I cannot believe that it's been over a year since I posted here. I kept meaning to come back and give updates, but I just never found the time. When I last posted, I was finishing up my last semester of classes in Grad school, then spent a semester student teaching/writing a research paper/trying to find a job. Last summer, we moved to Columbia, Missouri, I got married to my wonderful (and, at times, wonderfully annoying) man (his name is Matt), and I started working as a substitute teacher. We've made some awesome friends and had some awesome experiences so far.
One of my favorite things about COMO is the Unitarian Universalist church. When I was 12 or 13, a friend invited me to a Winter Solstice celebration at a UU church in SWMO, and I absolutely loved it. I decided then that if I ever moved to a town with a UU, I would definitely be attending. So our first weekend in town, I dragged my atheist then-fiance for a summer lay-led service. And it was AWESOME! So we've been going, and on December 6, 2013, we became full members. Go us!
Through the UU church, I've met some Pagans, and we're meeting on Imbolc (it just so happens to be pot-luck Sunday at the UU, so we're meeting over lunch) to discuss if it would be worth our while to create a group of sorts, and what that would mean/look like for us. So, I'm really excited! I started this blog when I was going through what I like to call my Christian phase. I was trying to blend Christianity and Paganity, because I wanted to be part of something greater than myself; I wanted community. I never found it in a Christian church. And while I can see Christopaganism working for someone else, it never did mesh well for me. Now, through the UU, I can have a Pagan community along with the larger UU community, all the while being true to myself and my beliefs without having to compromise.
I don't know where I'm going with this blog, if I'm going anywhere. I haven't been active in my faith for the last year, which is probably part of the reason I haven't been posting, along with my busy life outside of the Internet. But I am hoping to start exploring it more and practicing more, both on my own, as part of the (possible) Pagan group at church, and with my best friend here in COMO, who is also Pagan(ish). So this blog will hopefully be going places, telling the next chapters in this witch's story.
Showing posts with label fun times. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fun times. Show all posts
12 January 2014
02 March 2012
spring break, finally!
Spring Break! *cue McDonald's music* I'm lovin' it!
So far, it's been a pretty exciting break, for all that it's only been three days.
On Saturday, I attended a marimba competition (to watch, not compete). It was amazing! The best part: five of my friends were competing (though none placed) and the majority of the percussion studio from Truman were there to a) support those competing and b) they were the featured ensemble for the concert that night! The featured marimbist/guest judge was Mark Ford, who is a pretty big name in the marimba world. It was a great day of competition, and a fantastic concert that night! My only regret is that I'm no longer a part of the studio, and I wasn't on stage performing with them.
Yesterday, I pulled my bow out of storage. Since I can successfully do push ups, I thought shooting might be a tad bit easier than it was five-six years ago when I was first learning. (Note: I haven't shot in those five-six years.) I was surprised at how easy it was. Not that I was getting bulls-eyes or anything like that, but I was hitting the target more often than not and from further away than I was shooting before.
Camden was helping me by being my quiver. He'd hand me the arrows and help me fetch them. (I sent him after the once that missed the target. I'm lazy. I know.) He really wanted to shoot the bow. But at a 45 pound draw, that just wasn't happening, though he tried several different times. Poor guy.
After shooting today, he decided that he wanted to go deer hunting. So we took the bow and arrows and went for a walk in the woods. Climbed a tree; threw some rocks and sticks into the ponds; looked for some wild animals, but saw none.
Tomorrow, we're off to explore a cave! I say explore like we're strapping on head lamps and knee pads and crawling into some dark crevice... But, really, we're visiting a cave with nice smooth paths, hand rails, lights, and guided tours. It will be exciting anyway! Prolly more so than dark crevice exploration, considering that I have a great fear of enclosed dark places.
So far, it's been a pretty exciting break, for all that it's only been three days.
On Saturday, I attended a marimba competition (to watch, not compete). It was amazing! The best part: five of my friends were competing (though none placed) and the majority of the percussion studio from Truman were there to a) support those competing and b) they were the featured ensemble for the concert that night! The featured marimbist/guest judge was Mark Ford, who is a pretty big name in the marimba world. It was a great day of competition, and a fantastic concert that night! My only regret is that I'm no longer a part of the studio, and I wasn't on stage performing with them.
Yesterday, I pulled my bow out of storage. Since I can successfully do push ups, I thought shooting might be a tad bit easier than it was five-six years ago when I was first learning. (Note: I haven't shot in those five-six years.) I was surprised at how easy it was. Not that I was getting bulls-eyes or anything like that, but I was hitting the target more often than not and from further away than I was shooting before.
