Mid-Summer Adventures

We have been doing some fun stuff this summer, but I never seem to have time (or is it the energy) to sit down and blog about the things we have been up to like I want too.  I am sure you, my two faithful readers, have been wondering why I am so lazy.  So here comes another fast and furious catch-up post.

We had been avoiding the zoo since June 1 since the new "Rocky Shores" exhibit opened since we were afraid of the crowds.  As the end of June approached, we decided that it had been long enough and headed up.  Here are the kids watching the seals swimming around and around (I know there are four of kids instead of three, Arden's friend A came along).  

They really liked the seals, but for sure the favorite was this big guy:

This is the new sea lion.  He is blind in one of his eyes (see how it is white), but he was totally entertaining.  He swam right by the kids a few times, and they squealed like little pigs every time he passed by.  He is HUGE. 

Unfortunately, the new polar bear was taking a nap while we were there and the three new grizzlies were also taking a snooze.  Oh well.  The kids are happy as long as they get some cotton candy and a drink from this baby:

During June the kids took some arts and crafts classes down at the park by our house.  Here are Cora and Dax, creating lady bugs from Styrofoam and pipe cleaners:

Arden really liked her class too (no pictures, sorry), but again I have even MORE beautiful artwork to figure out where to put. 

I enjoyed the classes too, since all three of them went at the same time.  That is right.  I had 50 minutes with NO KIDS to watch.  After the first class or two when they were all doing fine, I would sometimes run around the track at the park, sometimes I would read a book, and once or twice I took a quick trip to the grocery store all by me onesies.  That's right, ALONE.  At the grocery store.  THAT hasn't happened for about six years. 

After those classes ended, swimming lessons started.  Dax and Cora were the only ones in their class, and by the end they were both getting pretty dang brave about "swimming" with their faces in the water.  Here is my boy Dax, or at least the top of him:

 And here is Cora, my little fishie. 

Cora is fearless when it comes to the water, and she can actually swim a little ways all by herself under the water.  Her form is questionable at best, but she can go few feet.  Her favorite part of class was when her teacher would put some weighted rings on the bottom of the pool, and then "help" (read: push) her to the bottom of the pool to retrieve them.  She was so proud of herself, and worked really hard.  When she would go across the pool with her teacher practicing swimming across the pool with her face in the water (like in the picture above), she spent 90% of the time with her face in the water, and only came up to get air.  Dax, on the other time, spent most of the time negotiating with the teacher.  Here is the typical conversation they had on the way across the pool:

Teacher:  Okay Dax, put your face in the water!
Dax:  For how many seconds?
Teacher:  Just for as long as you can.
Dax:  How about free (3) seconds?
Teacher: Okay.
Dax:  Maybe I can do five seconds (by now they are already halfway across the pool)
Teacher: Okay, let's see.
Dax: Are you ready?
Teacher:  Yup!
Dax:  (here he is quiet because this is the part where his face is actually in the water)
Teacher (when he comes up after about 3 seconds):  Good Dax!  Again!
Dax:  How many seconds was dat?
Teacher:  Um, four.  Do it again!
Dax:  Oh wook, here is da side of da pool.  Wet's turn awound and go back.
Teacher:  Okay, Dax, face in the water!
Dax:  For how many seconds?

You get the picture. 

Arden did AWESOME and can go across the pool all by herself now, doing a combination of the front crawl and the doggy paddle.  She also started learning to dive:

Her favorite thing to do at the pool now is dive down to the bottom and retrieve whatever thing she has thrown down there.  Cora keeps me busy when we go swimming now because she doesn't want to wear her floaters most of the time, and truly believes she can swim by herself.  Scares me to death. 

At least during swimming lessons I let her teacher worry about her and I get to sit on the side in a lounge chair and soak up the sun and pretend I am on vacation for half an hour a day.  The kids loved their swimming lessons so much and learned so much that we all agreed to sign up again.  We start our next session tomorrow!  I hope Arden's hair isn't completely green by the time we are done!

Somewhere in there we had the 4th of July.  AMAZING fireworks up at the golf course on the 3rd, and then we went to the traditional Riverdale parade with my family (I love saltwater taffy) and to my sisters for our annual 4th of July BBQ.  No pictures of anything.  I am a slacker, I know.

Here is just a random picture of Dax and Cora at Lowes.  I am working on repainting our living room (pictures to come if I ever get done), and they were "helping" me shop.  Every time we go to Lowes or Home Depot and spend any time or even just pass by the paint section, all the kids just HAVE to pick out a few paint color sample papers of their favorite colors.  Once I swear we ended up with about 73 in the cart.  Sorry, Lowes.  

Last week we went to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point.  This was by far Dax's favorite part:

This is an actual, real live paleontologist carefully cleaning off a dinosaur bone with a tool that looks like a pen hooked to a wire.  The kids were so impressed by this, that yesterday while Preston and I were working in the yard, the kids each found a rock and started cleaning the dirt off them using pens and paintbrushes, pretending they were paleontologists.  Awesome.

Here are the kids next to the T-Rex skeletons:

Dax could have stayed here all day, staring up at these two guys:

We also went to see the movie "Brave," which I really liked.  I thought it was great the way Merida is so feisty and unlike most Disney princesses, she is trying to get out of finding a prince and living happily ever after (although she could have been nicer to her mommy).  It was a little scary for Dax and Cora though.  I had to carry my boy Dax out of there with his head buried in my neck.  Arden was brave (heehee) enough and liked it too. 

We also went camping again, but I will save that for another post.