Family Fun Day

About two weeks ago, Mike pronounced Saturday, October 24th, Family Fun Day. We would all spend the day together, and we each got to choose one activity for the day. I chose to go out for a big breakfast, so we started our day at the "Fryin' Pan". It was okay, but I don't think we will make a return trip.

Next we burned some time in Target while we waited for the zoo to open. Lily had a gift card from Grandma Olson, so she bought some glitter glues, skittles, and a stuffed Elmo doll. She still has some money left on the card -- what a frugal shopper!

Next we headed to the zoo (Lily's choice) despite the rain. It was a special Halloween festival day, so Lily got lots of treats and did a few crafts.

Riding the carousel with Dad

Showing the ferret her new pinwheel

This cow would see you coming, stick out her tongue, and wait for you to place food on it!

This crane was pecking at the window trying to get Mike's gum

They were feeding the wolves while we were there. Who knew they liked pumpkins? (After the deer legs were gone, of course!)

After Lily took a long nap, we made a supper of steak and potatoes. We also dug out the air popper (haven't used it in years!) and made some caramel corn.

And finally for Mike's choice of activity, we snuggled in to watch a movie in our PJs. (I don't know that "VeggieTales: Jonah and the Big Whale" was his first choice, but parents make sacrifices, right?

Overall, it was a very fun day. I would recommend Family Fun Day!

Stubborn Singer

Here Lily is singing a song she learned at school. There is another part to the song that I was trying to get her to sing at the end. That is why at the end she says, "No, I'm not going to say that."

A note about the shirts: Mike went to a Neuroscience conference last weekend and bought matching shirts for the two of them. It is supposed to be a scanned image of a brain. If you look carefully you can see "FUN" in the brain. (Foundation for Undergraduate Neuroscience) Lily wanted to know if Dad shot any ducks while he was there!

Go Cobbers!

Well, ironically, Mike is gone this weekend for Concordia homecoming -- he is at a professional conference in Chicago. So, Lily and I represented him. . .well, just at the parade, where they throw candy. The temps were a bit too chilly for Mom and preschooler to sit through a football game!

At all the parades this summer, Lily hated the fire trucks. She would cover her ears and even cry sometimes. But today, she said, "I like the fire trucks now, since I am a big three-year-old."

Cobber didn't show up until the very end of the parade!

Don't you think Concordia should pay us for this picture?

Absurd

October 9, 2009

Once again, why do people live here?

Gems

A couple of conversations with Lily that I want to remember:

• On the way home from school, Lily was bending her plastic headband back and forth. I told her to be careful so she wouldn't break it. (This had already been the fate of one of her headbands!) She said back to me, "Oh, is it fragile?" A little impressed that she used that word correctly, I asked her if she really knew what "fragile" meant. After a little thought, she said, "It means only moms and dads can touch it."

• Apparently God gave little girls a dad to help her learn patience. True to what I experienced as a child with my dad, Mike seems to enjoy antagonizing Lily at times. I don't even remember what he was doing, but her frustration level was rising. At her breaking point she shouted, "Daddy, you're poopy!" She was headed to her bedroom for a timeout before we even had to tell her to go. As we snickered silently, Mike commented, "Isn't it great? That is the worst thing she can think of to say to me." Ah, time will pass too quickly. . .

• When my parents arrived for visit a few weekends ago, my dad asked Lily, "Where's your pa?" She looked at him quizzically and said, "I don't have any. Only Ollie does." :-)

• When Mike returned from his recent duck-hunting trip, Lily was very interested in the ducks and goose he brought back. She wanted to feel the goose's feathers and beak, even tried to pick the heavy thing up by its neck. "Mom, you try it," she said. After a polite refusal she used a very motherly voice, "Dad can help you try." I kindly refused again. "He's a nice goose, Mom. He doesn't move or anything."