Camden was helping me by being my quiver. He'd hand me the arrows and help me fetch them. (I sent him after the once that missed the target. I'm lazy. I know.) He really wanted to shoot the bow. But at a 45 pound draw, that just wasn't happening, though he tried several different times. Poor guy.
After shooting today, he decided that he wanted to go deer hunting. So we took the bow and arrows and went for a walk in the woods. Climbed a tree; threw some rocks and sticks into the ponds; looked for some wild animals, but saw none.
Tomorrow, we're off to explore a cave! I say explore like we're strapping on head lamps and knee pads and crawling into some dark crevice... But, really, we're visiting a cave with nice smooth paths, hand rails, lights, and guided tours. It will be exciting anyway! Prolly more so than dark crevice exploration, considering that I have a great fear of enclosed dark places.
16 February 2012
Camping
Have I posted about camping before? Possibly; it's on my mind a surprising amount. So, if I have, and if you've already read about it, I'm sorry. This might be more of the same. (But then, it might be entirely different! Who knows!)
When I was a kid, my family would go camping all the time. At least two times a year. Wow, okay, maybe that's not all the time. But still, it was a big part of my life growing up, and I always looked forward to it. We did what I refer to as "real camping." We didn't pay to stay in a managed campground. Excepting the last few years, we didn't bring a camper. We mostly cooked over the camp fire. The first few things we did on arriving at the campsite was mow the grass and dig a latrine. (Well, the first few thing my dad and brothers did. I jumped in the river!)
I miss those lazy weekends on the river, where the only worry was cottonmouths. (Hmm.. That's kind of a big worry, now that I think of it.) I miss spending the day trekking from camp, to the river, back to camp, back to the river. I miss the cheap soda we bought to bring along. I miss the frustration of putting up a tent with it's stupid bendy poles that never seem quite bendy or quite long enough. I miss the early mornings and watching steam rise off the river and the fish jumping for bugs.
I've finally decided that I am going to go camping again. Camden is old enough to truly enjoy it, I think. I'm finally brave enough to try doing it on my own. (Probably the biggest thing that has been holding me back.) I know that I'm not, and Camden's not, going to have the same experience. And that's okay. It's not about recreating my childhood, right? It's about forging ahead and creating our own traditions.
Now I just need a tent! Oh, and it needs to be summer.
When I was a kid, my family would go camping all the time. At least two times a year. Wow, okay, maybe that's not all the time. But still, it was a big part of my life growing up, and I always looked forward to it. We did what I refer to as "real camping." We didn't pay to stay in a managed campground. Excepting the last few years, we didn't bring a camper. We mostly cooked over the camp fire. The first few things we did on arriving at the campsite was mow the grass and dig a latrine. (Well, the first few thing my dad and brothers did. I jumped in the river!)
I miss those lazy weekends on the river, where the only worry was cottonmouths. (Hmm.. That's kind of a big worry, now that I think of it.) I miss spending the day trekking from camp, to the river, back to camp, back to the river. I miss the cheap soda we bought to bring along. I miss the frustration of putting up a tent with it's stupid bendy poles that never seem quite bendy or quite long enough. I miss the early mornings and watching steam rise off the river and the fish jumping for bugs.
I've finally decided that I am going to go camping again. Camden is old enough to truly enjoy it, I think. I'm finally brave enough to try doing it on my own. (Probably the biggest thing that has been holding me back.) I know that I'm not, and Camden's not, going to have the same experience. And that's okay. It's not about recreating my childhood, right? It's about forging ahead and creating our own traditions.
Now I just need a tent! Oh, and it needs to be summer.
16 October 2011
city museum
I made plans several weeks ago to go to St. Louis and talk to UMSL about their teaching program. And because I've been to St. Louis many times for school field trips, I know that there are quite a few fun things to do. About a week before we went, Camden and I sat down at the computer and looked at pictures and videos of the different places I knew: the science center, the magic house, the zoo, and the city museum.
From pictures and videos, the city museum was the obvious choice. Tunnels to crawl through, slides to slide down, gorgeous artwork, a bus perched precariously on the rooftop, etc etc! The city museum is a cross between a museum and a GIANT indoor playground. (Almost) Everything is hands on.
Of course, the week before we went, Camden came down with the pox. I was really worried that he wouldn't be able to go... Thankfully, however, he was deemed contagious no longer! So off we went!
My trip to UMSL was a waste, because it turns out that everything they had to tell me I could have found online. (Just want to say that when I called, the person I talked to said it was very hard to explain over the phone, and I should schedule an appointment to come in and talk. Thanks, person!)
Then on to the city museum! (And lucky for us, rooftop access was FREE that day. YES!)
