Dinosaurs

For the past year and a half Sailor has been involved in a preschool group that is Mommy taught.  There are four kids in the group and each week one of the moms teaches the lesson.  We have a curriculum and topics that we arbitrarily created a while back.  It has been a success and a great way for our kids to have something to do that involves  learning some social skills once a week, along with some education. :)

Last week I taught a lesson on dinosaurs.  This lesson was particularly fun because they kids were very intrigued.  As I prepared for the lesson I kept thinking, "Dinosaurs were completely amazing.  And the fact that we have learned everything about them from fossils is quite impressive."  What a weird thing for a child to hear..."Dinosaurs once roamed the earth- we have or will never see them.  Most were huge, bigger than buildings.  Paleontologists find their fossils and puzzle-piece them back together..... "

Like I said, the kids really enjoyed the lesson so I took a few pictures of the fun.  I didn't get a picture of it but we dug for dinosaur bones in a tupperware container full of potato flakes (I didn't have time to find sand).  I printed off a picture of a dinosaur skeleton and cut it up in several pieces and laid it out in proper order underneath the "dirt".  With a paint brush the kids very gently brushed the flakes off of the skeleton to find the whole dinosaur picture. The kids were adorable.  I had never seen a 3 year old be so gentle.  If one got a little to rough they'd keep each other in line by saying, "Be soft!  We don't want to ruin the bones!"

We made dinosaur feet, and this is what Sailor thinks they looked like.

 I asked the kids to show me their dinosaur faces/impression. They didn't slack at the request.

And you can't talk about dinosaurs without mentioning volcanoes! 

The kids were really concerned about how and what was making it explode.  They were fascinated!  They were also very concerned about the little dinosaurs getting hit by hot lava. ha 

Once preschool is over we let the kids run wild while the moms visit and vent to one another about parenting ups and downs. As we sat and chatted we noticed all the kids silently group together in the hallway with books to read and notebooks to draw in.  The second I grabbed my camera a couple kids dispersed but at one point 6-7 kids were sitting side by side- it was cute. 

Leach the Leprechaun

A couple weeks ago I had an epiphany!  The night before St. Patrick's Day I was talking to my good friend about the holidays and the topic of traditions.  We talked about St. Patty's Day specifically and the things we weren't doing to celebrate the holiday.

After talking about this and that and how fun certain traditions were as kids or what other family members were doing in their homes, I got home and stuck my foot down.  I thought, "Dang it, Kiya,   you are not going to deprive your kids of memories because you procrastinate or lack motivation to celebrate any and EVERY holiday- even St. Patty's Day!"

I've noticed too many times in my life that I will pass up opportunities, shrug things off like they're nothing special,  or be too lazy to be "excited" about the small things.  But, I've finally come to realize (and I know it's because I am a slow learner) that celebrating the little things brings zest to life and teaches us (and hopefully our kids) to have an excited attitude for the small and simple things.  Looking forward to little surprises and making sweet memories will bring our families closer and remind us why we need to be grateful for life.

After proclaiming to celebrate St. Patty's, I decided I needed to do a little research, because quite honestly I didn't know much about St. Patrick and why we feel the need to wear green and catch leprechauns on this special day.  And then for the next couple hours I jumped up and pulled together a little surprise for the kiddos.  I'm really excited for next year, because I think we will have to start making Leprechaun traps.

Like I said, totally thrown together last minute, which gave me no time for rough drafts! This was a little note left behind by our little leprechaun friend named "Leach."

According to online sources, leprachauns like to prank...I think I always knew this but I didn't know that they are Irish fairies who collect coins and hide them in hidden pots of gold at the end of the rainbow.  I always thought they were trying to find gold at the end of rainbows not putting it there...then again my research mainly came from wikipedia.

Leach left notes around the house.   Here, he played with the girls' green toys.

And then read all the green books in the house.

The girls thought it was hilarious that Rapunzel was holding a green candle. "Silly Leprechaun!" Sailor said.


