The Dallas Zoo

Thankfully CK did the majority of the dishes after our Valentine's party, so Saturday morning while he headed out early to go fly, I didn't have too much to clean up. It was a beautiful day out, the girls were playing with their trains and I realized soccer season starts next Saturday. Therefore, I decided we needed to make the most of the day and got the girls dressed, snacks packed and we were out the door to the Dallas Zoo by 10am! We arrived just after it opened and it was already pretty busy. February is "Penguin Days" and each person is only $5 (Olivia was free since she's under 3). We stuck Olivia in the stroller and headed out. For some reason she did not want Sofia pushing her, so I'd pretend I was pushing the stroller while Sofia actually did it. Sofia loved "our little secret" and did a great job piloting the stroller.

We headed for the Sahara and the giraffes since I wanted to have the girls feed them and figured they would be hungry earlier in the morning than later. We arrived and there was a crush of people surrounding two giraffes that were munching on lettuce (sold for $5 for two big leaves) and cracker-like wafers (also sold for the same price). We watched others feed the giraffes when we first arrived and Olivia loved it. She actually was cracking up over how the giraffes would stick out their tongues and tried to mimic them! It was so funny and reminded me of Sofia at this age. Sofia also noticed things like that too and I love that Olivia finds it funny! We bought some wafers and headed into the pack of people to feed the giraffes. I had to hold Olivia so couldn't get any photos of her but luckily one of the giraffes came right over to us. Sofia fed it one of her wafers and Olivia held out hers before throwing it at the giraffe! Not really sure why she did that, but it actually hit the giraffe in the eye! It was funny and mortifying at the same time. We were able to get the wafer and she fed it to the giraffe who stuck it's long tongue out to grab it. Neither girl was phased by the giraffes or their tongues as many of the kids are. From there, we walked over and watched the elephants for a while and tried to find the lions and cheetahs (no luck) before heading to the little cafe for some lunch. The girls both had grilled cheese sandwiches that came with chips and waters and I had a small pre-packaged salad, all of which cost over $40!

After lunch, the girls played on the metal elephants before we headed to the monorail. The monorail tour was really interesting and is always one of my favorites of the zoo trip. It was already after 2pm, well after Olivia's nap time so we headed to the car. As we headed for the exit, it was clearly even more crowded than when we arrived and I was surprised at how many people were arriving as we left. The girls really wanted a "toy" so I let them pick out a stuffed animal. Sofia picked out a "paraketo azul" which is the mascot for Spanish Schoolhouse. Olivia decided on a zebra. After, we headed for the merry-go-around, which they both loved! Such a fun way to end a day at the zoo. Both girls really wanted ice cream, so after loading up in the car we headed next door to McDonald's and both girls got chocolate milk shakes (I don't think they have the swirl soft serve ice cream anymore). Olivia ate a little bit of hers before handing it to me and completely passing out in her car seat. Sofia ate most of hers before she too fell asleep. By the time we arrived home I had two happy, sleepy girls.

We made it!

Watching the giraffes eat

Sofia feeds the giraffe

Sofia pushing Olivia, who is NOT happy since she knows I'm not pushing her!

Elephants!

Our fancy lunch (next visit we pack our own)

Playing on the elephants

The merry-go-around

Sofia really wanted the eagle and waited until she was first in line so she could ride it!

The girls and their new buddies (Olivia is done!)

Sofia loves her bird!

Olivia

The drive home....

Happy Valentine's Day!

To celebrate Valentine's Day, we headed to the Colleyville Library on Thursday afternoon for a little Valentine's party being held upstairs. We met Sofia's school friend Emma and her big brother and mom at the party and the kids had a great time. Sofia and Olivia decorated cookies, which Sofia ate about 5 seconds after adding her frosting and sprinkles while Olivia was so focused on making sure that every sprinkle was on the frosting that she ended up pushing the frosting and sprinkles around for at least 15 minutes before I convinced her to move on to another project and threw the cookie away when she wasn't looking. After cookies, the girls decorated little metal mailboxes with stickers. Sofia really added a ton of stickers and jewels while Olivia added about 50 stickers, one on top of another. After that, the kids played with balloons, got heart tattoos on their arms and then we all walked over to City Park so they could play for a bit outside. Emma and Sofia stopped at the volleyball court and played in the sand until it was time to go.

