Crown Center Animal Exhibit

Our fun outing last week was to Crown Center. They have a great animal exhibit right now that the kids absolutely love! There are vines to swing on, monkey bars, camels and lions to "ride on", an ant hill to crawl through, a bee hive, caterpillar, spiders web, penguin slide, eagles nest, giraffe bean bag toss, an elephants trunk to swing, a bear cave with a momma and three babies, and a huge turtle shaped reading table! This kept us busy for a good hour. We of course had to eat at Fritz's! The kids were very patient with the long wait and loved watching the trains of course! After we ate, Bella wanted to go back and play a little more. Then Gigi treated the kids to a piece of candy at the candy store! A fun way to end a sweet day with Gigi, Aunt Val, Sophie, and Porter!

Strega Nona at the Paul Messner Puppet Theater

Gigi treated us and the kids to see Strega Nona last week. It's one of the girls favorite things to do now! We made sure to get our front row seats and packed snacks since it started at lunch time. The kids did great munching on their popcorn and laughing at the cute puppets! At the end they show how all the puppets work and ask if there are any questions. Bella was the first one to raise her hand and she commented that her favorite part was when the pasta came out of the pot and went all over the town! Afterwards we visited Oscar the Grouch who greets everyone when you come in or go out. Thanks for a fun day Gigi!

Bella's Valentine's Day Party at School

Benjamin and I got to be special guests at Bella's party last week. The kids got to eat yummy cupcakes, pass out Valentine's in their decorated sacks and make Valentine's Day snow globes! Benjamin played with the washer and dryer which is his favorite thing to do there and at home! Bella has so many sweet friends in her class! Happy Valentine's Day!

Snow Day!

The kids were so excited to get a touch of snow last week! They were begging me to put on their snow gear and grab the sled to play outside! We took turns pulling each other around the yard and the little trail behind our house. We attempted to build a snowman, but the kids didn't have proper gloves so that didn't last too long once Benjamin's hands got cold. He did have socks on his hands but then pulled those off, and we quickly went inside by the fire to warm up! I think that may be the only snow we see this year. :(

Valentine's Party at Gigi's

Last week we were invited to a Valentine's party with Gigi! The kids were extremely excited to see her and their cousins and Aunt Val! As we drove down the driveway we saw hearts on all the trees leading the way. We walked up the sidewalk where we found more hearts and Benjamin wanted to pick them all up! We brought little ring pop Valentine's to exchange with everyone. Gigi had so many fun games, crafts, and goodies ready for us! We tossed heart shaped cookie cutters in a bucket, glued hearts and put stickers on a white paper, played a game of find the hearts and match the numbers (a big hit!), played with homemade glitter play dough, played several games of pin the heart of the poster as they were blindfolded, made foam sticker butterflies and monkeys, made chocolate suckers, and decorated cookies! For lunch we had delicious heart shaped pizza! They each got to take home some play dough, a set of the heart numbers, a balloon, and a treat bag! What a fun party! Thanks Gigi, we love you!