Did you know Leprechauns like to mend shoes?  I didn't. Again, thank you wikipedia.  Leach didn't actually "mend" the girls' church shoes, but he did take a rag to them and washed the months worth of dirt from them.

The green milk was another favorite prank.  Sailor was amazed!

Chase was able to record their reactions as they walked through the house. We all wore plenty of green to church and then had a lovely GREEN dinner at a friends' house.  I am so grateful for the little lesson I learned this past month, because it really is the small and simple that bring us joy!

Disneyland Surprise

Back in November, I told my mother that I & the rest of my siblings were going to gift her and my father airline tickets to AZ so they could enjoy some Seattle Mariner Spring Training.  For the purpose of scheduling I couldn't keep this from my mother, but it remained a surprise to my father.  As we planned the trip my mom got the idea to buy tickets for Payten, Sawyer, & T as well, because she knew they would just love that for a Christmas present, and they'd be pleasantly surprised.

As we secretly bought the tickets, we noticed that they would be here for a full week.....which meant enough time that would allow for the 5-hour drive to Disneyland!  The excitement had begun...

For the following months my parents and I kept this secret from my youngest siblings.  We were going to Disneyland and they weren't going to have the slightest clue!

Fast forward to March, and sure enough they never knew until we pulled up to Disney Parks. The surprise was AWESOME!

How did we convince them to jump in the car and drive for 5 hours, you might ask??

Well, after spending a couple days back at our place, my mom and I made up an imaginary place that was "just a few hours away."  We were going to a hotel with a lazy river and lots of sorts of fun to do (there really is a hotel similar to this in Indio, CA-so I've heard).  My mom said "ok, kids, just grab an outfit, your swimsuits, toothbrushes....wait, grab two outfits just in case."  We all piled into the car and 5 hours later we were enjoying Disney Parks.



--One funny story:  Our GPS (ahem...undependable TOM TOM) was not corporating. He seriously COULD NOT find DISNEYLAND for heaven-sakes.  So because we had the address to our actual hotel and found that first, my dad ran in to "ask for directions" when really he was checking us in. My siblings in the car were like,"how embarrassing he's asking a hotel for directions to another hotel...?"  My mom and I just laughed like, "yeah glad we aren't in there asking that question..." hehehe--



It wasn't until a few days before my family got to AZ that I decided I would take the girls for the trip.  Since Chase had school that week (along with test preparations), our little family of four was going to stay behind this time.   But, as the days drew nearer I couldn't pass up the opportunity to go.  I mean, my dad was driving us there, the girls and I would fit in their hotel suite, & it's DISNEYLAND!

Besides wishing Chase was there, this was the best decision I have made in a LONG time.  This was a very therapeutic trip for me.  I enjoyed motherhood the entire time- even though I spent a fair amount of the time alone with just my girls without aid.  The second best decision (Chase made for me) was to not take my camera, which was a heartbreaking thought.  This sounds odd but my camera  can be like a third child.  You have to have it on you at all times, can't leave it unsupervised, as it's slung across your body you have to be extra careful as you pick up kids or go to the restroom, you never want it to get hurt, etc. 

I also didn't take a purse which was heaven- my ID was in my pocket along with some cash.

My point is....this trip was therapeutic because it was so simple.  I was able to witness the joy in my kids' eyes, the excitement on their faces, I could jump in line with them easily without worrying about my stroller/camera/valuables.  I wasn't anxiously waiting for the many "picture perfect moments" or forcing my children to stand and smile next to this or that.  I didn't have that annoying feeling of a diaper bag/purse/camera bag sliding off my shoulder.

I was living IN the moment...with my kids....in the most magical place on earth. Regrettably, I haven't been the best at doing that recently.  It was JUST what I needed and I learned a lot about myself.  The trip has refocused my goals and priorities, & also reminded me how beautiful motherhood is when we take the time to stop, eliminate distractions, re prioritize, and live life simply and in gratitude. 

