A Girl and Her Cat

I have countless pictures of Sadie holding or laying with Tinsley.  They have a really sweet relationship.  Sadie can't resist Tinsley because she is so furry and soft.  And Tinsley tolerates Sadie because no one else pays her much attention at all!  They really do love each other...even though, in this picture the cat is giving me the death stare.  hehehe

Reston Zoo

Yesterday, a friend and I decided to pack up the kids and take a day trip to the Reston Zoo.  It's about an hour outside Winchester, somewhat close to where Chad's new office is.  It boasts a variety of exotic animals, from creepy snakes to cute baby kangaroos.
Here's the 'before' shot of all 4 kids pumped to see some animals...

Our first adventure was a wagon safari ride, in which a tractor pulled us through the animals' habitat and they'd walk right up to the wagon for us to feed them.  The animals were fearless, and we were a bit... fearful!

Forget the name of this guy, but he was hungry!

Next, we braved the bird aviary.  Birds are definitely not my favorite creatures, and  being in an enclosed space with nearly a gazillion of them made me sweat.  But the girls really wanted to feed them, so we hastily took some pictures and then got the heck out!

Nice little birdy.....

AHHHHH!!!!!

We fed some sheep...

Rode a rhino....well, sorta.

And pet a sleepy kangaroo

It was a fun day!

Our Trip to Va Beach

We had such a fun-filled weekend in Virginia Beach.  It was one of those weekends that you need another weekend to recover from!  Mom and I held a baby shower luncheon for Erin on Saturday, and while we were gone Chad took the girls to the mall to ride the carousel & eat lunch.  They love the Lynnhaven mall carousel.  After I got back from the shower, we packed up the kids and headed down to the boardwalk.  It was a super windy, slightly chilly afternoon at the beach.  The water was much too rough for us to wade in, but the girls at least the girls got to take in the view.

Back at Mom-Mom & Grandpa's house, they relaxed in the hammock.  And when I say 'relaxed', I do mean that they played and rocked and screamed the whole time in it.  :)

They had fun on Sunday helping Mom-Mom babysit Amelia while Erin, Matt, Chad, and I were at the DMB concert.  Then the next morning, we headed to Busch Gardens.  It was a bit cool and spitting rain in the morning, but it turned out to be a perfect day!! No lines, great weather, and excited kids always makes for a good time at BG.  I didn't take my camera into the park, but here are a couple from Chad's phone.
The girls ready to enter the park...

Meeting Elmo!

The most surprising of the day's events?...Hannah rode Apollo's Chariot!!  It's a HUGE adult-sized roller coaster that even makes ME nervous to ride.  I can't believe she rode her first real coaster.  Chad went with her, and my heart was in my throat watching them climb that huge drop and then flying down!  I don't think she was expecting it to be so fast.   She was a bit shocked when she got off, but claims she really liked it and wanted to do it again.  ....Maybe next time, Mommy can only handle one panic attack per trip.

Summer has begun, and on the first real HOT day last weekend...we attempted to fill the new kiddie pool.  The problem is that our backyard is not flat enough in any one spot, so when we filled the pool completely one side busted over and the water spilled out onto the grass like a broken damn.  Thus, that is the reason the sides look a bit flimsy...we can't fill it all the way up!

Nevertheless, the girls had a great time splashing around and pretending to swim in their own lagoon.

Flimsy kiddie pools will just have to do, until we strike it rich and dig our own in-ground pool!
Don't hold your breath ...  :)

Last Day of Kindergarten!

Well, I am now technically the proud owner of a 1st grader!  I have so loved watching Hannah grow, learn, and mature during this first year of Elementary School.  We have truly come a long way from that tearful first day of Kindergarten.  She has made plenty of new buddies, gained new confidence in herself, and has become quite a voracious reader!  I'm more proud of her than she'll ever know!

Courageous and Strong

Today, we went on a field trip with the Daisy troop to the Sportsplex.  The girls tackled the rock wall in order to earn their "Courageous & Strong" patch.  Hannah's had some mild anxiety about climbing the rock wall since a few weeks ago, when she first learned of the upcoming field trip.  BUT she did very well!!

She was pretty nervous, but we had the wall for an entire hour...so she had time to warm up.  She climbed half a dozen times, and got higher each time!  She worked hard for that Girl Scout patch today!

A Memorial Day Family Walk

This past Monday, we got up early and took a  nature walk along the battlefield trail here in Winchester.  I've started training for a 5K and have heard this local running trail is a good place to run in the hot summer, since it's nice and shaded.  So on Memorial Day, we decided to check it out. Actually, Hannah ran most of the 1 1/2 mile trail!  Her legs were sore the next day!

Chad discovered a box turtle and the girls had a great time examining it....until the turtle HISSED at them!

Cheeese!