Zoo with the Dazey Family

On Labor Day we were invited, by the Dazey family, to go to the zoo with them. We jumped at the opportunity because Lily just loves the zoo and we enjoy walking around seeing her so happy.

It was a day of perfect weather, there weren't too many people there, and the company was great.

For the first time we spotted the Polar Bear. She is always hiding out every time we try to see her and say, "Hello." I think that she was out roaming because she was hungry and in anticipation for her lunch she wandered around while waiting to eat.

Now that Lily is getting older, she has this energy and desire to go exploring and climbing all over things. She made sure Daddy followed along so that she could run around this bizarre playground. We always knew where she was because she just giggles and giggles as she runs around thinking that she is the princess of the playground.

The Dazey children were much more adventuresome (and brave) and climbed atop a large structure thing. Man... I'm glad my children aren't old enough to do this yet because just watching them made me nervous... and they aren't even my kids!

It really was so enjoyable to go with the Dazey family to the zoo because I got to know them better. They are a hoot and fun people to be around!

Besides the playground, and the Polar Bear, this was Lily's favorite attraction. It's some sort of "energy efficient" workshop set up off to the side of one of the paths. It teaches children to turn off lights when not using them, turn down fans, shut doors, etc. Basically how to be more energy conscientious.  It was something new and exciting and that's why Lily liked it so much. 

I love coming to the zoo and walking around. It may not be nature, but with the lack of places I have to walk in Winston Salem, this is a nice serene place that I enjoy because my kids enjoy it here. We can't wait for our next outing. I wonder what will be the highlight the next time we go!

"Marco made a mess!"

I am starting to realize what it means to have a little boy. 

What are Little Boys Made of?

A wee bit of dirt and a devilish grin...

Curious eyes and spaghetti sauce chin.

A dollop of mud behinds his right ear, 

And a handful of worms in his pocket I fear.

You see his knees through the holes in his jeans.

He likes ice cream, but won't eat his beans.

He's made of muddies and bubble gum kisses,

And wonder at Christmas and birthday wishes.

And a heap of giggles and wiggles and love;

These are the things little boys are made of.

~Patsy Gaut

I can already tell that this little guy is so much more active than Lily was at his age. He is so much more inquisitive, and eager to get his hands into everything and everything into his mouth! I can tell you this:

I am in for one wild ride.

Lily loves Marco. Marco loves Lily.

I had originally intended to do a part 2 to this post. But upon further reflection, I don't think that it's just Marco that loves Lily. I think that Lily loves Marco equally as much.  Her new favorite thing is to try to get Marco to laugh when they are both in their car seats and ready to GET OUT! Lily starts whining to get out and Marco starts laughing, so then she tries to be silly, and he laughs harder. Since Marco is laughing, Lily can't help but laugh. Where car rides used to be such a pain, they are no so enjoyable and pleasant because I have two children who entertain each other during the trip. There is no sweeter sound to my ears than to hear children laughing!

Marco is becoming more and more mobile and interactive. With this Lily has really taken to playing with him instead of her toys, animals, monsters, or books. Sometimes she doesn't realize how small Marco is and how she needs to be gentle, but most of the time Marco squeals with delight and tries so very hard to be included in all the fun.

She is such a good big sister and wants to make sure that Marco is included in everything she does. If she doesn't like what toy he is playing with, she will go and get a different toy for Marco to play with so she can have the toy she wants. And when if I get bored of her reading books to me, I can tell her to go read to Marco. He makes such a great substitute!

When Marco was finally stable to sit upright in shopping carts, Lily wanted to start sitting in shopping carts again. She is so protective and makes sure that Marco has a friend. Sometimes she gives him a little too much love... but really... is there such thing as too much love for each other at this age?

Nap times are awesome when I bring Marco in. Lily usually wakes up disoriented and upset. (Disclaimer: I lay down next to her until she falls asleep so when she wakes up and I'm not there she becomes a tad frightened). When Marco comes in it makes the world of a difference because she instantly wants to play and hug him. If he's had a good nap - he's totally game for it. If he hasn't - he's ready to move on to the next station to play!

When we FaceTime Grammy Lily has to show how much she loves her baby brother. 

