I got my new phone on Thursday and activated it yesterday. Move over Randall there's a new love in my life!
My LG
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Lessons Learned While Picking Berries
1. The birds don't care if it rains or is too hot, they will still eat the berries.
2. Be careful when wearing a hat in the rain.
3. Don't let the hat and the dripping water distract you from the large bamboo pole sticking out of the ground.
4. Look at what's in front of you before bending down to look for berries.
5. Watch out for the bamboo pole sticking out of the ground.
6. Try not to poke your eye with the bamboo pole while bending over.
7. Bamboo poles hurt when they poke you in the eye.
8. Wear safety glasses when picking berries in the rain.
2. Be careful when wearing a hat in the rain.
3. Don't let the hat and the dripping water distract you from the large bamboo pole sticking out of the ground.
4. Look at what's in front of you before bending down to look for berries.
5. Watch out for the bamboo pole sticking out of the ground.
6. Try not to poke your eye with the bamboo pole while bending over.
7. Bamboo poles hurt when they poke you in the eye.
8. Wear safety glasses when picking berries in the rain.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
4th of July Weekend
This year we tried to have a relaxing 4th weekend at home. Saturday we went to Ballantrae Fountains so the kids could run around and stay cool. When we got home we had a s'more party at John, Dana, Mackenna, and Ian's house. The kids had a blast playing with sparklers and watching Randall and John set things on fire.
Sunday we stuck around the house so the kids could get a nap, or in Corbin's case some quiet time before we went to Roger Reynolds Park for the Festival and Fireworks. While they were resting I was busy trying to pack dinner and supplies for the park. Since this was the first year in awhile we've had great weather we knew it would be crowded, so we wanted to get to our site early. We "camp out" at the back end of the park on the soccer field, it's not so crowded there because everyone is either at the baseball diamonds or on the hill. It's also close, but not too close to all the rides, games, and LOUD music. The kids couldn't ride the rides last year because of the rain, so I thought they would want to this year . . . nope . . . they wanted to play on the playground that they play at every week. Corbin told me he wanted to wait until the fair to ride so he could do it with Mackenna.
Nora and Randall were getting frustrated with all the crowds, so we headed back to our camp site for dinner. The kids then spent the rest of the night running around the field until the fireworks started.
I have to say that this year was the best year in a long time! The past few years the weather has been so wet or unpredictable that they have to shoot of all the rockets as quickly as possible to beat the rain or wind. But this year they really went for it! The show was long, big, and it had two grand finales! You could hear the excitement from every corner of the park and when everyone thought it was over people were clapping and cheering and then and even bigger display finished off the night. Nora and Corbin were so tickled by the whole thing. Nora had to point out the color of every firework, and Corbin gave commentary on the size and shape of each one.
It was such a fantastic end to a great weekend!
Playground at R. Reynolds Park
Corbin trying to pour water on Nora
Randall and Corbin relaxing
Sunday we stuck around the house so the kids could get a nap, or in Corbin's case some quiet time before we went to Roger Reynolds Park for the Festival and Fireworks. While they were resting I was busy trying to pack dinner and supplies for the park. Since this was the first year in awhile we've had great weather we knew it would be crowded, so we wanted to get to our site early. We "camp out" at the back end of the park on the soccer field, it's not so crowded there because everyone is either at the baseball diamonds or on the hill. It's also close, but not too close to all the rides, games, and LOUD music. The kids couldn't ride the rides last year because of the rain, so I thought they would want to this year . . . nope . . . they wanted to play on the playground that they play at every week. Corbin told me he wanted to wait until the fair to ride so he could do it with Mackenna.
Nora and Randall were getting frustrated with all the crowds, so we headed back to our camp site for dinner. The kids then spent the rest of the night running around the field until the fireworks started.
I have to say that this year was the best year in a long time! The past few years the weather has been so wet or unpredictable that they have to shoot of all the rockets as quickly as possible to beat the rain or wind. But this year they really went for it! The show was long, big, and it had two grand finales! You could hear the excitement from every corner of the park and when everyone thought it was over people were clapping and cheering and then and even bigger display finished off the night. Nora and Corbin were so tickled by the whole thing. Nora had to point out the color of every firework, and Corbin gave commentary on the size and shape of each one.
