Memorable Memorial Monday!

I took the children, backpacks crammed with picnic goodies and all our bikes to Pioneer's Park today! It was a gorgeous day and the park was full of people celebrating Memorial day. The air was filled with the smell of grilling and the plink of baseball bats meeting baseballs. We biked for MILES and I'm so proud of the children's stamina!! Jack began to grow weary near the end and made several attempts to coax us into stopping and picnicking at every opportunity, but really considering the heat, the terrain and the fact they are kids, I think they did wonderfully! ;D I didn't stop at simply bike riding either!! Once we'd returned to our start point we loaded the bikes into the van and then set off hiking!!! We stopped off at one of the nature centers for a potty break, to get new pencils, pet a couple of snakes and play some games, then headed out the other side of the building to continue on our adventure. We saw Elk headed for a swim, Geese and Goslings, a Blue Bird, fish, frogs and all manner of wild life. I'd signed up for a Waymarking site and we searched out some particular monuments to log on the site. We spent literally hours at the park and I KNOW the kids will sleep like LOGS!!!! ( I HOPE they sleep like logs!! )

For now, here are some pics... I need to go and do a quick tick search and then put the grubby kiddoes into a nice cool bath!! ;D

 

Jack needed a helping hand on some of the hills!!!

 

 

 

Jack watching an ant on a tree trunk!! ( The tree turned out to have a hollow limb that was home to at least one angry wasp....!! )

 

Jessie kept an eye on the bird population!

 

Jack took his little bug net and tried to swipe a few critters to study!

 

Finally time to stop for the picnic! You may not be able to tell in these pics, but the kids were SHATTERED!!!

 

 

 

Once the bikes were back in the van it was time for the hiking part of our program!!

 

 

Sandals and mulch don't work too well.....!!!

 

 

Jack LOVED this drinking fountain!! ;D

 

We really enjoyed this suspension bridge! It was great fun to make it swing and jump! The kids hated LOVED it.....ahem.....!!!

 

Here Jack and Jessie are pondering just what may have made the rather large, deep hole in the ground! My money was on Man Eating Scorpions, but they weren't having any of that!!!

 

A lovely day all round! Only Ice Cream could have improved it!! ;D

Sleep well???

Oh my! Another long night! I went to bed late as I stayed up to wait for the laundry to finish in the dryer, then I folded it rather than leave it to wind up a crumpled mess. Naturally just as I was getting done the dog needed to go out, then puppy needed to go out and was AGES pottering about...I finally got upstairs about one ish, then about one thirty the puppy started barking her head off downstairs. I got up and hissed at her to shaaaddd upppp!!! I went to the bathroom, came back to bed, settled under the covers and snuggled into my pillow.... and she started barking again. I got up, hissed at her to be quiet and went back to bed ( noting at the same time, that one of the children sounded restless.....) It was a really hot night and all the windows in the house were open so as I lay down and settled under the covers and snuggled into the pillow I was not surprised to hear the roar of a train and then the relentless wail of the horn. I lay awake for a while before finally getting back to sleep. At about 3 the puppy came upstairs and started mantling about in the bedroom. I patted the bed and called her to jump up but she didn't and eventually she left again. I settled down under the covers and snuggled into my pillow and was just settling down to sleep when the cat started clawing at the door frame. I sat up and hissed at him to STOOOOOP IIIIIIIIITTTT!!!! Lay back down, settled under the covers and snuggled into my pillow. I had just closed my eyes when the cat started up WOWLING. "wwwwWWWoooooOOOOOOlllllLLLLL".... in the hallway, right outside the kid's rooms. AAAAGGGHHHH!!!! I got up, snatched up the wowling cat and shoved him down the stairs, closing the door behind him. I went back to the bathroom, came back to bed, settled down under the covers and snuggled into the pillow. No sooner were my eyes closed when I heard a scritch scratching at the door at the top of the stairs. Next thing the cat comes hurtling sideways into the room on his tip toes with his tail jauntily raised over his back. He skittered around the room, attacking socks, pants, books, rugs, anything that caught his eye. He scarpered out of our room, belted back down the hallway towards the kids room, made a fast U turn and shot off into the bathroom. He leaped up on the counter, back down, out the bathroom, back into our room, caught up a sock and killed it with his deathly claws.... rampage rampage......I got out of bed, SWOOPED him up and brought him into bed with me. Hubby sleepily reached out to pull back the covers for me. I scowled in the darkness at the cat and said "Now just lie down and shut the hell up will you!!!" ...."Me???" Rex asked sleepily !! I held onto the cat as he struggled wild eyed and batshit crazy. Clearly he wasn't going to go to sleep. I got up, carried his crazed ass all the way down to the basement where I rather unceremoniously shut him in. Sigh. I came all the way back upstairs, went to the bathroom AGAIN ( I don't know what's wrong with me! ) climbed back into bed,settled under the covers, snuggled into my pillow and closed my eyes. Suddenly there was a strange sound and Rex jumped out of bed. "What was THAT!?!" he asked. Ugh. It was the garbage trucks. It was 5am and a holiday weekend, but apparently it's necessary for the garbage trucks to come and empty those gigantic roll off things. Yeah. Those are quiet. Rex closed the window and got back into bed. I settled under the covers and snuggled into my pillow. I was just drifting off to sleep when I was assaulted by a pair of underpants to the eye. Next a pair of shorts, a T shirt and a small boy took umbrage on my head, legs and nipples respectively. Now, my son is six and it's been many a moon since I nursed him,but still he manages to cause my nipples injury. As a rather small breasted woman I am constantly surprised by the child's particular skill of stepping on, leaning on and other wise compressing my nippular regions. Sigh. Again. My dear husband suggested that my son get up and get dressed and go downstairs leaving "Poor Mommy" to sleep. They went off downstairs together, I settled under the covers, snuggled into my pillow and closed my eyes.... only I was too hot. I dragged myself blearily to the window and threw it back open, went back to my bed, settled under the covers, snuggled into my pillow and drifted off to sleep....... for about 2 hours.......

Tired much!??!?! : D