2 Questions

Is it really November 18?



Sunny

78°F


AND

Why did I buy winter clothes for my kids?

A Little History Lesson

Yesterday we ventured out of the present to explore the past. Really, I think I just made our little trip to the Las Vegas Natural History Museum sound a little bit more exotic than it actually was. I grew up in Las Vegas, but I don't ever remember going to the Natural History Museum on any field trips or anything like that.

Pigtail Princess Cousins

It is located in a part of town that is well past its prime. As soon as we walked into the museum, I took a deep breath in. It smelled just as I remember my first elementary school smelling like.

Old.

I can't really describe it beyond that. It smelled like it had been around since 1960 (no offense to those of you who read this blog who were around then...). Anyway, we looked at the map and we were on our way.

We started out in the dinosaur room. The kids freaked out. I can't say that I blame them. Not only were the Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops (yes, I spell checked those) huge and moving, but the room was dark and if we pressed a button, the T-Rex growled. (I still haven't gotten around to debrief our recent trip to Disneyland, but the dark rides were traumatizing to Miss Chloe, and yet, I keep taking her to dark attractions. I think I am trying to help her escape a life of being afraid of the dark like her mom. It is very debilitating). The kids were not fans.

Grace's reaction to seeing the big dinosaurs. She just kept saying, "Oh no!"

Chloe soon pointed out a very well lit area of the museum. It was the hands on area and the kids loved it. They searched for fossils like archaeologists, stood under a domed aquarium, tried on scuba gear and basically made a mess of the place. But they were smiling. We got to see some baby sharks still in their eggs just about ready to hatch. We saw sharks and sea rays and dolphins. Chloe was intrigued by an exhibit of safari animals. There were two lions attacking a zebra. Very graphic. She looked up at me and said, "Mom, those lions are being grumpy. They need to have good attitudes." So right...but then again, they would starve otherwise, right?

After brushing the dirt off of each buried fossil, Chloe would get so excited about what she had found. She would then bury the fossils again and still be excited when she brushed off the same dirt from the same fossils. Maybe Santa will bring her a big load of dirt for Christmas...


Grace especially loved the exhibit of the prehistoric men. They were a cross between monkeys and men. As soon as she saw the hairy statues, she said, "Hi Daddy!" I will have to let Oscar know that her perception of him is not as flattering as he may have thought. Perhaps its time to consider a good shave.

"Hi Daddy!"

The kids loved it, I liked it and to be quite honest, by the end of the tour, I didn't even notice the smell anymore! If you are interested in taking this same journey, you can get a 2 for 1 coupon on their website. Kids 2 and under are always free!

26

No, that's not Beckham in a dress...

That is the number of Jon's work uniform shirts that I cleaned out of our closet yesterday. Jon is starting a new chapter in his professional life. He quit his old job and has moved on to a better opportunity. I am so excited to see how he will live up to his new challenges. I have no doubt that he will be successful. I am so proud of him and his ability to support and care for our little family.

Happy, Happy, Happy, Happy, Happy Birthday!

I love cake. I love balloons. I love parties. I love birthdays!

I am also lame. Within the past month, there have been 5 birthdays on Jon's side of the family. Did I give shout outs to any of them??? No. Sorry. Here is my belated attempt...

Happy birthday Rob (Jon's Dad)...

Happy birthday Noah (Nephew)...

Happy birthday Zion (Nephew)...

Happy birthday Bobby (Jon's Brother)...

Happy birthday Tina (Jon's Sister)...

Happy birthday to all of you! We love you all very much! We hope you had fun days filled with cake, balloons and parties!

They Are So Good To Me...

I love my family. My sweet brother, Weston, just returned home last week from serving a mission for our church and we are SO excited that he is home safe. We had such a fun weekend being together and listening to the things Weston experienced over the past 2 years.

He served in Australia and spoke Mandarin Chinese.

Chinese.

Yeah...we weren't expecting that one when he opened his call. We've been watching "Ni Hao, Kai lan" (the Chinese version of Dora the Explorer) to prepare for Weston's arrival. Over the past year of watching it, I know 3 words. Hmmm. Not very impressive. What is impressive is that Weston knows the language amazingly well. It is crazy to look at him as he speaks the language. Looking at him I see my little brother but then he opens his mouth and he morphs into a Chinese person stuck in my little brother's body.

Crazy. I feel bad for him because the language is so crazy that he has somehow become our little trained monkey. If we see anyone, we nudge Weston and convince him to say something in Chinese. Poor guy. Maybe it will wear off. Maybe not.

I love my family.

Mr. Poort

From the time that I knew I was having a boy, I have always called Beckham, Mr. Poort. The 3D ultrasounds showed a very "old man"-looking baby and I thought that the name suited him. When he was born, we might as well have given him a top hat and a cane. Such a little man.

Before we left for Disneyland, Jon took Beckham to get his first haircut! He had the cutest head of curls, but the curls were slowly turning into frizz. I think Jon was hoping that we could hold off on a haircut until he entered kindergarten...I vetoed that idea.

His cute baby curls

Jon made it a father-son event. He took him to a salon that specializes in kid cuts. Beckham started out having a really good time playing with the trains and sitting in a car "chair". As soon as the hair stylist turned the clippers on, however, he freaked out! He is not a fan of loud sounds. (He even leaves the bathroom when I blow dry my hair because the sound is too loud). Jon had to hold him down the entire time.

He's been traumatized...but, he looks SO CUTE! I love his big boy cut. He looks so different to me. I don't think he recognized himself the first couple of times he passed by the mirror. He kept walking by the mirror in our room and would stop and giggle...walk away...come back...giggle. It was so cute. The salon gave us a little bag with a few salvaged curls to remember his baby hair.

He may look a little bit older, but he is still my little Mr. Poort.

America's Best Dance Crew

Obama & McCain Dance Off Poltical Ecard @ Yahoo! Video

Jon found this online today. We thought it was funny. I hope everyone had a chance to go out and vote today!