Sofia's school Valentine's party was today at 11:30am. As a room mom, I arrived at 11am to help Amy set up the room. It really looked cute once we were done and Amy has such a great vision for decorated the classroom. The kids arrived from lunch and Sofia was so happy to see me. I love visiting her at school because she gets so excited that I'm there. For the party, the kids made ice cream sundaes and played bingo before playing a game of carrying candy hearts. The party ended with the kids going through their Valentine's bags of goodies from their classmates and then listening to a story. Unfortunately, Mrs. Schultz was out of town and a substitute was in her place. Sofia adores Mrs. Schultz and really wanted to give her a sweet card.

For Valentine's Day, which thankfully was on a Friday this year, CK and I planned a dinner party with my girlfriends and their husbands. We had a sitter come over so she could be with the girls upstairs while they watched a movie while we had dinner downstairs. I'm mad at myself for not taking any pictures of the table or all of us together! For our meal we had scallops with celery root puree, lentils and asparagus. Katie brought her outstanding salad and Michelle brought two kids of desserts: cupcakes and chocolate brownies. Before dinner, Michelle had a game for all of us to play. She handed out a sheet of questions for each of us to answer about our spouse. It included: What was the first gift you bought your spouse? Who did you first tell after you were engaged? What were your wedding flower colors? and Where did you get married? It was a fun way to remember a really special time in our relationships and also a great way to get to know our friends better. It was such a delicious dinner and fun night!

Olivia and her cookie

Sofia is done decorating and ready to eat!

Spreading sprinkles....

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love this picture!!

The girls, Buddy and me....Olivia is holding the little mailbox she decorated at the library yesterday

Sofia at her desk, ready for the party to begin!

Sofia and her new permanent teeth!

The class gets ready for their end-of-party story!

CK passes out goodies for the girls

Papa and Mommy in Lake Tahoe

On Saturday morning CK and I left the girls at home with Grandma and flew into Reno, Nevada where we got into a rental car and drove to Stateline, NV on the southern-most point of Lake Tahoe. It was rainy in Reno and we decided to drive the scenic route by going over the mountains and having lunch in Incline Village, CA before driving around the west coast of the lake. As we drove into the mountains the rain turned to snow and it became very windy and white. On our way up the mountain, we passed Mt. Rose, which is where I first learned to ski with my brother Pancho. Seems like a lifetime ago. On the drive down the mountain it was a little scary with the snow and wind, but CK drove really slowly and we made it to Incline Village, where it was low enough elevation that it was raining instead of snowing. Once in Incline Village we ate at a great little restaurant called Wild Alaskan which had excellent wraps, soups and salads with an asian twist. After lunch, we started driving, in the low clouds and rain, around the lake. If we'd had clear skies, the drive would have been breathtaking. As it was, we caught glimpses of the lake through the clouds and rain and enjoyed driving through the little lake towns that evoked a bygone era.

As we drove, we got a call from Connie telling us that the girls and her were at Scott and Brenda's house for dinner and Olivia had fallen back and hit her head on the fireplace. She explained that she bled but it had stopped and the cut wasn't very deep. She said Oliver and Sofia were far more upset by Olivia's injury than Olivia was. As we tried to understand what happened and give advice on what to do, my phone service was very spotty. Finally, after talking with our neighbor Marco who is a doctor, Connie decided to bandage her head up with a makeshift butterfly bandage and take Olivia to her pediatrician on Monday.

We arrived in Stateline and checked into our hotel. CK's conference would start Sunday afternoon, so we decided to go see a movie and grab dinner. It was a nice, relaxing afternoon. On Sunday, we slept in then walked around the shops at the base of Heavenly. The Heavenly gondola was shut down because of high winds which CK hoped would be over by Monday so he could ski. On Sunday evening we went to the conference reception and met some new Texas bankers and enjoyed the dinner.

