Hogle Zoo on 2/22/22

Tuesday 2/22/22 only comes around about every 100 years (maybe) so we had to do something cool to celebrate right? Well while scrolling through Instagram I found an awesome deal on Hogle Zoo tickets. Because of the day, they were selling tickets for only $2! Normally they are $18 so we actually got our whole family in for less than a normal ticket! We jumped on the opportunity and bought the tickets. Since it was a school day though the kids were sad to miss school. Okay not really😆. 

The deal was so good that we called Jen and told her to come along too. She did and the kids had a good time with their cousins.  It was a little cold especially when the wind was blowing but the crowds were small so we were able to see a lot of animals. The first animals we saw were the African animals. I am sure they were all wondering what the cold and snow were all about.

The elephant was really cool. He looked like he didn't mind the cold. The rhino was the best though because he came right up to us and we could really see how big he was. His head alone was huge. It was probably the size of Charlotte. 

Next we moved on to the American animals and got to see some otters, bears, and this awesome Bald Eagle.

The sea lions and seals were fun to watch as well. We watched them do a bunch of tricks and swim around in the pools.

My favorite animal to watch was the huge polar bear! He was right at home in the cold weather. It was fun to watch him swim laps over and over in his pool. It was so awesome.

After walking through the Asian animals, we made our way to the large ape building.

These apes were fun to watch as they climbed around in their enclosures. The gorillas even had a cute baby gorilla! As we watched the orangutans, one climbed right up to the glass and then continued up to the very top of its climbing tree. It was interesting to see how effortlessly he climbed.

Next we made our way to the reptile house. It was nice to go here because it was inside and warm.

In here we saw a lot of cool reptiles and animals like the giant tortoise, crocodiles, big lizards and snakes and more.

As we moved through the reptile house we also saw this display of giant bugs from around the world.  Some of these things were huge!  I am so glad we do not live in the areas where these giant bugs live. Brooklyn's favorite animal was this spotted cat.  I can't remember what it was called.  Brooklyn loved watching it walk back and forth in its enclosure.  She laughed every time it came near the glass and even tried to pet it though the glass.  It was funny to watch.

After leaving the warmth of the reptile house, we remembered how cold it was outside really quickly as the wind blew in our faces. We decided it was time to go but the kids wanted to ride the Carousel before leaving.

Tickets for the Carousel were only $2 as well so we said they could ride.  They all had a good time riding together with Annalynn, James, and Kari.  

Despite the cold, this was a fun outing with the cousins.  We definitely need to do more things together.  We all had a great time!

Science Fair

The boys participated in the school science fair this week. They both worked really hard on their projects and learned so much. When we asked them what they wanted to do their projects on, Colby immediately said fingerprinting.

Learning about finger prints was actually pretty cool. We learned about the different types of fingerprint patterns, and how no body in the world has the same fingerprint pattern as someone else. For his project he took each of our fingerprints and compared them. We have more whorls and loops than arches in our family. Another thing he did was put a fingerprint on a balloon and then blew it up so the kids could see the lines and ridges in more detail.

Logan wasn't sure what to do his project on. At first he wanted to do something about dragons but I said he had to do some thing that was real not mythical. Then he came home and said he wanted to figure out how tornadoes formed. So that's what he did.

He learned all he could about tornadoes. He read a few books and looked up pictures of the internet. He learned that tornadoes form from a large thunderstorm. Inside thunderclouds, warm, humid air collides with cool dry air. The warm air rises, while cool air falls causing an updraft the rotates at high speeds. For his experiment we tried to make a tornado in a bottle. This was more difficult than we thought because we could not get the two bottles to seal without leaking. We tried duct tape, caulk, and hot glue but nothing worked. Finally we just made one that worked long enough for the science fair and only leaked a little. How it worked was you fill one bottle up with water, then fasten it to another empty bottle. Then when you turn it upside down and give it a little spin, it will create a vortex as the water drains into the other bottle and the water will look like a tornado. It is pretty cool when it works. Next time we will have to buy an actual cap for this sort of thing. I just found out they sell them at Hobby Lobby for like $2. Oh well... His project was still cool.

The PTA president over the science fair was so creative. She made the periodic table of elements out of mini cupcakes on the refreshment table. It was pretty awesome. 

This was a fun night. The boys liked talking about their projects and we loved looking at all of the other kids' projects as well.

10 Months Old

Brooklyn is 10 months old now. She is so fun but totally rules the roost. We love her though so it doesn't matter. 

Her newest trick is climbing the stairs.

One night Charlotte laid out some toys along the stairs and Brooklyn crawled to get all of them. Before we knew it, she was at the top of the stairs without any help. Don't worry I was right behind her in case she fell back but she did it all on her own.  Climbing up is pretty easy but now we need to work on going down the right way without falling. Until then the gate is still in.

Charlotte and Brooklyn love being twins.

They are adorable... And sassy. 

Brooklyn still loves to eat and has tried almost everything with no problems. The one thing she might have issues with are tomatoes. Her face gets pretty blotchy after eating them.  Oreos are the best though:

They are definitely the messiest that's for sure. Brooklyn is also learning sign language and can sign "milk" and "cookie." What more does she need to know, right?!

Happy 10 months Baby Boo!

Happy 9th Birthday, Logan!

Logan is nine! I can't believe how grown up all of the kids are getting. Logan is our fun loving middle child. He is always happy and wants to please everyone. He tries so hard at everything and is the friendliest kid. The mom of one of his friends told me that Elliana loves coming to church when Logan is there because he just makes it fun. That is so true about Logan he likes to make things fun. He is a friend to everyone. 

For his birthday this year he wanted a dragon themed party. He and his friends have started collecting stuffed dragons and they play with them at every recess. So we planned a dragon party and he invited all of his dragon loving friends.

For the first activity, the kids had to cross the moat without stepping on the ground. Using cardboard stepping stones the kids had to work together to get across the street. It was funny to watch them figure out how to do it.

Finally when they got across, they had to try to catch the dragon by the tail without getting bit by the head. It was basically a game of Crack the Whip and the kids loved it. They couldn't stop laughing. 

Next we broke down the castle pinata in order to free the baby dragons trapped inside.

The picture of Colby smacking the pinata is awesome because you can see all of the dragons flying out. Each of the kids got a stuffed dragon to take home and care for. That was the best part of the party they said. In fact, I had a mom ask me where we got the dragons because her son would not let any of his brothers look at the dragon and it would cause some problems if she didn't find a dragon for her other sons! These dragons are prized possessions to these kids!

Next is was present time.

Logan loved everything he received from his friends like art kits, Legos and of course some more dragons. 

Finally it was time for cake. 

The cake was actually based on a dinosaur but we pretended it was a dragon. Logan loved it so that's all that matters.

We had the party on Saturday but Logan's actual birthday was on Tuesday. That morning I made (or attempted to make) dragon shaped pancakes. You be the judge:

Logan thought they looked just like a dragon. I think they do too. 

For his birthday dinner, Logan wanted to go to Texas Roadhouse. He loves going there because they make him ride the saddle while they sing to him.

Did I mention he loves being the center of attention? 

When we got home, he opened more presents from us. 

He got new roller blades, a fishing pole, and some games. He was so excited. 

At school that week he was named Student of the Month for his class. On the award his teacher said, "Logan is fantastic and always make people feel good!" This has been an awesome week for Logan. Happy birthday Buddy! We love you.