A slide made of rollers (like rolling pins). Very bumpy and very uncomfortable! Camden loved it, though.
The fossil, bug, and skeleton room. The walls were covered with tons of displays of pinned insects. There was a nifty diorama of dinosaurs and a jungle area. And there were skeletons, including a cat skeleton, which was both cool and kind of creepy.
If it wasn't for all the other fun and awesome stuff, I'm fairly certain Camden would have stayed in this room much longer than he did.
They also had a room of architecture elements (I'm assuming they were pulled from buildings about to be torn down). Camden was not nearly as enamored with this room as my mother or I.
This column is in the food court area. Cam has a thing for frilled lizards, so he absolutely loved it. It hovered over us as we sat and had some snacks (we were planning on lunch, but the food was ridiculously over priced... What can I say? I'm cheap!)
The roof! See the school bus? The front end is hanging over the side of the building... 11 stories up. Have I mentioned I'm terrified of heights?
Oh, there's also a giant sculpture of a praying mantis. Why? I have no idea!
Do you see me? I crawled up the tiny stairs into the wire cage, which is perched on the roof. Again, I'm not good with heights, so I was pretty shaky the entire time. LOL It was fun anyway!
From pictures and videos, the city museum was the obvious choice. Tunnels to crawl through, slides to slide down, gorgeous artwork, a bus perched precariously on the rooftop, etc etc! The city museum is a cross between a museum and a GIANT indoor playground. (Almost) Everything is hands on.
Of course, the week before we went, Camden came down with the pox. I was really worried that he wouldn't be able to go... Thankfully, however, he was deemed contagious no longer! So off we went!
My trip to UMSL was a waste, because it turns out that everything they had to tell me I could have found online. (Just want to say that when I called, the person I talked to said it was very hard to explain over the phone, and I should schedule an appointment to come in and talk. Thanks, person!)
Then on to the city museum! (And lucky for us, rooftop access was FREE that day. YES!)
A slide made of rollers (like rolling pins). Very bumpy and very uncomfortable! Camden loved it, though.
The fossil, bug, and skeleton room. The walls were covered with tons of displays of pinned insects. There was a nifty diorama of dinosaurs and a jungle area. And there were skeletons, including a cat skeleton, which was both cool and kind of creepy.
If it wasn't for all the other fun and awesome stuff, I'm fairly certain Camden would have stayed in this room much longer than he did.
They also had a room of architecture elements (I'm assuming they were pulled from buildings about to be torn down). Camden was not nearly as enamored with this room as my mother or I.
This column is in the food court area. Cam has a thing for frilled lizards, so he absolutely loved it. It hovered over us as we sat and had some snacks (we were planning on lunch, but the food was ridiculously over priced... What can I say? I'm cheap!)
The roof! See the school bus? The front end is hanging over the side of the building... 11 stories up. Have I mentioned I'm terrified of heights?
Oh, there's also a giant sculpture of a praying mantis. Why? I have no idea!
Do you see me? I crawled up the tiny stairs into the wire cage, which is perched on the roof. Again, I'm not good with heights, so I was pretty shaky the entire time. LOL It was fun anyway!
09 September 2011
on a roll
Camden is one nutty child!
This morning, I mentioned that someone was being mean to me, and he says "What he do to you?" Talk about melting my heart.
On our way home, he asks if he can tell me a joke. Of course I say yes!
Camden: Who drives their cars on sidewalks?
(Here we have a five minute interlude, because I say "I don't know, who?" and he gets on to me for saying anything. So he asks me again, and this time I say "dogs" and he says again that I'm not supposed to say anything. So I roll my eyes as he asks me again, but I say nothing.)
Camden: The Transformers!
Obviously, he came up with this joke himself, and I'm very proud of him for it. (My friend liked to tell the story of his sister who came up with a joke at a similar age: What has four legs and doesn't move? A horse!)
This evening's events are equally amusing.
Camden: I'm thirsty
Me: What do you want
Camden: Your blood!
Me: o.O
And a little later
Camden: Your cherry pies are the best!
(I made some little pie pockets from fresh cherries. Very exciting!)
I love my child. :)
This morning, I mentioned that someone was being mean to me, and he says "What he do to you?" Talk about melting my heart.
On our way home, he asks if he can tell me a joke. Of course I say yes!
Camden: Who drives their cars on sidewalks?
(Here we have a five minute interlude, because I say "I don't know, who?" and he gets on to me for saying anything. So he asks me again, and this time I say "dogs" and he says again that I'm not supposed to say anything. So I roll my eyes as he asks me again, but I say nothing.)
Camden: The Transformers!
