Dinosaurs And The Family Dog

As my spring break comes to an end,
we decided to have a family day...

at the zoo.

Never mind that the sun was hiding, the temp. was only 58 degrees,
and the wind chill was much below that.

We already told the little ones we were going to the zoo...

We had lots of fun...
and froze our butts off.

Abby loved yelling out animal names in her nasal little sassy voice.

"jjj-afff!"

AJ refused to wear a jacket, but had to have his back pack and sunglasses.
(I truly do not know where he gets his stubbornness from.)

What you can't see in the following picture
is the poor little goose down below with a wounded wing
that has caught the attention of every tiger in the exhibit.

Once they started moving in, we got the kids out of dodge
before there was blood shed...
didn't feel like explaining that one today.

Lots of pointing at the polar bear exhibit.
Daddy and AJ are noticing the polar bear.

Abby was pointing...just to be pointing...at nothing really.

She got really excited to see "La-tte!!!"...our family dog at the zoo.
I couldn't break the news to her that really it was an arctic fox...

And we had multiple variations of the following conversation throughout the day...
just substitute in different animals for the warthog...

AJ, shouting with pure shock and awe in his voice: "Look mom, it's a dinosaur!!!"

Me in a calm teacher/mom tone: "No, AJ...that is a warthog...not a dinosaur."

AJ in a very pissed off 4 year old voice: "NO MOM! IT IS A DIN-O-SAUR!"

Me with a slight tone of irritation in my voice: "No AJ...actually it is a warthog."

AJ more pissed off than ever: "NO.MOM! IT.IS.A.DIN--O--SAUR!"

Me in a flat deflated tone: "Whatever. Go tell everyone you saw dinosaurs at the zoo."

Flat Mya

In first grade we send Flat Stanley outlines to family members to take on various adventures
and send back to our classroom.

The kids decorate them to look like themselves and have lots of fun with this project.

Flat Stanley comes back from all over the world.

One of my students did not have someone to send her Flat Stanley to,
so she colored her outline...
and Flat Mya went to Kansas with me.

It was crazy fun having this little flat friend along for the ride.

People kinda wonder about you when you pull a paper doll out of your purse
and start snapping pictures with her...
which was the best part.

Here she is at DIA:

(notice the upside down peace sign...hummm)

Here we are on the airplane...where I talked a fellow passenger into holding Flat Mya up so I could take a picture:

Driving around in Kansas:

Meeting Aunt Chance's newest and cutest nephew...
just look at the pride on Mya's face:

Getting in our educational outing at the state capital:

Visiting baby V's daddy at his office:

Oops...Flat Mya didn't notice the bright yellow caution sign and biffed it:

(She was okay.)

Wrapping up the day with some official business in baby V's daddy's cubical:

Flat Mya and I had a good time in Kansas!

(Just googled what an upside down peace sign means...
please know that in this case...
it was just the innocent mistake of a 6 year old.)

Perfection:

A state of completeness and flawlessness:

Two of my most favorite, fabulous people made him.
How could he not be perfect?!

He is destined to do great things in this world.

I just know it.

This Week

I am on Spring Break.

It is fabulous.

It started with getting my hair done.

A quick plane ride to Kansas.

Now I am enjoying some hot tea and some paranormal romance...

in between snuggle lovin' my newest and cutest nephew.

Best Things On Earth

Last Friday I discovered the most fabulous, tasty appetizer on Earth!

My BFF and I stopped into the Grand Lux Cafe
for our weekly get together.

And let me tell you...
grand it is!

Next time you see one...
stop what you are doing...
no matter how important it may seem...
change whatever plans you had...
and go in!

As I was passing my menu back to our server, I noticed the word pickle.
I quickly pulled my menu back and on a complete pregnant woman whim...
ordered the Fried Pickles with Remoulade sauce.

Best impulse order I have ever made!

I can't stop thinking about them.

I think they are battered in crack.
I kid you not.

If you like food,
you will like these things.

Make These Now!

A couple fun ideas to get in the spirit this week...

A super cute and fairly simple pot of gold treat from
No Time For Flashcards

gotta love anything with a rainbow ribbon...

And these amazing sounding Irish Car Bomb cupcakes from
Baked Perfection

Make these and tell me how great they are!
Since I am...well...with child...
I will get in on this Bailey's frosting fun next year...

What are your favorite St. Patrick's Day treats?!

250,000 Spectators

Second largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the nation...

We simply could not miss out!

So we got up early,
packed our back pack with snacks and sun block,
colored our hair green, and
headed for the Light Rail.

Little Miss Sunshine herself.

AJ navigating the parade route.

Such a serious spectator this one.

lots of bag pipes and Irish dancers...

lots of green...

a double thumbs up from our biggest critic...

a nice walk around downtown...

only one tense moment in the crowd...

with a mom that had claimed her curb side spot an hour and a half before the parade...
and a grandma with 5 grand children...running late and trying to push through to the front...

250,000 people...
some already sampling the green beer by 10am...

grandma backed down...
smart lady.

lots of kilts...

St. Patrick himself...

quality family time at a lil' pub...

And some corned beef and cabbage for lunch!

A charming way to spend a Saturday.

AND....

It's just ONE bambino!

(whew...)

One Of My Favorite Parts

I keep telling myself...
oh the third baby doesn't need a special nursery...

But who am I kidding?!

Picking out names and crafting a nursery
are the best parts of being pregnant!

(well...and eating all the time...the naps are pretty great too...)

back on track...

Abby and AJ will share a room with our future family expansion...
so that will take some thrifty redesign too.

The wheels are turning...

Option #1: I. am. in. love. with!

Wouldn't Andy just have an aneurysm if I asked him to paint the ceiling with yellow stripes?!

Options 2 doesn't require hardly any repainting at all...

Option # 3 requires finding a vintage crib...

hummm....

(This is how I kill time before my bambino appointment this afternoon...
the big appointment...
the one that confirms one bebe or two...)

A girl has to stay busy.

Girlfriend

Don't let her sweet face fool you.

This chick is ornery.