On Monday, CK headed off early to his conference while I slept in, watched the Olympics and hung out without kiddos needing me. After his conference session was over around 11am, he headed up on the gondola to ski since the mountain got several inches of fresh snow Sunday night and the winds had died down. I headed up on the gondola around 12:30 to meet him and his colleague Sandy for lunch at the lodge. On the way up, I stopped at the lookout deck and the snow was incredible! The trees were completely wrapped in a beautiful blanket of snow and the view of the lake through the passing clouds was amazing! I continued up on the gondola and met CK and Sandy for lunch before CK and I headed back down the mountain. That night, we had another dinner with the conference attendees and had a really fun evening with great food.

On Tuesday, CK went to his conference and then returned to our room after so we could go watch another movie. Although the snow was perfect, CK wasn't up for skiing because his stomach wasn't feeling great. We had fun at the movies and enjoyed the down time. Although we enjoyed some kid-free time, I was ready to see our girls. Although we called every day to talk to Connie and would usually talk to both girls or at least one, I missed seeing them and hearing about their day.

On Wednesday morning, we woke up and headed back to Reno and our flight home. The flight was uneventful and we arrived home around 5pm. We were so excited to see the girls and they were happy to have us home again. One "secret" Grandma and Sofia kept from us during our trip was that Sofia's second tooth fell out on Monday night! She had her tooth in a little plastic bag and told us she wanted to keep it instead of giving it to the tooth fairy...guess she doesn't plan on giving any of her teeth to the tooth fairy! It was a fun few days in a beautiful place, but it's great to be home.

Looking up the mountain toward Heavenly

Going up in the Gondola

It's hard to tell from the photo, but it's very steep!

Love the snow-covered trees!

Looking toward the lake

More trees!

Me at the lookout

The ski runs at the top of the gondola

After eating lunch -the view from the lodge

CK and me

The skier

Amazing views!

Tuesday morning from our hotel window....so beautiful!

Happy Birthday, Buddy!

Today is our one year anniversary of getting Buddy! I can't believe it's already been a whole year and how much he's become part of our lives. He is still such a great dog, a lot of fun to have around and such a part of our lives. He has changed over the year and has obviously become "our" dog in that time. The first few months we had him, he would often wander off if we took him outside without a leash and wouldn't usually respond to his name. He wouldn't necessarily run away, but would just wander and I would have to go after him. Now, he definitely belongs with us and wouldn't dare run off. He's found his home and even if he gets out the back gate, he'll show up at our front door within 10 minutes.

Buddy has changed in a lot of other little ways too. When we first got him and for a while after, he would very rarely bark and was a quiet and content dog. Now, he's a lot more active and vocal and will bark at the trash collector or anyone who walks up our walkway (if he isn't asleep). He loves going for walks and when the weather is nice, Olivia and I will take him for a long walk where he loves to smell every blade of grass and pees on every other tree. He's great with other dogs and is very friendly with people. Ironically, Buddy doesn't even notice if CK comes home late and will usually bark well after he's in the room! Guess, he isn't much of a bodyguard!

Buddy loves to play with his dog toys and is great with knowing when to play with his toys and to leave the girls' toys alone. He'll toss his toys in the air and run after it over and over. He's a complete spazz when we first arrive home after being out and runs around, jumps in the air, barks and is so overwhelmingly happy to see us! He enjoys his dog food but certainly isn't obsessed with food. He'll often ignore food dropped on the floor, like Cheerios but will gladly eat them out of Olivia's offered hand. Needless to say, at meals Buddy sticks to Olivia like glue. He's such a great dog and we're so lucky to have him in our lives!

Buddy on his perch....he spends most of his day on our couch in this spot

Looking out the front door

Our brave attack dog

Such a sweet boy!

One year ago.....

Our new dog, Landon who soon became Buddy!

After his first haircut

Buddy's first flight!

He was fine hanging out in the back and did great in the Baron.

Our sweet boy!

Happy Easter!

Such a sweet dog!

With Papa

First day of First grade for Sofia and almost Olivia's 2nd birthday

Watching Sofia's soccer game

Our little hot dog - Happy Halloween!

Exploring the farm at Thanksgiving - in dog heaven!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our sweet dog and the silly way he sits

All of us!

Snow! Buddy loved it and wasn't sure what to think!

Merry Christmas - with Olivia and Grandma, ready to open presents