Our outing with Grandad

Carl's dad was here visiting from Egypt for a while and before he left we thought it might be fun to go on a family outing with him. With the weather being so nice and ending Spring Break we decided to go down to Moody Gardens in Galveston to the Aquarium and Rainforest pyramids. This was Presley's first time at an aquarium. 

On Granddad's shoulders watching the sea lions be fed and do tricks.

 She liked the sea lions when they were on top, but as soon as we went down where you can see them swimming under the water through the glass, my little sweet pea was suddenly terrified. She did not like the idea of that glass and dark water. She kept saying " I don't like it, I don't like it! I go home now!" I showed her that you couldn't go through the glass and the animals couldn't touch us, but she wasn't very satisfied with that reasoning. So we just looked from afar after that!

 looking at starfish and sea amenonies

 The penguins during feeding time as well.

 To leave the aquarium you have to walk through this big aquarium tunnel and I wasn't sure how she would do. There were no screams but she was very cautious and was very leery of the big shark swimming over her head! check out her face in the picture! lol

 The divers were in the tank feeding the fish and doing other stuff and it was neat to watch all the fish gather around them.

 love this face!! Onto the Rainforest pyramid which was recently redone and is way cooler and fun than the old one. It is very open and animals and butterflies and birds are flying around. And it was definitely hot and humid like a rainforest.

 I love how I can get such detailed up close pictures with my camerea. The butterfly was actually sipping the nectar out of the flower!

 Family portrait...FYI it was St. Patrick's day...that's what all the green is for! :)

 some type of monkey's that were running and playing all over the pyramid.

 Me and my sweet girl!

 I thought the flowers and greenery was absolutely beautiful!

 Presley loved the parrots. She kept pointing and yelling "look! bird!"

 I love how Carl and his dad are talking and in every picture I have Presley is looking somewhere making funny faces! I actually think it is her talking and "showing" them something because she NEVER stopped talking and "showing us somebing" lol

We had a really good time, and enjoyed spending time with Carl's dad before he had to head back. After we were done we wanted to head over to the sea wall and have lunch at the Rainforest Cafe. Last summer we took Presley there and she loved it and was completely mesmerized! This year was a different story! We sat near the apes and she was TERRIFIED!! She wouldn't stop crying and saying she was scared and then eventually ended up in our laps with her eyes closed taking a nap. When she woke up to have some desert she would just open her mouth but refused to open her eyes! Poor baby!! guess we won't be heading there again anytime soon! lol

Plant People Play Date

We wanted to get our regular playgroup together for some fun during spring break and maybe do something a little different. Well, leave it up to the kindergarten teacher to have a handy little spring time craft perfect for our kiddos!! :) It's called plant people and each child has a cup that they decorate with googly eyes, a nose, mouth, etc and one knee high or side of a pair of panty hose. They put grass seed down in the leg of the hose and then soil on top of that. You pack it all down and tie a knot at the end. They then put it in their cut knot side down and water it. In a few days their plant person begins to grow hair and they can cut it. It is very cute and the kids really had fun!!

gluing our eyes on with special "sticky" glue :)

Grayson

Grace...what a precious smile!

My sweet girl who insisted on wearing her dress up clothes over her regular clothes!

Eva couldn't miss out on the fun either!

Grace wanted a green fuzzy nose and Grant wanted two noses :)

funny thing is I had green, pink, and clear cups thinking the boys would want the green or clear...nope! They all wanted pink!! haha sorry Aimee and Gary, I guess all our girls are rubbing off on them a bit.

All our plant people need now is hair!

They liked using the spoons to put their own seed in and Mitzi scooped the soil for them.

Grant, such a ham

my sweet girl and her plant person

Grace watering hers. I really enjoyed doing a craft with them. I am really loving this age that Presley is in because I am able to start doing all this fun stuff with her! I already have a list of "school" things we are going to do this summer together and with our friends. We went strawberry picking and made jam today and got lots of cute pictures of our fun so be on the look out for that post as well as our trip to the aquarium and rainforest pyramids at Moody Gardens.

It's Rodeo Time

During Spring Break I usually try to take Presley to the livestock part of the Rodeo to see the animals. This year I was kind of excited because she is older and more curious and able to interact. Plus she LOVES animals of all kinds...however usually at a distance! So we were all pleasantly surprised when she wasn't scared and actually rode a pony!!! We were SO proud!

 Checking out the new babies area...This is her "silly" face that she has been giving when I ask her to smile. Such a ham!

 She wanted to hold those baby chicks! She wasn't sure why they had to be behind the case.

 My sweet girl!!

 My Rhinestone Cowgirl! lol I told her if we waited in the really long line to ride the pony that she would actually have to ride it and not be scared. She assured me that she would...

 So when she got up on that pony I was shocked and fully prepared to have to walk along beside her or take her out screaming "I don't like it, I don't like it" but...

 Turns out she didn't need me at all! No tears no nothing! She just sat up there like a big girl who had done this a hundred times! Needless to say I was one proud mama!! :)

 Presley and Daddy! :)

 She even went into the petting zoo with out being held and almost attempted to feed the animals until the deer started chomping on her dress!! lol She didn't like those deers and goats after that! ha

 But the lambs were calmer...and cuter so she wanted to pet them.

 Until...she saw the big llama, and this is what she did! lol she attached herself to her daddy's leg and started begging to be picked up!

 Next we went outside to the farm experience. This is a really neat agriculture program that teaches kids about planting and producing vegetables, grains, fruits, and dairy products. The kids get a basket and start by getting grain to "feed" the chickens and get a wooden egg in return. Then they are given different colored tokens or "seeds" to plant and grow a vegetable. They continue to go through different stations getting to "milk" the cow, pick peaches, sheer the sheep, and grow corn. At the end they take all their items to market and sell them. They are given paper money to buy a treat from the store and use their money to buy it. It is a really fun program and I was glad that she was able to understand and interact more with it this year!

She loved the tractor!! She looked like she knew exactly what she was doing!! lol It was really busy especially outside at the carnival and food area. She is still young enough that we were able to skip that area with out tears and whining...don't think we will be able to do that for much longer! ugh...

We had such a good time together and it was fun for all of us to be able to go together. Presley did so well and even got to ride the train for the first time! I love Rodeo season and I can't wait for it to come around again next year!

Mutton Bustin!!!

One of my favorite parts of the rodeo each year is Mutton Bustin. I have always said I want Presley to do it when she gets to be 5 because it is so cute and funny and I just love it!! Well one of my sweet students this year informed me that he was going to be doing Mutton Bustin at the rodeo this year. I was a little skeptical at first, as I am with most Kindergarteners stories! Lol but I talked to his mom and sure enough he was so they offered to get us tickets to come and support him! I was so super excited!! We had so much fun and I was definitely the proud teacher!! :) 

Jack all geared up and ready to go!! 

getting ready to go...we had great seats to view it

 It all goes so fast! They really whip those kids in and out of there! He didn't stay on very long but said the sheep stepped on his leg so he felt proud that he had little battle wound! lol

 My handsome cowboy and Mutton Bustin survivor! He said man those things have more fur than you would think!! and they kinda stink too!! haha

Me and Jack. The only problem with this rodeo night was the performance at the end. It was Enrique Iglasis that night...needless to stay we all weren't too excited about that. We stayed for two songs and then decided it was time to go. Which I heard was a good thing because the crowd got pretty rowdy.