What a Zoo

The weather forecast for Saturday did not look promising. In fact, for a while, the whole holiday weekend weather outlook was rather stormy. The dozens of mosquito bites and sunburn lines that we have tonight can attest that the weather changed for the better.

Gma and Gpa J came down for part of the weekend. They watched Q and D on Friday while Ms. A was closed - and Gpa easily succumbed to Fiona's sniffles, bringing her to school in the morning and picking her up right after class ... and taking her and the gang to DQ for snack. No before and after care for that girl!

We decided that we would go to the zoo with the grandparents and Auntie on Saturday - mostly because we haven't even made it out to the farm yet this season. So after nap, we headed over. A big storm was rolling in as we started driving and when we got to the zoo, there were a lot of very wet people leaving. It was mass chaos inside the aquarium area and I was pretty sure that Auntie was going to need a sedative to survive. Then we looked outside and saw the rain had stopped. For lack of a less-crowded option, outside was looking pretty good!

Mike kept his eye on the radar on his phone and we ventured toward the farm. One short, unexpected downpour popped up and we made a mad dash for shelter under the tractor stop. Luckily I had brought fresh-baked cookies for just such an occasion. That rain passed quickly and we finished the walk to the farm. It was the best! We were one of maybe three groups out there and had no competition to see anything! Grandpa had quarters so all the kids fed the baby goats. We saw the baby cows, pigs, and chickens. A rooster scared Fiona by cock-a-doodle-doo-ing unexpectedly. And we had way too much fun with the cut-outs in the chicken area.

We hustled back through the raindrops, but were really pleased that we had such a fun adventure together! Unexpected trips like that make the best memories - and stories!

Dec-versations

Someone enjoyed the sprinkler

As nearly 2-year-olds tend to do, Declan has been saying the funniest things lately. Here are a few of my favorites:

He has a baseball shirt that Gma got him. It says "I'm a hit with the ladies." At some point, we must have read it to him or to one of his sisters and he paid attention. He picked out that shirt last weekend and as I helped him put it on, I asked him what it said. He smiled proudly and said, "Hit the ladies." No no. No no no. That's not quite right, buddy!

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I made Chinese food last night, including potstickers. Declan really really likes potstickers. He wanted more and asked his dad. The conversation went something like this ...

D: More pot, daddy?
M: PotSTICKERS, buddy.
D: Ooooh. Pot.Sticker.
M: Good job.
D: More pot, daddy?
M: PotSTICKERS, buddy.
D: Ooooh. Pot.Sticker.
M: Yep.
D: More pot, daddy?

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Even though he's a super sweaty boy, Dec likes wearing socks. The rest of us really don't. So I often tell the girls that they can have "bares" - meaning bare feet. Declan is currently in "bare feet training." It's my favorite because he calls them "teddy bears." So he'll have his bare feet for a while and then I'll get "No want teddy bears, Mama. Get socks?" He was pretty proud tonight because he decided to go to bed with teddy bears!

Earplugs ... please ...

Mike's uncle TJ was a drummer. Mike's sister was a drummer. Mike was a drummer. My sister was a drummer. I was a drummer in college.

The kids' friends R and R have a dad who is a drummer. With a set. Who is totally awesome and loves to let kids experience music. For a couple of these guys, I am concerned (secretly pleased) that there may be an earplug need in our future!

Catching Serious Air

Four years ago, we swapped beds with my co-worker Joe. We had a full-sized bed that needed a new home. He had a sweet daughter who had outgrown her toddler bed and needed an upgrade. A couple trips between homes later, Joe's daughter was the proud owner of a full-sized bed and Fiona was the recipient of a toddler bed.

When Joe dropped off the bed, he mentioned that it could probably use a new mattress. Sweet girl seemed just fine with it, so although it wasn't in the best condition, we let it ride. Wear and tear of FOUR years later [shame face] and I could fold the mattress in half. I'm not a mattress expert, but I don't think you are supposed to be able to do that. Fiona has mentioned a few times that her bed is not very comfortable. But ... the girls will be getting a bunk bed upgrade in the coming months, so spending a lot of money on a new, limited time mattress wasn't high on our list. However, Fiona getting good sleep is always high on the list.

On Saturday, the kids and I headed to a garage sale at our old day care provider's house. It was a thinly disguised ploy to see our wonderful Ms. A and give her lots of hugs. However, as I walked up to the sale, I saw a toddler mattress for sale for $5. Five dollars was definitely in my budget for a short term fix - especially when I know where the mattress is coming from and have full confidence in its cleanliness. When I said that I would take it, Ms. A would not take my $5 and instead simply insisted we put it in my car for "her Fiona." Free is even more in my budget!!

We came home with a car full of treasures ... .some that I bought and some that Ms. A insisted they take because "it was her/his favorite" (she continues to be so good to our family!). But hands down, the best find was the mattress. We got it on Fiona's bed and looked at each other ... trying to figure out what to do with the old, crappy mattress. Then Mike and the kids got a terrifying gleam in their eyes.

We now have a mattress trampoline/slide tricks mat/launching pad outside. Because of course we do. When one has an old mattress, one clearly catches air with it!

This one makes me laugh. Every time. 
The face. The pigtails. The shoes on the wrong feet!

A one point, she did a 180 flip

He went SO high!

Grandma Turns 100

Our main reason for going north last weekend was to join the rest of the family and celebrate my Grandma's 100th birthday! The family threw her a wonderful party and it was so fun to watch her enjoy it. Reaching 100 has been a goal of hers for several years and she truly understood that she had achieved her goal. She looked lovely and definitely not 100. Family members came from all corners of the country, and she had all five kids, all seven grandkids, and nine out of ten great-grandkids. We were sadly missing one great and his baby (a great great!). We haven't all been together in 15+ years!

Grandma has been on a steeper decline than we would like (after sailing through most of her 90s), so it was such a relief that she was doing so well on the day of her party and seemed to enjoy the festivities. We filled the room with garden style flowers to remind her of her own garden (she had the most beautiful one!) and hung tons of pictures from her life. The siblings were having a great time going through those while Em and I hung them.

The grands and greats

The official party was on Saturday and we had a really nice turnout. Since it was at the community church, there was a nursery and toys to keep the little ones entertained. Plus tons of cousins! The gang is in heaven with their cousins! My cousin Rachel's two girls are a bit older than our kids, but oh my, they are SO good with the small Vs! Our kids are totally in love with them! Between the toys, the cousins, the beautiful outside weather (including bubbles!!), and CAKE, we all had a great time at the party. [In a mother-of-the-year moment, I totally told Q that if she just didn't ruin the group pictures, I would give her a second piece of cake. She plopped down and grinned like her life - or her tummy - depended on it!] 

Grandma is one of the best people I know and it was such an honor to celebrate her. She is such a selfless person, but is also equal parts strong and spunky! She was a fantastic cook and taught me to be fearless in the kitchen (and to look at recipes as more of a guideline ... sorry Mom!). She would remind me not to be afraid to work hard and get dirty. And is still happy to laugh at my poor gardening attempts! We are a lucky lucky family to have her as our guiding matriarchal force. As Fiona says, "Great Grandma is the bestest!" Many happy returns to this lovely lady!