So with that putting a damper on things I decided that we would try to do 1 fun thing each day & if possible do things we had never done before. A week of mini adventures so to speak. Grand plans, a little short on follow through - but really we had a very busy, very full, very fun week in the end.
MONDAY was a bust. Dan had to go into work, and my work was busier than normal since I was helping to cover for my co-worker who was out for the day. The good news is I was able to work ahead and get some of Tuesday's work done Monday evening leaving very little work to be done the next day. Nate had a homework packet that he was supposed to work on over the break - we had him doing a couple of pages each day (in the morning while I worked - that way he was done when I was done and then we were free to play. The whole reason I even mention this is that when hounding Nate to get the work done he very emphatically told me "It's Spring BREAK mom not Spring Work". Funny kid - he was right, but in the end he did the work. That said the kids did enjoy a plain old down day - play with your toys, watch a movie kind of day on Monday.
TUESDAY Dan & I tried to finish up some work in the morning while the kids played, after lunch we headed to Bainbridge Island Aquatics Center to play in the water. It had been some time since we had been swimming, and while going here was not something new for all of us, we did experience some new fun things while we were there. One thing we decided while there, we've taken too long of a break from swimming lessons & it's time to try to find time to get the kids going again.
The first time in a pool for Maddie - she had a great time!
Kassie had a FANTASTIC time! She LOVED going down the slide with daddy. We had to drag her from the pool when it was time to go, she kept trying to escape & get back in.
Nate passed the swimming test for the first time at this pool. He got his swimming license and made good use of the high dive.*
I didn't get a good picture of Abbie - she had a lot of fun in the "lazy river" and enjoyed finally being big enough to go down the slide on her own.
Not the greatest picture but shortly after this the camera crapped out so .... you get what you get.
*There was one time when I was watching Nate jump from the high dive. The person in front of him had swam to the edge & was talking to the life guard but hadn't yet gotten out of the pool. One lifeguard noticed Nate running for the edge of the dive board and tried to get him to stop - Nate was full on running, saw the lifeguard, "hit the breaks", skidded off the end of the board, tried to reach a hand up to grab on to stop himself to no avail & he dropped into the pool. It makes me laugh just to write about it. It was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time - it was America's Funniest Home Videos funny. I was laughing so hard - the lifeguards about wet themselves laughing. Oh how I wish I had the camera - you'll just have to visualize it on your own. Needless to say, Nate didn't get into trouble with the lifeguards - they were very well aware he did his best to stop. Trying to stop a Nate in motion can be about as easy as stopping a train.
WEDNESDAY, after another morning of work, we packed the diaper bag, a bunch of snacks and headed for the ferry to Seattle (we grabbed lunch on the way). We decided to check out Woodland Park Zoo (the Seattle Zoo). As a family we love to go to the zoo & we have a membership to the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, but in light of trying something new we headed off to Seattle. We had not been to the Woodland Park Zoo ever before. There were animals that the kids had never seen before - so many new things to check out. It was a great zoo & we had a great time! I'm pretty sure we'll be going back again.
The penguins we a big hit.
Maddie in all her bundled up cuteness.
Some sisterly snuggles.
We caught the tail end of a training session with this member of the primate family. It was really cool. The gorillas were a hit too, but none of my pictures of them really turned out.
They had a kiddy play zone that was enjoyed by all of our kids, but my favorite part was this tunnel in the small kids area that had a mirrored bottom. Maddie was leery at first about going through but once she did she kept going back - she really had fun - I loved snapping the pictures of her crawling through with her reflection showing - I really wish I had remembered my real camera not just the one on my phone - still priceless in my book though.
Flamingos were a new one for the kids.
I know this picture doesn't come anywhere close to doing justice, but I just had to include it - this wood duck's colors were so amazing - it was truly stunning.
By far the favorite animal of the day were the giraffes. They were getting ready to be put in for the night so it was really had to get a decent picture, but the kids loved them anyway.
