~May 11, 2010~

Ok...take a deep breath for this one!

VACATION-Sunday April 25::Day 1


Sunday we decided to drive into Corpus Christi and attend the Buc Days festival.


Not totally sure what it is all about, but they had amusement rides and stuff and all sorts of greasy junk food.

We ourselves enjoyed some of that greasy food! Hunt and I tried some of their nachos, I had a burrito, and daddy ate a burger and fries.
Also there was Texas Parks and Wildlife who were putting on an event called Life is Better Outdoors.
The event gives kids an opportunity to experience outdoor activities and nature. Some activities they had were guessing boxes where kids stick their hands in wooded boxes and try to guess what's inside. They had a turtle shell, a fish jaw bone and other things in them. Then there were nature rubbing to do and giant puzzles! I loved those! Hunt enjoyed the boxes best of all.



Also there were Buffalo soldier actors describing what they did, how they lived, what they ate and so on. They were dressed in their uniforms and had all the supplies out where children could touch and ask questions about them.
There was a tent where the kids signed up for a chance to win camping stuff. In the tent was a man holding an Indigo snake that he let the kids pet and a lady with a year old American Alligator(it was so cute).


Around the corner we headed to a tent where there were tables set up for kids to find out about ocean and sea creatures and living things. A tank was set up with water in it that housed crabs and urchins for everyone to touch and hold.


Hunt got a kick out of the fishing tent! Kids had the chance to cast a fishing pole and reel in a fish. Not real of course, they were rubber fish. Still alot of fun!

After the fishing tent we talked with some Game Wardens and went to a PVC air gun shoot where Hunt tried to shoot empty water bottles into barrels. He tried his hardest, but it was difficult for him to see high enough to aim the gun just right.

Next we spied a bow and arrow shooting tent. Hunt really loved this! The man showed him how to shoot the bow and arrows and he had a ball! Then daddy had to give it a try!



The last activity they had was a tent on conservation. This tent was also a hit with Hunt because it had a laser gun shooting range. My men and their guns..hahaha!!!




When we were done with the Parks and Wildlife activities we stayed around and let Hunt ride a few rides. He only got to ride 3 rides because it was really hot and sister was looking a bit miserable.



We were pooped after all the walking and heat.


For dinner we stopped at one of our favorites on the island...FINS! Yummy!!!



::In more recent news...::
Getting back from vacation and back in our groove always proves to be a task. With all the laundry to do and other daily chores, it seems to take at least 2 weeks to return to a some-what normal routine. But...we are managing...ha!
Hunt was good last week at school!!! Yay! It's almost over, he has only 4 days left now. On the 21st is his graduation! I'll be there, but daddy will be working. Grandma said she will try to come, but that's the day Grandpa has his surgery.

Em is cutting her second tooth now, noticed it last Friday the 7th. I've tried to get a photo of them boogers, but that little stinker WILL NOT BE STILL FOR NOTHING!!! So I hope to get a photo on here soon.

The kids and my friend Shannon and I headed to Gnismer Farm on the 5th to pick us some strawberries. It was busy out there that day and a bit warm. And more people than we had encountered in our past trips there. We still came back with lots of berries! Hunt did so awesome this year picking them! Last year most of the time he was more interested in running the rows and checking out some bugs. This year he was all about picking berries and only stopped to investigate 2 bugs. Em just hung out in my ring sling and did wonderful.


{look at those cheeks and that chin...and that drool!}
Oh and yes...she had to wear her cute strawberry outfit! It was only right!!!HA! I mean what's a girl to do if she can't look adorable picking berries?!!

{not too thrilled about mama in this photo...I look a little ragged already}















We were told that their blackberries should be ready the first of June, so we plan on going again around then to get some of those too...yummm! Yay for pick your own farms! Wish there were more around.

Our tomato plant was looking go...

but now not so much(leaves are looking yellow)! I must be either under or over watering it! But some of the tomatos are finally turing red!

Yay...can't wait to taste them! I hope it stays alive for a while longer at least.

Last Thursday Hunt, Em, Grandma and I took in the Peter Pan play at Casa Manana. It was another good play with some of the characters actually flying! The kids got a kick out of that! Afterwards we stopped off at Los Vaqueros for lunch, it's never a disappointment!

And since last week was teacher appreciation week we took some goodies to Hunt's teachers. He goes Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so we took 3 gifts, one for each day. Monday we took a small bag with some sea shells from our vacation as well as a rose from our bush out front. Wednesday we took each one a simple apple with a ribbon tied on the stem. And Friday we took them each a teacher journal and a pen. Thanks for ALL that you do teachers! I didn't snap any photos of the gifts :(

{photo of some of the roses from one of our bushes}

Saturday we meet our friends Stephanie, Nick and James at a little eating place called The Porch in Burleson. It was really good food! Afterwards we went to their house. They just recently bought it and it's so cute. Hunt had fun running and playing with her doggies.

Sunday for Mother's Day we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner.{I hope all the Moms out there had a great day!}
The kiddos played and then we had pizza delivered. I got a sweet Pandora bracelet and some roses and an "I Love You" bear for Mother's Day. The bracelet is silver and had both kids' birthstones and a little bear as well as two silver divider rings. Hunt made Grandma a card and a "Grandma" plaque.




Hunt started swimming lessons this week. We changed from what we have done the past two years. This year he's at an individual's house with other kids. We'll see if he does any better than the previous year. He's been doing good the past two days.
Monday Day 1...



Tuesday Day 2...



{little sister watching Bubba...I could just eat her up she's SO cute!}





It was a loud day at the library story time today. There were lots of kids and I guess the noise just seemed a bit more than normal. Today was "library" day at story time. They always have a theme each story time. The ladies at story time had a dry erase board that they wrote "a" and "t" on. When Ms. Betsy wrote that word she asked if any one knew what it spelled and Hunt yelled "at". Then she wrote "c" and "a" and "t". And Hunt yelled "cat". Same thing with "hat" and "bat" and "sat"! None of the other kids knew(granted some were a little younger, but not all of them). So it appears he is learning and remembering the reading phonics we have done in the past and that he's doing now in school! I was a proud mama!!! Ms Betsy was telling the kids that letters make up words...words make up sentences, sentences make up paragraphs and paragraphs make up most books.
They also did a puppet show which always seems to generate excitment!!!HA!!! Still a nice activity to take your kids to. And it doesn't cost a thing...how can you beat that! I believe all libraries or just about all that I know of have a story time for kiddos for free. You don't even need to live in their town to attend. Reading to your children really does help them. It helps them learn so, so much!

Tomorrow the dill pickles that I made and jared up last week will be ready!

I know that doesn't seem like something cool to most of you, but to me it's neat. I've always wanted to make my own pickles! I hope they're good! I have never tried the recipe that I used and am eager to try them! I just wish sometimes that I didn't have a ceramic stove top! I really wanted to do a lot of canning and stuff, but can't with the ceramic! So I can do only a few things as far as that goes.

One last thing...last post I mentioned that we meet Ken and Kelley in Schetz, Texas. Uh hum...that should have been Schertz, Texas.

Ok, well that pretty much catches us up a bit(aren't you glad after all that!), except for the other vacation days that will be coming in other posts...soon...