the kids try their hand at being siamangs.

 Then we hit the meerkats basking in the sun.

I guess this lemur just wanted to see more of the action. He was peering over his cage at the people animals outside.

The flamingos are usually outside but I also got the construction of the new sea lion exhibit in the background.

Hyacinth Macaw.

 Komodo Dragon. This one's a baby.

 Some lizard that I can't remember.

 Two monkeys that I can't identify either.

Playground Action.

 Serious motorcycle dude.

We hardly ever get to see the Cheetah up and walking around.

See those two brown things next to the leaves in the center of the pic? Those are the sloth's toes curled over the edge of a wall in the rainforest exhibit.

One of our faves - the tamarins.

Kingly nap.

 The arctic fox.

The baby chimpanzee was hanging from the tree branch swinging over the older ones on the ground.

Giraffe trying for a bit of green on the ground.

Had to run by the zebras for Betty.

Always a hit - the train!

We were exhausted after it was all over, but we had a great time at the zoo. See ya next time!

Field Trip Journal - Oxley Nature Center

Here's some pics from our recent trip to the nature center. I went here as a girl so it was fun to take the kids along and let them experience it for themselves. We hiked for quite a while and Betty and Bo were both wanting me to hold them. And Betty kept saying she was scared, but she says that anytime she's in an unknown situation, so we just pressed on. We found some cool tracks and enjoyed the flowers and the swamp areas. I wish we had time to stop and just listen and maybe sketch something in our nature journal that we found, but maybe next time. It was a perfect day and so gorgeous.



Home Journal - Bo's 2!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BOY!!!!!!!!

We celebrated the big day by going to his favorite place for dessert...Well, actually what the older four said was his favorite (even though he'd never been before). You know...that's what happens when you're the youngest.

We had kinda a construction birthday party for him. I used some small, clean construction toys and put them on a batch of brownies. Then I crushed up some Oreo's for the dirt. I used candy corn for construction cones to spell his name. It was pretty cute if you ask me!  He wanted his uncle to have the honor of holding the birthday boy as he blew out his candles. Or as uncle blew them out. ;)

He had a grand time opening all his gifts. E and Z were trying to get him to open this present and that and then he had to wait until someone else could get it out of the packaging for him while the others were telling him there's more presents to open. He'd yell, "No!" at them and then they'd try sweetly to lure him back to the task. Then, like he'd heard them for the first time he'd say, "Oh! Otay!" This went on for several rounds. He finally managed to get all his presents unwrapped and sent thank-yous in the general direction of the giver.

This little guy is so special to us in many ways. For being the youngest, he knows his place in the family. To Betty he's pretty much been the enemy that took up too much of mommy's time. But recently she's figured out that he can be a pretty good friend. Thank You, Lord! For the boys, Bo's the little bubba who'll try to do everything they can do. For E, he's a willing dance partner and sometimes stinky charge. During school, he's the class clown. During the rest of the day, he's still the clown! He's daddy's sports watching buddy and he's momma's morning cuddler.
He's not afraid to take a leap of faith.

There is no place too high, too low, too dirty or too small that he will not try to go.

He's all boy, but he's not afraid to show his feminine side...right down to the coy eyes. ;) (I know...he'll hate me for this when he's a teenager. Ha!)

He's a pet lover.

He never wastes his time with little messes. Big and better baby!!


I love ya Big Boy! You're mama's favorite Bo. XOXOXO

Vacation Journal - Disney World

On vacation in Orlando, we stayed at a house that had 6 bedrooms so the kids all had their own bedrooms if they wanted. WooHoo!!! The boys chose to stay in the same room anyway, but E got her own room and her own adjoining bathroom. She was pretty pumped about that. Our first day at the parks we spent at Magic Kingdom. It was a fun-packed day with rides and food and sights. The big kids loved Splash Mountain and the littles favorite was the Mad-Hatter's Tea Party. 

The next day we spent at Animal Kingdom checking out all the rides and animals there. The big kids had a blast on the Everest Expedition Roller Coaster and everyone loved the African Safari Ride. We also took plenty of time to enjoy everyone's favorite passtime...ice cream!!



The third day we stayed around the house, cooked our own meals and swam at the house and at the clubhouse. The littles especially needed a rest from the theme parks and this was just what they ordered.

On the fourth day we loaded up and headed to Epcot. The big kids had fun on the Race Track and the Soarin' rides and Betty's fave was the Land ride with all the plants growing. Bo loved riding any kind of boat.

The next day we ventured over to Hollywood Studios where we got to do a Star Wars Fight Simulation that was pretty cool even though mommy had to close her eyes through most of it to prevent any adverse effects.  We also had a blast at the Toy Story 4-D Video Game. The bigs especially liked the Rockin' Roller Coast but said they did loop-d-loops and were scared at that.

 We took a park break again the next day for some more swimming and lazing around. The girls helped me finish our Disney puzzle that we bought special for the occasion.

 Our last day the kids got to pick which park to go back to. They picked Magic Kingdom and this time they not only rode Splash Mountain, but also Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain Railroad. We also got caught on Tam Sawyer's Island in a downpour. Thankfully, that was the only rain or other bad weather that happened the whole trip. After our one-hour hiatis on the island, we resumed normal park activities and finished our Disney tour with as much excitement as we started it.

Before we started our trip, I told everybody that they were going to have to get mouse ears because I got some when I was a girl - black with my name embroidered in the back. They all whined and complained about that, but when the trip was over, they were proud to display their newly-bought mouse ears - although a little fancier than the old black ones. :) Even Bo took off his Larry Boy hat that he wore ALL WEEK to don his "Mitty Mouse" hat.

We had such a fun time and are so glad we were able to go and spend some much-needed time together as a family. We have some great memories and will be telling those when we're old and gray(er) I hope, just like when my family gets together.