I'm not sure what they were thinking but we felt like we were playing peek a boo with them.
One of Kassie's favorites was simply splashing in the endless puddles.
There was some funky bear - extra hairy! It looked like it was having a big bad hair day - some spots were thick & bushy other parts of it's fur looked like what you'd expect a bear to look like - it was kinda strange.
A quick partial group shot on our way out. Maddie was sleeping in the stroller at this point.
THURSDAY - almost the same drill as Wednesday - quick work in the morning, quick lunch then a drive to Seattle. To Boeing Field & the Museum of Flight, another place we had never been before. It was only about $25 more for a membership than admission was going to cost us for the day - we got the membership which ended up being a good thing - we didn't get to see everything we wanted - there was SOOOO much to see. We will gladly be going back again & making good use of our membership!
First stop was the pseudo tarmac where you could walk around various planes & tour some of them. The ones open for tour the day we were there were a retired Concord Jet & a retired Air Force One Jet. They were both cool. There were several other planes but none were open for tours, another reason to go back, that and the cool new space wing they are building in hopes of getting a retired shuttle - now that would be COOL!
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| The Concord |
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| Air Force One (used by Presidents Kennedy, Eisenhower, Johnson & Nixon) |
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| The President's "Bat Phone" |
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| Proof we were actually on AFO - or at least proof the kids were there. |
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| I really wanted to know what this NASA plane did. None of the tour guides on duty could tell me - time to brush up guys! |
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| Model Control Tower - we missed this one, top of the "to do" list next time we go. |
Time to try flying out on our own. They had these cool mini planes. The were built to really fly. The girls checked them out while Nate tried out one of the simulators with Dan.
Abbie's going solo.
Kassie's Solo
Not sure if this helicopter was built for flight or not, but the girls checked it out too.
Abbie took a spin on the hang glider simulator - took her a couple of tries, but in the end she said it was her favorite thing.
This photo op was part of the WWI Exhibit.
Of the next few pictures I can't remember which planes are from the WWI or the WWII exhibits, but there were planes EVERYWHERE on display on the floor, hanging from the ceiling in simulated dog fights, they were so cool to look at. We were amazed by how small they were - so much to take in, more than one day's worth that's for sure.
Kassie trying her hand at a flight simulator.
Getting serious.
Abbie's turn
Even Dan gave it a shot.
Maddie doing what she does best - looking oh so cute!
Some sort of space return capsule that I didn't get to read about as much as I wanted to - had to keep up with kiddos.
Umm yea, some space thing I thought was cool, but again not enough time to read the sign.
This half a plane was a movie theater that was showing a movie about the first 100 years of flight - we watched a small part of it - mostly the kids thought it was fun to play on the plane.
Astronaut Abbie
Astronaut Nate
Astronaut Kassie
Astronaut Maddie
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| Another thing we tried was this jet pack simulator were you were an astronaut trying to help retrieve the Hubble Telescope. Maddie & I were the only ones who didn't try - Nate, Abbie & Dan all ran out of fuel before rescuing Hubble. |
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| Can you hear her saying "Can't yeach (reach)" she kept saying it over & over again, but wouldn't let us help her - she's as stubborn as her mother. |
There really were planes everywhere you looked - we saw only a very small percentage of what was there. We are excited to go back to check out some of the things we missed & visit some of our favorites again.
FRIDAY Dan & I both had to work again, but with 2 big days in Seattle the kids needed a down day.
SATURDAY Dan went scuba diving & the kids & I hung out here & did our normal thing
SUNDAY Conference Day (really messed with my blogging schedule), a day of rest, some laundry and just getting ready to get back into the routine of school/work life - tomorrow is Monday after all!
I am grateful to live where we do. I love the community feel of where we live while having easy access to a major US city with all it has to offer. We've only just begun - checking out Seattle family style . It has a lot more to offer us in the upcoming months/years!
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