Sea Life

One big perk of having all the kids in school is being able to go on lots of Field Trips.  This year I went with Brayden’s class on every field trip.  This one was especially fun, since they were visiting our new local aquarium and we’ve never been there before! 

This area was very cool – the kids could touch the starfish.  Brayden wanted NOTHING to do with that.  He wouldn’t even attempt to touch anything.  Oh well…

There were a lot of smaller aquariums…

and a couple really BIG aquariums too.

These sharks were residents of the biggest aquarium.  Watching them gives me the willies.

This poor seahorse accidentally got blasted with my flash… I thought it was turned off, but it blinded us both!

This tank had a kiddie tunnel tube… Brayden loved it, but it’s a little too claustrophobic for me!

After the rays were fed, they got pretty frisky and active… getting a picture of them was tricky without using the flash. 

All in all, it was a great visit.  They had a fun playground at the end for the kiddies, which Brayden loved.  In fact, once he heard there was a playground, he didn’t really care about stopping to see the rest of the aquarium… he just wanted to skip the fish and go straight there.   When the kids got back to the school, they had a pizza party in their classroom.  It was a great way to end the school year!

Random April Events

Children’s Museum of Phoenix:

Brayden and I went here with his kinder class for a field trip in February.  He loved it and they gave us all a coupon for one free admission if we came back in the next four months.  I promised him we’d come back over Spring Break, but that didn’t happen because I got sick.  So finally on Good Friday, we went.  (As did every other stay at home mom in the Phoenix metro area.)  It was totally crowded but the boys had a great time.  Ian brought a friend and Brayden finally got to do a project in the craft room, (which was something we didn’t have time for on our last visit.)  The only negative part about the day was the $25 parking ticket I got from parking in a lot across the street that I needed a permit for.  Oh well…

           

This is the boys at the top of the giant play structure.  It’s kinda like a McD’s playground on steroids, but all made from recycled building materials.  It looks really cool in person!

This was the little girls’ room.  The four sink at four different levels cracked me up.  And three of the mirrors have this funky reflector stuff in them, so you can’t even use them.  But they do look cool.

Driving a Stick: 

On Easter Sunday while we were all wishing we could nap off the sugar crash from easter baskets, Grandma decided to take Taylor out for stick shift driving lesson #2.  He did well.  He has the typical boy I-can-do-anything-if-you-will-just-let-me-do-it attitude.  Sometimes that’s good, sometimes that’s bad.  Grandma has more patience in the driver’s seat than I do, that’s for sure.   

America’s Next “Top Shot”?

When’s he’s not asking me to borrow the car, he’s often in the back yard doing this.  He has big dreams of one day being on Top Shot.  We have a friend who sent in an application for Season 4, so maybe we’ll get lucky enough to know someone who’s been on Top Shot.  I like that idea better.

Flutes and Field Trips:

At the end of the month I got to go on a Field Trip with Megan for band.  Her school band performed at a Band Festival in Mesa and then went to Amazing Jake’s afterwards for lunch.  I’ve never been to Amazing Jakes before and I’ve avoided it because it seems so pricey.  But in reality, it’s a pretty good deal, especially if you have time to spend the whole afternoon.  All you can eat buffet (pizza, pasta, salads, drinks, dessert) and games for $15.  Some games are unlimited, and you get a $5 card to play the coin-op games.  I think we’ll have to plan a day to go this summer.  It would be a great way to get out of the heat for an afternoon and enjoy someone else’s A/C.