Saint Louis Zoo

We recently took a quick trip over to Saint Louis!   Of all the great kid activities in the city, this was a MUST STOP activity!  We were extremely impressed with the St. Louis Zoo and we spent about 7 hours there!!!   See that cute baby elephant in the above photo?!

The carousel ride is also a MUST DO activity.  Both girls are at an age were it is a blast!  I took WAY too many photos of them riding.....want proof???   You're getting it anyway! 

I love in the next one how Jeff is mimicking Quinn's face!!  I just couldn't crop him out!  

It was a super hot day.  Kennedy was such a trooper with all the walking and sweating!  This was near the end of the day....exhaustion....

But then we ran into a waterfall!!!  Energy again!!!  Quinn was a bit apprehensive...she really wanted to run in but couldn't make herself do it.  Kennedy wasn't going to get wet and just watched.  But she couldn't stand it!  So they both ended up soaking wet!  At least it was the last stop!  Oh, and we DID see animals at the zoo...but wouldn't you rather look at my cute girls?!

And I will leave you with a view from our hotel room!  See on the left side on top of the building there is a bright circle?!  That is the ferris wheel on top of City Museum!   More about that another day!

For the Love of Animals!

Hooray for a trip to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead!  We love this place!  Kennedy even had her 4th birthday there!!!  Come see the fun we had!

 I just love this first photo - for so many reasons!   #1 - my bff taking photos of the girls from the other side! #2 - these 3 girls are so close and I love that!  #3 - Taylor had to borrow her mom's sunglasses to "match" Kennedy! #4 - The happiness of summer and exploring on their faces!  #5 - they had no idea I was taking their photo!

We always get photos taken in the butterfly garden!!!!

Quinn was so taken with the animals!!!  She couldn't get enough of the goats!  The older girls fed the goats while Quinn squealed and giggled.  She even was brave enough to hold out her own had to feed them.  So I decided she would do well in the enclosed goat area!

What do you think?  Did she like it?!

It goes without saying that Kennedy loved feeding them as well.  This has been a favorite part for her for years!

We were able to hook up with some more friends while there.    The big kids got Discovery Passbooks where they have to look around the Farm for hidden questions and then search for the answers.  Kennedy and Owen went crazy over answering the questions and filling out their books!!!!!  Here they are coming out of the General Store!

It was a great day!

Family Weekend

 Awwww......cousins!
We had a houseful this weekend!  My Uncle Tom from Texas came to visit along with my mom, her husband, my brother, his wife and their sweet girl, Marin. Oh, and Mom brought their dog, Roxie, too!

 There was quite a bit of time spent lounging (and quite a few naps - babies and adults alike).....

 But most of the time it was us watching the kids play and play and play!  There were toys strewn everywhere, sippy cups all around, snack cups dumped here and there, dogs jumping and sneaking in for attention and lots of smiles and giggles!

 Thank you to Tom for all these photos....I am too tired to upload and sort through  mine!  So another post may be coming !

 It is so fun now that both Marin and Quinn are old enough to walk/run and play together.  Marin is completely taken with Kennedy, or "Key" as she calls her! 

Thanks to all my family that made the trip to KC for a visit!  We love you bunches!!!!

You Capture - Summertime

I am joining Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry for this week's you capture. The theme is Summertime!!

We're definitely in the middle of summer....excessive heat warnings and all. What better summertime activity than hopping in the pool!? On our trip last week we got to visit family so Kennedy and Eva swam in the backyard!

Another summertime must is time at the playground! The one below was in Red Wing, MN and was one of the best I've seen! Of course Quinn couldn't be left out!


You can't forget fun with friends!! this was the 4th of July with Kennedy's soccer team (minus one little girl). The coach awarded them their trophies!!!!

T-ball!!!!!!!!!! A summer staple, right?! Kennedy turned out to be a pretty darn good player!!!!!
Picnics! They are even better when you have them with cousins!!!!
New Adventures!!!!!! While in Minnesota we visited the aquarium. Kennedy hadn't remember seeing one in the past so it was like new to her! And Quinn enjoyed the new animals, too!

Playing Catch Up

Trying to catch up at my Photo a Day......rounding out May.

