Mesker Park Zoo

Hard to believe this was a beautiful day in January.  It was sunny and 70 degrees so we took the opportunity to get outside and enjoy the weather while it lasted.  What a better way to enjoy than with a trip to the zoo!

All smiles.  

Tate enjoying the Amazonia exhibit.  

We had fun watching the Red Panda frolic and play.  

Up close and personal with the giraffe's.  They definitely like being fed.  

Tate just laughed at their big long tongues.  

Brothers?? Whose that new guy in the middle?

The Rhino was inside as we walked through the buildings.  We got an up-close view of him before he headed outside.  

I'd guess you would call that a 2 humped camel.  Do you know what they call a 3 humped camel??

Hanging out in the river tube.  Tate loved watching the otter swim around.  I'm pretty sure he would have stay much long if I would have let him.

Fun picture of the otter.

Monkeying around....at the zoo's playground.

We had a great afternoon at the zoo.  We missed Dad, but he is on a cruise with several of his guy friends.  

Day at the Zoo, Night at School

Greg and I took today off and thought we would treat the boys to a little fun before Devin starts school.  We decided at the last minute to head to Louisville.  Thought the zoo sounded like a great idea.

First stop the carousel.

Always a favorite!

So we visited with a few of the animals, then stopped to watch the 4D movie.  We watched both shows, Ice Age and Planet Earth.  Devin and Tate love the Ice Age movie. 

Waiting to go inside....again.

After the movie, we went to check out the Gorillas.  The boys thought it was really neat to watch the Gorilla behind them eating some snacks - oranges and celery.

Well we made it half way around the zoo and stopped at the splash park.  Luckily we had planned ahead and pack suits. 

Waiting to ride the slide.

Sliding together.

After seeing all that the zoo had to offer, we headed back towards home.  We timed leaving the zoo perfectly.  Just a few minutes after leaving a huge thunderstorm blew up and poured.  Thankfully we avoided getting drenched. 

After getting back into town, we had to finish getting everything ready for Devin at school.  Tonight was school supply drop off.  Devin took us into the Kindergarten room.  We found his locker. 

Here's Devin sitting at his desk in his classroom.  He is so excited for school to start.  Only 1 more day left. 

 

Busy Week at Grandma's & Grandpa's

It is becoming a tradition that Devin and Tate spend a week during the summer with their Grandma & Grandpa Wolsing's.  The boys could not contain their excitement about getting the chance to go visit them. 

The day we dropped the kids off, Devin lost his very 1st tooth.  Grandma Wolsing made Devin the cutest little fairy tooth pillow.  Not sure what he was more excited about, losing the tooth, the pillow, the tooth fairy, or the quarter the tooth fairy was suppose to leave him. 

Slip N Slide

Grandpa turned his back yard into the Wolsing Water Park.  It starts with a flip of a switch to turn his watering system on, but that wasn't enough and he brought out the slip n slide.  Devin, Tate, and Xavier all had a blast playing.  Took them all a little bit to get the knack of the slip n slide, but once they figured it out they couldn't be stopped. 

Grandma & Grandpa treated them to a day at the St Louis Zoo.  The boys favorite animals were the Hippos and Penguins.  They also got to ride the train around the zoo, always a big hit with my train lovers.

Beach Time

Next up was one of the beaches at Rend Lake.  A summer wouldn't be complete without some swimming and sand castle building.

Bike Ride & Park Time

Every morning, Grandma would take them to the city park to play.  The Benton city park is really awesome.  It has 3 different play structures, a fire truck, and caboose all to play on.  Even better most of them are in the shade most of the day.  Perfect place to literally "hang" around.

They even took a bike ride to the Rend Lake Marina.  The marina was a great place to stop and have a snack before continuing on.

Another Day, Another Beach

Helping Grandpa with his fire pit out back.  They love spending time with Grandpa in his shop.  Its a great place to get dirty, have a snack & drink, but most importantly - spending time with Grandpa.

The boys had a blast and are making memories that will last a lifetime.  Such a wonderful gift for everyone.  As the week was drawing toward the end, the boys were starting to miss home a little.  Needless to say this Mom was starting to miss them as well.  The house just isn't the same with out all their energy, smiles, laughs, and hugs.

More Zoo

Picture of the miniature train we rode, again, and again. It is a pretty fun ride. The train goes through several tunnels, across a bridge, and through all of the animals. It was a very enjoyable ride.

Dad's turn.

This is Devin's "where's George" expression. We had been watching the monkeys, all of which Devin referred to as George. At this point he turned to me asked where they had gone, because we couldn't seem them anymore.

St Louis Zoo

Devin "cheesing" for a picture while riding the train around the zoo.

Fascinated by the birds. He stood and watched them for quite awhile. The only thing that got him to leave was tempting him with riding the train again.

Riding the carousel with mom, such fun!