Obviously, he came up with this joke himself, and I'm very proud of him for it. (My friend liked to tell the story of his sister who came up with a joke at a similar age: What has four legs and doesn't move? A horse!)
This evening's events are equally amusing.
Camden: I'm thirsty
Me: What do you want
Camden: Your blood!
Me: o.O
And a little later
Camden: Your cherry pies are the best!
(I made some little pie pockets from fresh cherries. Very exciting!)
I love my child. :)
27 August 2011
Bedtime Story: The Final Chapter
Summary of parts I and II:
Girl wants a tall bed. Girl gets tall bed. Tall bed dies. Twice. After second death, girl buys flatpack bed from IKEA, thinking it's the right size. 'Tisn't. Girl is still left sleeping on a mattress on the floor.
And now, what we've all been waiting for: The Final Chapter.
So the girl is getting really tired of sleeping on the floor. Her knees have mysteriously taken a leave of good health which makes entering and vacating the bed a less than graceful operation.
So she searches.
And she plans.
And she draws poorly drawn plans, because she hasn't a visually artistic bone in her body.
And she talks shop with her father, which was very exciting and very nervous-making. Every time she had a plan for building something, she would ask her father for help, and he would end up taking the entire project out of her hands. But not this time! This time he helped edit the plans, and he provided helpful tools.
Finally the girl decides "This is the day!" She draws yet another plan (for all the other drawings disappeared) and takes last minute measurements and off she goes to the hardware store! Pine! Carriage bolts! Nuts! Washers! Drill bit! Candy bar!
As she's watching the helpful hardware store employee cutting the boards, she feels a moment of horror. What if it doesn't fit in my car? Thankfully, it did. With a whole three inches to spare.
She totes the lumber into her house and begins work! After much cursing and swearing and candy bar-munching and a few extra holes here and there, the girl has a bed!
(I am terribly embarrassed by how fuzzy this pic is. Took it on my phone to send to my dad, then sent it to facebook, only to realise it's fuzzier than a bunny. Oh well.)
And the best news is that it holds the weight of the mattress. And the weight of the girl. And a boy child. And two rats. And no wibbles or wobbles. Sturdy as a rock. Needless to say, the girl was (and still is!) very proud of herself.
Girl wants a tall bed. Girl gets tall bed. Tall bed dies. Twice. After second death, girl buys flatpack bed from IKEA, thinking it's the right size. 'Tisn't. Girl is still left sleeping on a mattress on the floor.
And now, what we've all been waiting for: The Final Chapter.
So the girl is getting really tired of sleeping on the floor. Her knees have mysteriously taken a leave of good health which makes entering and vacating the bed a less than graceful operation.
So she searches.
And she plans.
And she draws poorly drawn plans, because she hasn't a visually artistic bone in her body.
And she talks shop with her father, which was very exciting and very nervous-making. Every time she had a plan for building something, she would ask her father for help, and he would end up taking the entire project out of her hands. But not this time! This time he helped edit the plans, and he provided helpful tools.
Finally the girl decides "This is the day!" She draws yet another plan (for all the other drawings disappeared) and takes last minute measurements and off she goes to the hardware store! Pine! Carriage bolts! Nuts! Washers! Drill bit! Candy bar!
As she's watching the helpful hardware store employee cutting the boards, she feels a moment of horror. What if it doesn't fit in my car? Thankfully, it did. With a whole three inches to spare.
She totes the lumber into her house and begins work! After much cursing and swearing and candy bar-munching and a few extra holes here and there, the girl has a bed!
(I am terribly embarrassed by how fuzzy this pic is. Took it on my phone to send to my dad, then sent it to facebook, only to realise it's fuzzier than a bunny. Oh well.)
And the best news is that it holds the weight of the mattress. And the weight of the girl. And a boy child. And two rats. And no wibbles or wobbles. Sturdy as a rock. Needless to say, the girl was (and still is!) very proud of herself.
23 August 2011
Georgia Aquarium
Camden, my mother, and I drove down to Atlanta, Georgia Thursday/Friday to visit my sister. I hadn't seen her since Christmas and she asked earlier this summer if I'd visit her. And to celebrate, Red bought us all tickets to visit the Georgia Aquarium. I've been to the aquarium in Chicago, so I was excited, but Camden has only been to zoos, so he was super excited. Plus, he's in love with sharks and octopuses and squid.
My sister, rather like myself, likes to get to things on time. And by on time, I obviously mean early. So we ended up getting to the aquarium about 30 minutes before it actually opened. Luckily, there was still fun stuff to peruse outside, like these dolphin statues. Cam's favourites were the super hero dolphin (when he saw it, he said "What!?" in the tone of WTF is going on here) and the "Bob the Builder" dolphin, as we called it.