It was such a fantastic end to a great weekend!
Playground at R. Reynolds Park
Corbin trying to pour water on Nora
Randall and Corbin relaxing
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Glacier Ridge
Today we went to Glacier Ridge Metro Park. They have a nice playground and Corbin loves walking through the wooded areas.
Randall and I also did some location scouting for the fireworks on Sunday. I want to go to Roger Reynolds Park, because that is where all the rides and activities are leading up to the fireworks, but we would have to get there early (around 5pm) in order to find a parking space. Randall thinks if we go that early the kids will fall apart before the fireworks, so he wants to go to the HOSA fields because they won't be as crowded and it will be easier to get out afterward. We'll see . . .
Randall and I also did some location scouting for the fireworks on Sunday. I want to go to Roger Reynolds Park, because that is where all the rides and activities are leading up to the fireworks, but we would have to get there early (around 5pm) in order to find a parking space. Randall thinks if we go that early the kids will fall apart before the fireworks, so he wants to go to the HOSA fields because they won't be as crowded and it will be easier to get out afterward. We'll see . . .
Friday, July 2, 2010
Cook-out with Papa
On Wednesday we went to my dad's house for some swimming and ribs on the grill. Corbin was so excited to go in the pool and show off what he has been learning. Nora just wanted to relax by the pool. But both of them had a good time playing with my dad, my sister, and my step-mom.
Note: yes, that is my 13 year-old sister wearing a tiny bikini. And yes, I wonder why my parents let her buy that thing.
Note: yes, that is my 13 year-old sister wearing a tiny bikini. And yes, I wonder why my parents let her buy that thing.
Swimming Lessons for Nora
I can't believe I'm writing this, but Nora loved swim lessons! She did so well and was able to almost everything the teacher asked her to do. I was so proud of her! Randall took her to the first two lessons without me so she would get acclimated and not rely on me to get her through it. I was able to watch her last two classes and she did really well with me there. The only issue we had was she didn't want to do much swimming on her own on Thursday, but I blame that on her being tired from swimming at my dad's house the night before and I blame Randall, my dad, and my step-mom for pushing her too much to swim. I think she just wanted to sit on the steps and watch everyone, but Randall was determined to get her to show off, which just made her cranky.
She still has some fear swimming by herself, so Miss Amanda recommended she take PS1 again so she can spend more time getting comfortable. Corbin is ready to go back for more lessons, but I think we are going to take a break this month and start up again in August before soccer starts.
She still has some fear swimming by herself, so Miss Amanda recommended she take PS1 again so she can spend more time getting comfortable. Corbin is ready to go back for more lessons, but I think we are going to take a break this month and start up again in August before soccer starts.
Chihuly at CMA
I know I am being completely lazy about updating my blog this week, so the following posts will be a recap of our week.
On Sunday, we went to the Columbus Museum of Art to see "Chihuly Illuminated". I wanted to go see it before the exhibit leaves July 4th and Sunday is also Family Day, so admission is FREE. If you've never seen Chihuly's work you are missing out on some of the most beautiful glasswork out there. The exhibit was smaller than I thought it would be, and most of the pieces were reconfigurations of projects he's done before, so I was a little disappointed. I really liked that they had an entire wall of his paintings, which are just as unique as his glasswork. I also loved that he used neon gas in one of the displays, it was probably the only thing I haven't seen him use before.
The kids were well behaved, they usually do pretty well at the museum, so this wasn't a surprise. As usual CMA did a great job making the exhibit family friendly, along the wall were little shelves with "Glow Boards" for the kids to draw on. They were a big hit with Corbin and Nora.
The other exhibit I wanted to see while we were there was a giant chess set featuring "Alice in Wonderland" sculpted by Joan Wobst. She based her sculptures from original illustrations by Sir John Tenniel, and as many of my friends know I am a huge fan of anything related to "Alice in Wonderland", especially anything related to Tenniel's illustrations.