I really, really was hesitant to have two children - mostly because I didn't want to go through another pregnancy. But, what won me over was the fact that Lily would have someone to play with. I am so glad that she and Marco have each other and that they love each other. They are so good to and for each other and watching them play together just makes me beam as a mother. I hope that their friendship will only continue to grow and deepen over the years. That is my wish.

Other August Outings

The month of August didn't seem nearly as busy as the month of July... and I think I've figured out why! The first week kids were sick with colds so we camped out at home to keep from getting anyone sick. And then the last week or two of August school started. So other families that we see frequently were busy putting their lives in order to get kids ready for school. I also think that it didn't seem as busy because I didn't pull out my phone nearly as much as I used to. I now have a little boy who wants to chew on it anytime he sees it so I keep it out of sight to prevent slobber damage.

That being said, we did try to get out and see people as much as possible. Here were some of our fun outings...

Lily loves, loves, loves Caleb! (She prays for him, and Marin, every night). So she is always asking me when we can go and see Caleb. I need to be better about getting together with them. Marin is a great friend and someone that totally enriches me every time I'm around her... so it would just make sense to see them more often. This particular outing Caleb taught Lily to love hats. 

We visited Laura Bell and her children this month. I always feel bad popping by to see them because they have so much going on and so many kids to take care of. But she makes me feel so welcome every time I step through her front door. I hope that from visiting Laura that her warm welcome to me can rub off on me and I can emulate this and share this with others as they "pop" in to see me!

We had Daddy for one Saturday this whole month! So we took off and headed up north to Mt. Airy and decided to check out a cute little general store in the area. I had won a $20 gift card here and we wanted to spend it. It sounded like a great idea, but we ended up spending way more than our allotted $20. We had lunch there and we wish we would have known that one sandwich could have easily fed three people. We were also feeling generous and let Lily pick out a special treat for her to take home. If you can tell (from the photos below) that she is toting around Nemo and Dori - it will come as no surprise to you that she chose gummy sharks to take home. She played with them for three days before she saw Daddy take a bite of one and realized they were edible. After that discovery all the sharks mysteriously disappeared. 

This month, we also made a new friend, Cynthia, that we met at Trader Joes. She invited us over for lunch one afternoon and as soon as we arrived Lily decided that she needed to inspect her home. I was so embarrassed. Luckily Cynthia was such a good sport about things and decided to take us on a fun tour of her home. Even though there were no "toys" for Lily to play with, Lily had the time of her life and keeps asking when we can go back to see her.

I had a really neat experience happen at her house. As I was getting ready to leave Cynthia said, "I just wanted you to know that I knew you were Mormon as soon as I met you at Trader Joes." Her comment left me speechless, and while I didn't say anything she continued, "I bet you're wondering how I knew. Well, let me tell you. When you meet a Mormon, they have a different 'look' about them, a different demeanor. There just appears to be this light in their eyes. And you had this look." The only response to what she had said was to say, "Thank you." Nothing else felt appropriate because this was a compliment she just paid me. If nothing else, her comment really made me so glad I came over because it was just what I needed to hear. It uplifted me, and I like to be around those that uplift me and make me feel better. 

Bed Head

I have dreamed of cutting off all my hair and growing it out, but I have a little problem and this little problems is called, "I have naturally curly hair." So while others have straight hair and their hair behaves, I never know what my hair is going to decide to do. Instead of taking a leap of faith, I can vicariously live through Lily and watch her grow her hair out and see what kind of awesome hairstyles can be produced with a little bit of curl!

I think bed head is adorable and I love it. Sometimes there is nothing I can do to tame it other than wet it down and start over... which isn't always promising either! I have neglected to take pictures of bedhead because I don't ever have my phone around when kids are waking up. But all of her crazy hairstyles help me feel assured that she got a good night's rest.

Zoo with Jude & Eli - America

Sunday, August 30, I got the best text at night. It read: "Hey? Sounds wild and crazy, but would you all want to explore the North America zoo on Monday?"

Heck Yes!

We are always up for a zoo trip and were so excited to have friends join us. 