They had five or six that were roped off and not readily available for posing with, but Camden really liked the "Peace" dolphin.
Flash wasn't allowed in most (read: any) of the aquarium, so my pictures of the animals all came out very poorly. Except the penguins here. Guess something made them all hold still for the
This is another one that held still. He was in Camden's favourite tank-the ray and shark tank. They said it was around 100 yards long. There were two viewing windows on either end, then a big tunnel that you could go through to watch the fishes swim over you.
Cam's favourite part of the whole thing was the divers in the shark tank. I think this guy had a sense of humour, no?
05 August 2011
Bedtime Story Part II
So the girl's bed had turned into the teenage dream of a mattress on the floor. She didn't mind--not really. Then she started working. The work wore her out, to the point of barely being able to move. Suddenly, she missed her tall bed, where getting into it was nothing more than a step on this box then crawling in. Now, she had to lower herself to the floor, with a sore body and one knee that refused to cooperate. More so than climbing into her old bed, she missed climbing out of it, which was really nothing more than rolling over and putting her feet to the ground. TAH-DAH. None of this ridiculousness that is now involved, leveraging her entire weight from the ground to standing.
But she had promised herself (and anyone who would listen) that that bed was not coming back into her house. No how, no way. Besides, it was broken. So she decided to look online for a NEW bed. A factory-made bed. Flat-pack. And she found one! Inexpensive (and, considering where it was coming from, probably cheap as well), and, she thought, the right size. So she ordered it, checking and double checking and even triple checking to make sure that there wasn't a choice between Full/Queen/King listed. It came up in the "queen size bed frame" search, so it must be a queen size frame. Obviously.
Then it came. It came, it came! She did a happy dance and sliced open the box to look at the lovely pieces of wood. It was here!
That night, she pulled out her tools, moved the mattress up against the wall, and set to work putting together her shiny new bed frame. Suddenly, it was together! She danced in excitement, pulling out her queen size bed slats and laying them on the frame.
Wait.
What's this?
Why are they hanging over?
What?
What?!
FUCK!
She ran to her computer, pulling up the website, looking again. No, it doesn't say it's a full bed. It came up when she searched "queen bed frame." Why is it the wrong size?!*
Alas, the girl's dreams of a bed off the floor were no closer to fruition. Except now she has plans of building one on her own... Will there be a part three to this bedtime story?
*Footnote to add to the bitter tale of the new bed (don't want it ruining the amusement of my adventures in finding the perfect bed). I took apart the frame and called the company, hoping that they would pay for the return shipping, since it was due to their lack of size information that led to me ordering it in the first place. But the most they said was "sorry for your confusion." And looking up shipping prices, it would cost more than twice as much as the original price of the bed to ship it back to the company. So I took it to a consignment shop, where I'll get about a third of the price back if I'm lucky.
But she had promised herself (and anyone who would listen) that that bed was not coming back into her house. No how, no way. Besides, it was broken. So she decided to look online for a NEW bed. A factory-made bed. Flat-pack. And she found one! Inexpensive (and, considering where it was coming from, probably cheap as well), and, she thought, the right size. So she ordered it, checking and double checking and even triple checking to make sure that there wasn't a choice between Full/Queen/King listed. It came up in the "queen size bed frame" search, so it must be a queen size frame. Obviously.
Then it came. It came, it came! She did a happy dance and sliced open the box to look at the lovely pieces of wood. It was here!
That night, she pulled out her tools, moved the mattress up against the wall, and set to work putting together her shiny new bed frame. Suddenly, it was together! She danced in excitement, pulling out her queen size bed slats and laying them on the frame.
Wait.
What's this?
Why are they hanging over?
What?
What?!
FUCK!
She ran to her computer, pulling up the website, looking again. No, it doesn't say it's a full bed. It came up when she searched "queen bed frame." Why is it the wrong size?!*
Alas, the girl's dreams of a bed off the floor were no closer to fruition. Except now she has plans of building one on her own... Will there be a part three to this bedtime story?
*Footnote to add to the bitter tale of the new bed (don't want it ruining the amusement of my adventures in finding the perfect bed). I took apart the frame and called the company, hoping that they would pay for the return shipping, since it was due to their lack of size information that led to me ordering it in the first place. But the most they said was "sorry for your confusion." And looking up shipping prices, it would cost more than twice as much as the original price of the bed to ship it back to the company. So I took it to a consignment shop, where I'll get about a third of the price back if I'm lucky.
04 July 2011
my weekend in pictures
Cam and I spent the weekend with my parents. And despite some serious drama caused by my dad's ex, it was a good weekend. Cam and I took off Saturday morning to visit Haha Tonka State Park, which has the most beautiful views.