On Sunday, we went to the Columbus Museum of Art to see "Chihuly Illuminated". I wanted to go see it before the exhibit leaves July 4th and Sunday is also Family Day, so admission is FREE. If you've never seen Chihuly's work you are missing out on some of the most beautiful glasswork out there. The exhibit was smaller than I thought it would be, and most of the pieces were reconfigurations of projects he's done before, so I was a little disappointed. I really liked that they had an entire wall of his paintings, which are just as unique as his glasswork. I also loved that he used neon gas in one of the displays, it was probably the only thing I haven't seen him use before.
The kids were well behaved, they usually do pretty well at the museum, so this wasn't a surprise. As usual CMA did a great job making the exhibit family friendly, along the wall were little shelves with "Glow Boards" for the kids to draw on. They were a big hit with Corbin and Nora.
The other exhibit I wanted to see while we were there was a giant chess set featuring "Alice in Wonderland" sculpted by Joan Wobst. She based her sculptures from original illustrations by Sir John Tenniel, and as many of my friends know I am a huge fan of anything related to "Alice in Wonderland", especially anything related to Tenniel's illustrations.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Inniswood
Since it was such a beautiful day yesterday we went to Inniswood Gardens. Randall had never been there and it had been a while since I had been there. It was just as gorgeous as I remembered! All of us had a great time strolling through the gardens. The kids loved the "Sisters Garden", which was the park's childrens garden. I think we'll add that to the list of parks we regularly go to.
Indian Lake
Friday afternoon the kids and I went up to Indian Lake to visit my grandparents and play on the beach. It was the first time they've been there and I was really excited to show them all the places I used to go and play when I was little. Corbin, as usual, loved everything about the park and the beach. He had a blast playing in the sand and the water and wants to go back really soon. Nora was not so pleased with the beach, she pretty much cried and whined the entire time.
However she cheered up when we got back to my grandparents camper. She spent the rest of the afternoon running up and down the length of the camper. The rest of the family came in for a cookout, even my dad and stepmom came up! It was a good introduction to camping for the kids since we plan on doing a lot of it next summer.
However she cheered up when we got back to my grandparents camper. She spent the rest of the afternoon running up and down the length of the camper. The rest of the family came in for a cookout, even my dad and stepmom came up! It was a good introduction to camping for the kids since we plan on doing a lot of it next summer.
Storytime Live! and Trucks!
On June 17th I took the kids to see Storytime Live - all by myself. They did a great job! Everyone listened and followed directions and we had a great time. The show was a little over the top for my tastes, but I enjoyed it too. Nora's favorite part was the Backyardigans and Robin Hood the Clean, Corbin loved all of it! I wish I had some pictures of the stage, but they were really strict about not using cameras inside the theater. I was however able to get some pictures of the kids in the entrance hall of the Palace Theater.
The next morning we got up early and went to the community center to participate in the "Touch a Truck" day. Corbin loves it when "Touch a Truck" day comes, he has to sit in every vehicle no matter how long the line. Nora does okay for the first 30 to 45 minutes, but then she gets bored, or in this case hot. So we had to cut the trip short and head home. Luckily the next one is in October when it is cooler outside.
The next morning we got up early and went to the community center to participate in the "Touch a Truck" day. Corbin loves it when "Touch a Truck" day comes, he has to sit in every vehicle no matter how long the line. Nora does okay for the first 30 to 45 minutes, but then she gets bored, or in this case hot. So we had to cut the trip short and head home. Luckily the next one is in October when it is cooler outside.
On to Level 2!
Corbin finally passed Level 1 swimming, so now he can have a little break and we'll probably sign him up for Level 2 sometime in August before soccer starts. Nora starts swimming tomorrow - we'll see how that goes.
Last Saturday (June 19) we went to Battelle Darby Creek Park for a short hike. Corbin loved it as usual, he is all about walking through the woods. Nora did well until we reached the prairie, where the sun was beating down, then she was done. So we turned around and walked back to the beginning so the kids could play on the play ground before we went home.