We pulled in to the zoo and no one was there! Plus, it was a misty rain which made it so it wasn't hot, but just perfect to walk around in. We think the rain is what kept everyone away. Unfortunately, it kept a lot of the animals away too. They were mostly hiding. but little kids are easy to entertain... 

... and there were some animals that wanted to cone out and play!

Right as the sun came out the kids just wanted to play at the playground. We let them run around and get some of their energy out. but once it got too hot, we definitely called it quits and headed home! The North America zoo side doesn't have shade like the Africa side does... so it gets hot too easily and too fast!

Lily loves Jude and cannot wait until we get to go to the zoo with him again!

Thanks for inviting us on an animal-filled fun adventure!

Lily's First Day of Preschool

I was really on the fence about taking Lily to preschool. I know that she needed more interaction with children her own age, but I was also told that there would be a lot of co-op type play-groups with various women in the church. So two things helped make up my mind more easily. One: There was a co-op play group started - with almost everyone in Lily's nursery class... except Lily. Two: My mom told me it didn't matter what I wanted, but what was best for Lily. I knew in my heart that putting Lily in preschool would be what was best for her since she thrives off of attention and doing things with other kids her age. So, I went ahead and signed her up for the nearest preschool which happened to be Lewisville United Methodist Preschool. It is approximately four minutes from my house and one of the best decisions I have ever made. 

The first day we really tried to talk up preschool and how much fun it would be in case she was nervous or had any sort of reservations about attending. I made Mickey Mouse waffles for breakfast, we let her pick out her own outfit, we took pictures, and we even let her ride in Daddy's car all the way to Preschool.

When we got to preschool, Lily walked right in the door into her classroom like she owned the place. She wasn't nervous or afraid, was ready to play and ready for Mommy and Daddy to leave. We stuck around long enough to watch her wash her hands, get a name tag, and start playing with all their dolls.

The first week was only half day preschool (for adjustment purposes) and I came back a tad early to take a peek in her classroom window and see how she was doing. She seemed to be doing well. She seemed to be happy.

On the way home I asked her to tell me what she did at preschool. Lily replied by sharing with me that they went outside and they sang songs.

The most endearing thing about sending Lily to preschool has been asking her what her preschool teacher's name is. Her response: Tren-er-ow-ski. 

But in reality, putting Lily in preschool has been such a blessing. Marco usually sleeps the whole time that she is in preschool. Normally Marco's nap is interrupted by Lily waking him up either running into his room so he can play, or by yelling or singing really loudly. Preschool has ensured that at least three days a week he gets a good, good nap. And while he is sleeping I have gotten so much done. I feel like my house is clean, organized, and (for the first time in a long time) I can sit down and work on a project, take a nap, or read a book. When Lily comes home from preschool, time that I spend with her is so much more valuable and precious. I try to make the most out of the things we do together at home and I think it's because I get "me" time and feel refreshed, I cherish the time I'm able to spend with her.

Big Toys

On August 29, there was "Big Toy Day" at the Davidson County Airport. It was filled with all sorts of various vehicles for the kids to check out and climb all over. After reading the description to Michal, we decided to jump in the car and drive to Lexington and check it out. Lily would love this!

We got there and they shuttled you from the parking lot to the runway, where all the entertainment was at.

There were vendors selling drinks, goodies, and rides you could go on - but our little girl was much more interested in all the "big trucks." She had so much fun climbing up onto each vehicle and pushing all the buttons, honking the horn, feeling tall. 

In addition to any type of tractor, excavator, and dump truck possible, they had old, old vehicles reminiscent of what was driven during WWII. We took a picture of the vehicle below because it looked just like my Grandpa's vehicle seen in this post.

Our last stop included visiting the planes and helicopters. They were offering rides for $20/family, but the Jaramillo Family wasn't interested in any airplane rides. Instead, we checked out private jets, old and new helicopters, and lots and lots of types of small planes.

^^Can you tell how hot everyone is by their flushed cheeks and sweaty heads?

Had we brought lunch we could have spent hours here, but it was hot and everyone was hungry. We opted to head to chick-fil-a to fill our tummies up in preparation for Saturday naps. Next time we will come better prepared... and we will take that family airplane ride!