The Rest of the Trip

The day after the Musical Instrument Museum, we got to see a Cubs/Royals spring training game--well, at least three innings of one. It was very hot! Plus it was a lot more crowded than when we took Chris five years ago. Jonathan and I sought out shade while Daddy and Chris watched from the lawn until everyone got too hot. It was a fun experience though! The last full day in Scottsdale, we went to Old Town Scottsdale. There was a beautiful park there where Jonathan stopped to smell the flowers... 

We also had lunch there (at Grimaldi's! the chain) and Chris had his first ever root beer float at an old fashioned ice cream shop across the street. It was a wonderful trip and we will be back again!

I also have to throw this picture in from Easter of Grammy and Jonathan because his face is so funny in it...

The Musical Instrument Museum

When we were in Scottsdale, we visited an incredible museum called the Musical Instrument Museum. They had an amazing collection of instruments from all around the world. We spent a couple of hours there but I probably could have spent two days!

One part of the museum was called the "Experience Room" where kids (and adults) could take a turn playing a wide array of instruments. Chris played the harp, drums and even got to bang on a gong. Jonathan had fun banging on all kinds of drums and making sure all the mallets in the room were put back in their proper place!

The museum was divided into different regions of the world and filled with examples of musical instruments from just about every country you can imagine. And we all had headsets that would play examples of the instruments we were seeing when we stood in front of an exhibit. Here is one of Mommy's favorites...

And then there was this unbelievable drum set!

And we took this picture of the accordions for Grandpa T...

It was a fantastic museum, one of the best I've ever seen!

Pool Time

In honor of (or to help forget about) the wintry weather and snow flurries we had today in Kansas, I am posting pool pictures from Scottsdale. We went swimming everyday and Christopher probably went on the slide below about a hundred times! Jonathan loved the water too!

Scottsdale

We have now returned from our trip to Scottsdale and we all had a wonderful time! It was great to be in warmth and sunshine again. I'm starting off with some pictures of the boys on the hotel grounds and at the train park (above)...

Chris was not afraid of the big cactus this time!

Jonathan's first carousel ride...

And he loved the swing...

Here is some of the beautiful scenery from the hotel...

And the heron from our last trip (we're assuming) was here again, hunting for fish!

Stay tuned! More to come!

Back to Scottsdale

We have returned to Scottsdale, Arizona where we visited with Chris five years ago. We are staying at the same hotel and enjoying the sun and beautiful flowers. Christopher is not afraid of the cactus this time and Jonathan has suddenly decided that he is going to run everywhere and continuously dunk his face in the pool water. These boys keep us busy, even on vacation!

And after a long day of traveling, these two relaxed and watched some NCAA basketball. They are so alike!

Reunited

Jaime and the kids came up to visit from Houston today and we were fortunate enough to be their first stop on their visits! It was great to see them all--the kids played like no time has passed and Jaime and I caught up over lunch. There is not enough time in the day to talk about everything we wanted to but it was a wonderful time! 

Ready

The boys are ready for our trip tomorrow! And J is curious as to why we're bringing the big bag this time...

USA! USA!

Jonathan sported his USA jersey today, compliments of the Pariso boys... He also hung out with his friend Olivia from across the street (along with 8 other kids on spring break!).

Oh and J (and Christopher) had his first Foo's custard today--and so did his mom!

Just doin' my thing...

Oh you know, I'm just going to stand in the dog dish... play with the window...

Through the Generations

So many kids have used this desk. Now it is Jonathan's turn!

A Boy and his Dog

Pancake Breakfast

Saturday was the annual pancake breakfast at Pembroke Hill. The boys ate lots of pancakes and then headed outside to play with their friends. J meanwhile found 2 hula hoops to entertain him!

KC Car Show

To end a very fun and busy weekend, we took the boys to the Kansas City Auto Show to check out some cool cars. Chris was very excited because he was finally able to sit in the driver's seat of pretty much any car he wanted. The jeep pictured above was the "Moose" jeep named in honor of Mike Moustakas from the Royals. So Chris got to "drive" a Porsche... 

a Maserati...

a Corvette...

and, most importantly, a Mustang...

He also gave Jonathan a quick driving lesson...

And we found the perfect car for Mommy-- a purple one!

Chris also got to sit in a race car designed and built by college students. You can barely see him behind the red balloon sword he got at the show!

Return to Parkside Cafe

When Christopher was a toddler, we had plenty of early mornings where he was full of energy, I was not, and nothing was open. Nothing, that is, save the Parkside Cafe, a little coffee shop in a church in Lenexa that also had an indoor playroom. I had been there numerous times with a mom's group I was a part of and it was where I met one of my best friends, Danna, and her kids for the first time. This morning, Jonathan and I returned to Parkside for coffee (me) and play time with friends (him). We met Tiffany with Noah and baby Christopher Hall and Tiffany's sister-in-law and her three kids. It was a fun morning that J seemed to really love!

Jonathan loves getting to see his little friend Noah and he really loves Tiffany too! This was his reaction when I asked if he wanted to play with his friend...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gR2MipIrUdY

You Have to Read This

In school, Christopher and his classmates are working on writing a biography about a famous person in history. Chris is writing his about Harriet Tubman. When I picked him up from school yesterday, he stated that he would also be writing a biography about himself. After explaining that this is what is known as an "autobiography," he and I discussed the "big and small" things of his life that he would like to include in it. After getting ready this morning, I went to my desk to find the above paper started by our author. My favorite thing is that he used the heading "In which I am born" because that is the style used in the chapter headings of Winnie the Pooh and My Side of the Mountain which we just finished reading. I can't wait to see the rest of his work...