Sunday we went out to Coshocton to celebrate Father's Day with Randall's dad. The kids had a good time visiting with their Oma and Opa and their cousins. But Corbin was looking forward to coming home because he had swimming the next day.
Sunday we went out to Coshocton to celebrate Father's Day with Randall's dad. The kids had a good time visiting with their Oma and Opa and their cousins. But Corbin was looking forward to coming home because he had swimming the next day.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Swim Lesson
Corbin did better at Wednesdays lesson. He was more calm and paid attention to the teacher. I still needed to remind him once in awhile to focus, but it was definitely easier this time. He still is hesitant with the swimming and jumping parts. I did notice that he stiffens up when the teacher takes him out into the water. And because he stiffens up, he loses some of his buoyancy and sinks, which makes him stiffen up more. He also does this with other activities, so maybe I should sign him up for some yoga to loosen him up. Nora also did better sitting on the bench, mostly because we were better prepared and she had some activities to keep her occupied.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Swim Lessons
Corbin had his first swim lesson on Monday! He was so excited, so much so that he had a hard time concentrating and listening to the teacher. But other than a couple reminders to pay attention, he did a pretty good job. He is very willing to get into the water, if he can touch the bottom or hold on to someone, but when they try to get him to paddle out into deeper water he freaks out and clings to the instructor like a baby monkey. Bless her heart she tried to show him that he was perfectly safe with the float on and he would do okay, but then he would look for her and realize she wasn't holding him and he would freak out again.
After seeing how much he struggled with going on his own, I have a feeling we will be in swim lessons all summer . . . On a happy note, Nora was so excited to watch Corbin swim that she allowed me to sign her up for swim lessons too. She is going for the one week crash course at the end of June. I have also decided that Randall is going to be the one to take her and deal with the stubbornness that will inevitably occur.
After seeing how much he struggled with going on his own, I have a feeling we will be in swim lessons all summer . . . On a happy note, Nora was so excited to watch Corbin swim that she allowed me to sign her up for swim lessons too. She is going for the one week crash course at the end of June. I have also decided that Randall is going to be the one to take her and deal with the stubbornness that will inevitably occur.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Preschool Riddle
Here's a riddle for you moms out there . . .
What do two preschoolers do when their Mom leaves the room to go to the bathroom?
I'll tell you what they do . . .
They get their water bottles out of the fridge,
Dump the water in the sink,
Remove the straws from the lids,
Run around the house pretending they are magic wands,
And then promptly lose them in the basement.
Of course I had to search the entire house for these elusive straws because they belong to the water bottles we take when we go to the park or the zoo. And guess where we are going tomorrow? You guessed it, the zoo. 60 minutes later both straws were found and rewashed. They are now in the freezer with the water bottles, where little hands can't get them.
What do two preschoolers do when their Mom leaves the room to go to the bathroom?
I'll tell you what they do . . .
They get their water bottles out of the fridge,
Dump the water in the sink,
Remove the straws from the lids,
Run around the house pretending they are magic wands,
And then promptly lose them in the basement.
Of course I had to search the entire house for these elusive straws because they belong to the water bottles we take when we go to the park or the zoo. And guess where we are going tomorrow? You guessed it, the zoo. 60 minutes later both straws were found and rewashed. They are now in the freezer with the water bottles, where little hands can't get them.
Chicago called . . .
Dear Randall,
Chicago called and said Amtrak tickets are $100 round trip. He suggests I bring some girlfriends and go visit for the day. I know he still has feelings for me, but his lifestyle is too expensive for me (and you and the kids) to move to be there. I just need to renew my acquaintance with Chicago, it's been 5 years and he might start to think I have forgotten him. I know I shouldn't travel 7 hours by train only to fall back in love with Chicago in the few short hours I would be there, but I will never know if it's meant to be unless I go for a visit. Don't worry the tickets are non-refundable and I will purchase a return ticket before I leave the station (yes, the Cleveland Station). Therefore I guarantee I will return home to you and the kids . . . unless Chicago offers me the city . . . no, no, I will really come home I promise!