The rest of the weekend was spent playing with the hose, building fires, playing with fireworks (including mining out cicada holes with bottle rockets), and enjoying a thunderstorm. We left last night to take advantage of the cooler night temperatures. Glad we did, because I got to snap this picture of the clouds and moon, which looks like (to me) a bear trying to snatch the moon.
Happy Fourth, ya'll.
The rest of the weekend was spent playing with the hose, building fires, playing with fireworks (including mining out cicada holes with bottle rockets), and enjoying a thunderstorm. We left last night to take advantage of the cooler night temperatures. Glad we did, because I got to snap this picture of the clouds and moon, which looks like (to me) a bear trying to snatch the moon.
Happy Fourth, ya'll.
15 April 2011
Oops, I did it again
It being disappearing for a time. I've just been so busy! And by busy, I obviously mean busy playing in the park and reading books and drawing and coloring and sewing and any other myriad of things with Camden. I've also been cursing my bad wrists. We've had mostly gorgeous weather, but every so often a cold front moves through, the temperature drops, and it rains. And my wrists (I have carpal tunnel syndrome) hurt like hell. Today, I lost all strength and dexterity in my hands. And I have a solo/senior recital on Sunday. Luckily, I've been playing my recital repertoire really well recently, so I don't think one day off will kill me.
On the good side of the spectrum, though... My parents are here for a weekend-long visit (due to senior recital, of course). And even better: my dad found some morels this morning before they drove up here, so I got mushrooms for dinner! First time I've had morels in at least a year, maybe two. We also had hamburgers and asparagus spears. Sooo good. More good: I ought to be able to sleep in in the morning. Both my parents are early risers, so Camden will bug them instead of me in the morning!
And this is a terrible update. Will update more Sunday night, hopefully with some AWESOME recital pics ^_^ (Maybe video, too!)
On the good side of the spectrum, though... My parents are here for a weekend-long visit (due to senior recital, of course). And even better: my dad found some morels this morning before they drove up here, so I got mushrooms for dinner! First time I've had morels in at least a year, maybe two. We also had hamburgers and asparagus spears. Sooo good. More good: I ought to be able to sleep in in the morning. Both my parents are early risers, so Camden will bug them instead of me in the morning!
And this is a terrible update. Will update more Sunday night, hopefully with some AWESOME recital pics ^_^ (Maybe video, too!)
10 March 2011
Spring Break
We went to visit my parents over my Spring Break. And while it was raining and/or FREEZING COLD most of the time we were there, on Saturday, it was quite warm, so we got in some kite flying and wandering about.
Flying a kite
Getting said kite out of a tree. Oops!
Swings!
Just a swingin'!
Just a swing... wait, what's that?
It's behind you!
Oh, it's just Hannibal, the neighborhood mule.
Even mules are deserving of love.
A mysterious fort! (Actually a blind set up by hunters.)
I have a feeling this will be home to at least a few picnics over the summer
02 February 2011
Snow Ice Cream
With all that extra blizzard-snow just laying around, I thought Camden and I would do something with it... Make ice cream!! I hadn't done this since I was a kid, and it was lots of fun.
Get your snow! About 4 or 5 cups, unpacked. Scoop it up now then store it in your freezer until it's time to add to the mix.
One cup milk! Real milk or fake milk, it seems to work just fine.
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
Stir until the sugar has dissolved into the milk
Add snow to the milk/sugar/vanilla.
Stir! Quick, before it all melts!
We added some chocolate to ours, about 1.4 cup Hershey's chocolate syrup. It looks like malt-o-meal and has an odd texture... But it's still yummy!
Happy Imbolc!
Happy Imbolc!
29 January 2011
Winter wonderland
It was actually warm enough to enjoy some time outside this afternoon! So Cam and I went and tromped around the park (I made a snow angel) and we also made a snow man!
Camden donated his scarf and hat to the snowman, so the poor thing wouldn't melt. Though, the real danger is from rabbits tearing it down during the night to get to that scrumptious nose!
Camden donated his scarf and hat to the snowman, so the poor thing wouldn't melt. Though, the real danger is from rabbits tearing it down during the night to get to that scrumptious nose!
20 January 2011
Bowling!!!
My parents came to visit Cam and I earlier this week, and I managed to convince them to take us bowling. And it was SO MUCH FUN! I hadn't been in years, and the last time I went, I did very poorly. So it was nice to go and have fun and do well. (I bowled a 128, which is pretty average, right?) Camden had a fun time, also, and has already started bugging me to go back. hehe Silly kid. :)
27 June 2010
Fun Day!