Thank you Mom and Dad for this wonderful trip! xoxo

....and because my mom did have her camera, we were able to get some great face time that will remind us of this Disneyland Surprise! :)

These first few pictures were taken at the M's game at a Spring Training game.

Tarzan Treehouse was one of our first stops.

The new "Cars" addition was by far my favorite part of the trip this time.  It was IDENTICAL to the movie.  Literally, felt like I was standing in the middle of the real Radiator Springs. These pictures don't do it justice. 

....I secretly want to live on this street and work at Flo's Cafe- it was adorable.

The girls enjoyed the "Bug's Life" rides.

One of my favorite rides at C.A. would have to be this one below.  These raft-like rides are always a good time when you're surrounded by loved ones.

Sailor was really upset when she couldn't ride on "Splash Mountain."  When we would pass it and watch the big drop-off she'd point and yell, " Mom, I want to go on that one, on 'Mountain Splash'. "

Sadly, she stood 2 inches or so below.  So instead we waited for the rest of the family by a penny smasher machine and lo and behold, the only coins I had in my pocket were 2 pennies and 1 dollar in quarters...the exact amount to smash 2 souvenirs.  I love Ser in this picture...looking to her sister to make sure she is holding the penny up the "right way."

The funny thing is, we lost these two pennies about 5 minutes after we made them...Sailor was supervising them. :S

Just kidding...as we were loading onto the Snow White Ride, an hour after we "lost" the pennies, we found one next to the cart Sailor was climbing up into.  She told us she put the pennies in the knee-hole in her jeggings. And can you believe it, we found the other one on the ground later in the day.  Those pennies were REALLY meant to be in our hands!

And you can't go to Disneyland without riding on "It's a Small World" at least once (at least that's what we told the two boys to get them on it). :)

My mom, T, and Payten waited a good 1/2 hour or so to ride this 12 sec ride with Sailor (this was literally the longest wait we had to make for a ride). They are sweet.  As the ride starts, it climbs an incline that turns into a steep dip.  As I watch, Sailor's arms are way up high with Grandma's, but has it descended and turns a corner towards us her arms went from 'sky high' to 'nevermind I'm holding on.'  It was funny.

 Seryn squealed and laughed when she saw Mickey walking down the street.  We saw him right after I purchased the lovely Mickey and Minnie dolls. Sailor kept saying, "Mom, there's a Mickey and I have a baby Mickey!"  She was adamant that she take a picture with 'Baby Mickey' and the "Big Mickey that doesn't talk" together.

I think Mickey got extra annoyed because Seryn kept hitting at his face- she was so excited!

Again, "Car's Land" and it's awesomeness.

After surviving the park all day on the third and last day, we went to the light show that evening which was the perfect way to end it all.  As it showed clips of Disney movies my girls just fell in love!  The first clip started with Ariel and her singing voice....this was by far Seryn's favorite part of the trip.  She was up on my brother's shoulders kicking her legs, squealing, laughing, pointing, all in excitement.  I have never seen her so happy.  It was the CUTEST thing I have ever witnessed.  I could've died happy in the moment.  And Sailor was the same as the show progressed. My brother's and I took turns holding the kids on our shoulders.  At times I was in pain, on my tiptoes, holding Seryn's arms up, my body shaking because of the awkwardness.  But, it was the the least I could do.  I would do that all day to hear and see the pure joy coming from my sweet girls. Priceless.

...

Ohh, the magic. :)

Over too soon....


...and on our trek back to AZ  we decided we HAD to stop at Cabazon.  Why?  To visit the dinos that were 'casted' in the movie "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure."   The moment we saw the exhibit from off the road we knew we needed a picture by those famous dinos.

..........and then we attempted the Pee-Wee Herman dance.

What. Nerds. 

* For those of you unfortunate souls who don't know what dance I'm talking about, click this:
Pee-Wee Dance