May 31st
We met some friends from church at the KC Zoo today! It was a warm one! We ended up spending the majority of the day just the 3 of us and I totally enjoyed it! Kennedy loves animals and the zoo is always a hit. She enjoyed feeding deer, riding the train, riding the carousel with Quinn, and her favorite animal was the Squirrel Monkey. Feeding the Lorikeets is one of Kennedy favorite things to do. You get a small cup with a liquid in it, hold it in your hand and extend your arm. The birds just flock! At one point she had 2 birds on her arm! I love this shot because she wasn't expecting the bird to take flight and Quinn was looking too! We only got to enjoy half the zoo on this trip. Unfortunately on the Africa side a gorilla got loose! They stopped letting people head that way, so we headed home. But not until after we enjoyed some free Dip n Dots!!!



May 30th - Memorial Day
The pools opened this weekend so Kennedy was beside herself! The water was QUITE cold - I didn't even get in! But it was Quinn's FIRST trip to the swimming pool! Considering how cold it was she really enjoyed it and had lots of smiles for us!

May 29th
Celebration at the Station! One of my favorite traditions!! This year we talked the Elliott's into joining us! Kennedy and bff Taylor had a great time goofing off!!! (Hopefully I will have a post soon about Kennedy's outfit...Quinn was matching!)

May 28th
Doggie mini spa day! Kennedy and I brushed the dogs today...forever! They have so much hair it is ridiculous! We have always joked that Izzy has so much hair we could brush and never stop and still not get all the hair! Later Jeff played doggie dentist! He has a great tool that helps knock the plaque off the dogs' teeth. Kennedy helped out by shining a flashlight on the dog's mouth. And Quinn was extremely interested...can you see her trying to work her way into the mix?!


May 27th
Birds!! We have started our bird watching - hooray! Miss Kennedy and I have our trusty bird book out along with the rockin' binoculars . This year we will be keeping a bird journal. We will track the date, the bird type, where we spotted it, what it was doing and the time of day. Currently there are 4 bird feeders in the yard and one bird bath.

May 26th
T-Ball Season has officially begun! Be on the lookout for lots of photos of the Pink Panthers soon!


May 25th
A bad weather day! The horrible tornado had just struck Joplin days earlier. Storms had been cropping up all over the Midwest over the previous weeks and were all over the news. On this morning, the gals and I had gone to a friend's for coffee and playtime. We moms were discussing how our hostess's home didn't have a basement and what they would have to do should a tornado head their way. I kid you not, just then the tornado sirens sounded! We all just looked at each other and no one spoke! Someone turned on the television and we tried to make sure the kids were unaware. It appeared the storm was East of us so we started to breath easier. That is until the Sheriff's office called into the news station and said they were taking cover!!!! We all decided to throw the kids in the car and just head to our homes - and our hostess had a safe place to go as well! I snapped this shot as we were driving home. The gals and I spent much of the afternoon in the basement watching the news!




May 24th
Oops! Forgot to take a photo today!

May 23rd
Last day of Kindergarten!!!! There was a family picnic on the playground - even Mema attended! This is a shot of 2 of Kennedy's friends, Ava and Brady. Seriously...kindergarten is over???

Our Handmade Bird Snacks!!!

We have been thoroughly enjoying all the birds in our backyard this summer! Thanks to Papa Keith, Kennedy is in LOVE with learning the types of birds and their calls! He got her THIS amazing book that we just love!!!! They have them for different regions of the US. It shows you photos of various birds, tells you about them, and then it will play their song(s). It is sooo cool!!!!

Anywhooooo, we checked out lots of bird books from the library. A few of them showed different ways to make snacks for your backyard birds. So I tweaked them a bit and this is what we came up with.

We got 2 sturdy paper cups. Then poked holes in the bottom and strung ribbon through them for hanging.


Here is Kennedy with our ingredients! Our birdfood and some Crisco and a bowl!!!

We melted the Crisco and added birdfood until it wasn't runny anymore.

Then we poured the mix into the cups and let it harden. In retrospect I would have used sturdier cups - the Crisco soaked through the bottom a bit but it still held.
Here is one hanging by our two birdfeeders!!!!
And this one is hanging right outside Kennedy's new playhouse window!!! We haven't actually seen any birds snacking on them yet! :( Maybe we will try again and add peanut butter next time!!!! Or maybe we are too impatient and need to wait another few days!!!

And last but not least I will leave you with a photo of Kennedy "playing" with her snail friends!!! She loves to let them crawl up her arms! Unfortunately, they often fall off and get cracks in their shells! Eek! But they still manage to crawl away!!

Enjoy your Father's Day weekend!!!!!
Blessings!