Rainy Vacation Day

Today it was a trip to the Children's Museum in Boston. My first trip, the boys' second trip. I dragged Auntie along with me as Boston is not within my comfort zone. It was real easy to get in an out. I was surprised with the rain and all, but no problemo.

A really cool climbing structure to get out some energy. It was 2 1/2 stories tall, overlooking the water and tall buildings. A saw that gets you nowhere.

Construction Zone.

And a new exhibit room dedicate to Jacob's friend George. He's only here until June.

And a mini bball court that Jacob was so excited he could slam dunk on.

See Science Center

A bit of inexpensive fun...but didn't hold their attention for too long. We followed it up with lunch and a couple of games of bowling.

This was a cute display. It was a series of things to smell and connected it to experience. It was true, but the kids of course didn't get it because they didn't have the experiences to call upon. "What is shoe polish?" "What are cl o ves?"

A little bubble fun.They have an impressive lego display. It is about as long as my house and is a replica of the old mill buildings with some tracks going around it with other buildings as well. It's no Legoland from Downtown Disney, but impressive for Manchester NH.Using pulleys to lift their own weight. Bubble fun video.

First Ride

For the first day of vacation, Jim got sent home from work. So we made lemonade out of lemons and went riding. Most of the trails are closed for mud season until mid-May, but the rail trails are open. These trails are dusty as you can see from Joshua's face.

I ride at the end and try to keep quite a distance to avoid the dust. But as you can see, it doesn't totally work. Joshua had to rub salt into the wounds. He said, "Mom, you should have done your hair better today". Can you believe it? I grounded him for a week!!! Just kidding. I'm definitely no beauty queen when I'm riding. It's the helmet that does the damage.

That's why I have such a cute helmet, to make up for it.

While the boys went exploring under the bridge, Jim told me to take some pictures. Of course, they walked so far, I couldn't really get them, not to mention they were walking away from me. It's a good thing I have a good zoom, because they were quite far away here.

I have no idea...One man's trash is another man's treasure???

Flashback Friday

We don't have very many pictures from when we were young...Mom moved around a lot. But this is a memory I remember quite well. This is another reason why I can relate to poor Joshua when he had to spend Christmas day in the hospital.

I was so sick this Christmas. I didn't even feel like getting dressed. All I have on is underwear. Thank goodness I hadn't 'blossomed' yet.

I love looking at the old toys, furniture and ugly colors we had back then. God, orange and olivish green...yuck!

I can see that even at the ripe ole age of 3 1/2 Jeanne had perfected the 'no double chin' pose. I still can't get it right :(

Parking Lot Fair Fun

Last weekend we decided to join Amy and her boys for a little carnival in the parking lot. These tend to pop up around vacation. They don't have too many rides, just enough for the kids to have a good time and break up the day.

This first ride brings back memories. When I was young my dad and Robin brought my sister and I to Salsbury Beach. They used to have a couple of rides along the boardwalk and the Flying Bobs was one of them. My only real memory of the day was getting sick from this ride and throwing up under the pier. The boys loved it and went on it three times!!

This one is the pirate ship...another ride I just can't do. Joshua wasn't too sure about it at the beginning because the guy put an open can of soda in the middle, without anything holding it down.He got over it pretty quick though and enjoyed the ride.The ever exciting super slide.

I was vicorous by leaving without eating any fried dough...but there will be plenty of time for that when the real fairs come along :)

Tisk Tisk

A day late and a dollar short...actually $6000+ short (since it was tax day this week) :(

Anyway, yup I missed it again.

So this is Flashback Friday on Saturday...

The other day I was taking a lovely stroll through the woods with my friend Amy and she asked me a question. "Does anything make you nervous anymore?" As you know, the boys are daredevils. And to be honest, most of the time I don't get nervous. Auntie has more heart attacks than me. But it is because I have had lots of time to get used to it.

This is a picture of Joshua on his first four wheeler. Jim started him off early. He couldn't even walk at the time. He was only 9 1/2 months when he got it. It is kinda funny because we were just talking about this time the other day. Our house was half the size. Our current dining room was out living room. We had a couch, oversized chair, two plants, a rocking chair, computer desk, entertainment center and a coffee table in the small room. We ate in there (no dining area at the time) and at one point even had a play cube with a slide in there. Then Jim brought this thing home.

In less than a week, he was standing on the seat and pushing the button with his hands on the handlebars. 9 1/2 months old and already doing tricks.

So no, I don't really get nervous...but I am scared to death about what they will be doing when they are 12-14 with the skills that they already have!!!

Tired of the same ole same ole

For me, the whole Easter Egg decorating thing is losing its charm. Perhaps that is why we wait until the last possible moment to do them. Though Jeanne even beat me on the tardy party this year. She decorated them Easter night :) As you can see from Jacob's face, they still enjoy it, which is why I persevere.

I'm just disappointed in the dye. It's not as vivid as I would like. I use the vinegar with the tabs, but let's face it, the boys don't have the attention span it would take to keep them in the cups long enough to get a vivid color. The stickers never stay on, and it's tough to see the white crayon on the white egg.The wraps help jazz them up a little bit, but I find it difficult to get the water hot enough and be safe around the kids, and it takes the darn die off. We had to redye them after.

This year I bought a marble package...what a bust!!!

But I have a new idea. I saw this idea on a blog I follow. The boys LOVE to draw and would have much more fun decorating the eggs with colored sharpees. I'm all over this idea for next year.We definetly always end up with a truck on one so next year I can only image the fleet of vehicles we will have with markers they can see.