Love,
Your Faithful Wife
Chicago called and said Amtrak tickets are $100 round trip. He suggests I bring some girlfriends and go visit for the day. I know he still has feelings for me, but his lifestyle is too expensive for me (and you and the kids) to move to be there. I just need to renew my acquaintance with Chicago, it's been 5 years and he might start to think I have forgotten him. I know I shouldn't travel 7 hours by train only to fall back in love with Chicago in the few short hours I would be there, but I will never know if it's meant to be unless I go for a visit. Don't worry the tickets are non-refundable and I will purchase a return ticket before I leave the station (yes, the Cleveland Station). Therefore I guarantee I will return home to you and the kids . . . unless Chicago offers me the city . . . no, no, I will really come home I promise!
Love,
Your Faithful Wife
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Bowling
This summer AMF Lanes is sponsoring "Kids Bowl Free". It's great! Kids get to bowl 2 games every day before 5pm throughout the summer. You sign up at the website, pick the closest alley participating, and they email vouchers every Sunday. You also have the option to buy the family (adult) pass for $27, which allows up to 4 named adults to bowl 2 games every day.
Since it was so humid and hot today I decided to take the kids to Sawmill Lanes for their first ever bowling experience. Corbin and Nora both loved it! Every time Nora knocked over a pin she would squeal and giggle, it was so cute! Corbin would jump around every time he knocked over more than one pin saying "I scored a goal!" We'll work on bowling lingo another time. I helped both kids push the ball for most of the first game, and then let them try on their own. Nora still wanted help, and she was starting to get tired, so I helped her just to keep the game moving. Corbin on the other hand . . . he just couldn't get enough oomph behind the ball so it either rolled ssslllooowlllyyy down the lane or it got stuck. Halfway through the second game Nora was starting to have an exhaustion meltdown, so we left.
The kids had a blast and can't wait to do it again. It was also nice that the place wasn't crowded (we went around 2:00). Next time though I think we'll try to go earlier in the morning around 10ish, and maybe Nora can get through 2 full games before losing it.
Ready to bowl!
Corbin's ball slowly rolling down the lane.
Nora was fascinated by the hand dryer, and wouldn't pick up the ball until she "dried" her hands.
Nora watching the pins.
Since it was so humid and hot today I decided to take the kids to Sawmill Lanes for their first ever bowling experience. Corbin and Nora both loved it! Every time Nora knocked over a pin she would squeal and giggle, it was so cute! Corbin would jump around every time he knocked over more than one pin saying "I scored a goal!" We'll work on bowling lingo another time. I helped both kids push the ball for most of the first game, and then let them try on their own. Nora still wanted help, and she was starting to get tired, so I helped her just to keep the game moving. Corbin on the other hand . . . he just couldn't get enough oomph behind the ball so it either rolled ssslllooowlllyyy down the lane or it got stuck. Halfway through the second game Nora was starting to have an exhaustion meltdown, so we left.
The kids had a blast and can't wait to do it again. It was also nice that the place wasn't crowded (we went around 2:00). Next time though I think we'll try to go earlier in the morning around 10ish, and maybe Nora can get through 2 full games before losing it.
Ready to bowl!
Corbin's ball slowly rolling down the lane.
Nora was fascinated by the hand dryer, and wouldn't pick up the ball until she "dried" her hands.
Nora watching the pins.Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Nora got in the POOL!
I set up the kiddie pool today and Nora actually got in it! She even sat in it and let Corbin splash her! Next we'll see if we can get her to go in my Dad's pool. If we can do that, then we're signing her up for swim lessons after Corbin's session!
Ballantrae
Yesterday after lunch we went to Ballantrae Park. It is probably Corbin's favorite place to go in the summer. Both kids had a great time, Corbin was drenched and Nora stayed dry. Maybe next time we'll get Nora to put more than a foot or hand in the water.
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