Yesterday, Camden and I had a "fun day." Well, we took a break from the "fun" to go grocery shopping, because that's what we do on Saturday mornings, but the rest was geared towards fun! After shopping, Cam and I went to the park (he rode his bike; I walked) and played until it was too blasted hot to move. So we came back home and played with his cars and read books. He watched a couple of episodes of the Backyardigans.
And in the afternoon, after a lunch of chicken nuggets, we went to the movies! The last time I can honestly remember going to watch a movie was over three years ago, when Meet the Robinsons was in theatres. Oddly enough, that was the last time Camden had been to the movies, too. But Toy Story 3 is out, and having loved the first two, I absolutely had to see it, so I thought it would be a fun treat. Oh, Cam really liked the Toy Story movies also, so I figured he would enjoy the new one, too. ^_^ So we went and enjoyed the movie very much (except that Camden started getting tired about halfway through, and he was also getting bothered with the 3D glasses, and the fact that I was crying like a baby through the whole last half hour. lol)
Once home, we continued our playing until dinner time, when I grilled some hotdogs (Cam's absolute favourites.) I like my hotdogs practically burnt, so I made some that were nice and black, though most of them were normal not-quite-so-charred grilled hotdogs (for Camden.) Except that when I let him pick out his hotdog, he chose one of the burnt ones! It makes me happy to see that he takes after me (and, I believe, his great-uncle Mike.) Dinner was followed by more park time, except that this time we both walked. :)
However, the day was not all fun and games. :( When I gave him his bath, I noticed a razor in the bathtub and moved it to the sink counter, so he wouldn't hurt himself. Well, wouldn't you know it; later on he was messing around in the bathroom, and somehow brought his hand straight down on the blades. He sliced a bit off one of his fingers and bled quite a bit, but no worries. He told me this morning, it was a "little bit better."
One of the better parts of the day, though, was him going to bed. I read him a few books, turned on the night light, covered him up, gave him kisses, and left. Five minutes later I walked by on my way to the bathroom, and we was fast asleep. Can I just say that never happens?
And in the afternoon, after a lunch of chicken nuggets, we went to the movies! The last time I can honestly remember going to watch a movie was over three years ago, when Meet the Robinsons was in theatres. Oddly enough, that was the last time Camden had been to the movies, too. But Toy Story 3 is out, and having loved the first two, I absolutely had to see it, so I thought it would be a fun treat. Oh, Cam really liked the Toy Story movies also, so I figured he would enjoy the new one, too. ^_^ So we went and enjoyed the movie very much (except that Camden started getting tired about halfway through, and he was also getting bothered with the 3D glasses, and the fact that I was crying like a baby through the whole last half hour. lol)
Once home, we continued our playing until dinner time, when I grilled some hotdogs (Cam's absolute favourites.) I like my hotdogs practically burnt, so I made some that were nice and black, though most of them were normal not-quite-so-charred grilled hotdogs (for Camden.) Except that when I let him pick out his hotdog, he chose one of the burnt ones! It makes me happy to see that he takes after me (and, I believe, his great-uncle Mike.) Dinner was followed by more park time, except that this time we both walked. :)
However, the day was not all fun and games. :( When I gave him his bath, I noticed a razor in the bathtub and moved it to the sink counter, so he wouldn't hurt himself. Well, wouldn't you know it; later on he was messing around in the bathroom, and somehow brought his hand straight down on the blades. He sliced a bit off one of his fingers and bled quite a bit, but no worries. He told me this morning, it was a "little bit better."
One of the better parts of the day, though, was him going to bed. I read him a few books, turned on the night light, covered him up, gave him kisses, and left. Five minutes later I walked by on my way to the bathroom, and we was fast asleep. Can I just say that never happens?
04 April 2010
Happy Easter
First off: Happy Easter! Second off: We had a pretty awesome weekend in Kansas City!
We got to my sister's Friday night, and she and Camden looked for the Spring basket the Bunny left for him there. (It was not in the oven, bathtub, or under the sink. Finally found it in the coat closet.) Saturday morning, we went to a couple of thrift stores and then made our way to a some-what poorly organised Egg Hunt. The idea: (Easter bunny + helicopter + a whole bunch of eggs)/(field + children)= way awesome. However, in the field we were in (there were four, divided by age group), no one we talked to had any clue what was happening or when. So when the helicopter flew over and the Easter bunny started dropping eggs, there was a mad rush of toddlers to grab what they could. Some were able to stuff their baskets full, while others didn't get any. I managed to get some nifty pictures, but my camera has gone MIA since we left Kansas City... I think it's hiding out in the car.
This morning we went to Crown Center and played on escalators. We went with the intent of visiting the Fairy Tale village exhibit, but it was closed for Easter, so we had to take our fun where it could be found. After we wore ourselves out, we went to the Plaza and played on the statues. We got some good pictures of ourselves on various statues (elephant, camel, lion, kangaroo, bunnies) on my sister's camera... But they're stuck there, because she doesn't know where the cord for connecting it to the computer is!
During the weekend, we also managed to hit JoAnn's, where Camden got some tool stickers, Half Price Books, where Cam bought a Thomas the Tank-Engine book and a Scooby-Doo book, and I bought a book on Celtic fairy tales and one called "Magic House" (more on this later), and Chik-fil-A, where we had dinner Saturday night and Camden played in the play-place for about 45 minutes before we were able to drag him out.
All in all, it was a horribly exciting weekend, but I'm glad to be back home.
We got to my sister's Friday night, and she and Camden looked for the Spring basket the Bunny left for him there. (It was not in the oven, bathtub, or under the sink. Finally found it in the coat closet.) Saturday morning, we went to a couple of thrift stores and then made our way to a some-what poorly organised Egg Hunt. The idea: (Easter bunny + helicopter + a whole bunch of eggs)/(field + children)= way awesome. However, in the field we were in (there were four, divided by age group), no one we talked to had any clue what was happening or when. So when the helicopter flew over and the Easter bunny started dropping eggs, there was a mad rush of toddlers to grab what they could. Some were able to stuff their baskets full, while others didn't get any. I managed to get some nifty pictures, but my camera has gone MIA since we left Kansas City... I think it's hiding out in the car.
This morning we went to Crown Center and played on escalators. We went with the intent of visiting the Fairy Tale village exhibit, but it was closed for Easter, so we had to take our fun where it could be found. After we wore ourselves out, we went to the Plaza and played on the statues. We got some good pictures of ourselves on various statues (elephant, camel, lion, kangaroo, bunnies) on my sister's camera... But they're stuck there, because she doesn't know where the cord for connecting it to the computer is!
During the weekend, we also managed to hit JoAnn's, where Camden got some tool stickers, Half Price Books, where Cam bought a Thomas the Tank-Engine book and a Scooby-Doo book, and I bought a book on Celtic fairy tales and one called "Magic House" (more on this later), and Chik-fil-A, where we had dinner Saturday night and Camden played in the play-place for about 45 minutes before we were able to drag him out.
All in all, it was a horribly exciting weekend, but I'm glad to be back home.
20 February 2010
Snow Day Adventures
While not technically a "snow day," there is snow on the ground and it was daytime. Close enough for me.
I decided earlier this week I wanted to take Cam sledding. But to do that, we had to buy a sled! Who would have thought it would be that difficult? We checked in at least six different stores before finding what is probably the last stash of sleds in NEMO at the hardware store. We bought a saucer-type sled, which was a new experience for me, as I've only ever used toboggan-type sleds or the ones with runners.
At the sledding hill (as there's only one hill in the area; luckily for us it's on public property!) we joined another family who was out sledding. Funny story and small world story: the oldest son of the other family was named Camden. I was shocked! It's not really one of those names you expect to find multiples of.
I hadn't been sledding for years upon years. Maybe seven years? I'd forgotten what fun it can be! Even with the snow sneaking up the back of my coat and into my not-so-water/snowproof boots. We even built a snowman! Which was kicked over about 5 minutes later by a little girl.
Perhaps the best part is that Camden's monster friends came with us. They've been gone since a few days after the post I made about them, but they showed up this morning (plus one, so now there are three) before we went grocery shopping/sled hunting. He put them in my purse to keep them safe during the grocery shopping, although they escaped in the middle of Walmart and Cam had to run about trying to catch them! While sledding, he held them in his hands, except the first time he went by himself, when they sat on the sled with him. And then I sat on them. :( Oops! I think they were okay, though.
I failed to get pictures, which makes me pretty sad. But we'll be going back tomorrow if the weather stays good, so hopefully I'll be able to get some pictures then.
I decided earlier this week I wanted to take Cam sledding. But to do that, we had to buy a sled! Who would have thought it would be that difficult? We checked in at least six different stores before finding what is probably the last stash of sleds in NEMO at the hardware store. We bought a saucer-type sled, which was a new experience for me, as I've only ever used toboggan-type sleds or the ones with runners.
At the sledding hill (as there's only one hill in the area; luckily for us it's on public property!) we joined another family who was out sledding. Funny story and small world story: the oldest son of the other family was named Camden. I was shocked! It's not really one of those names you expect to find multiples of.
I hadn't been sledding for years upon years. Maybe seven years? I'd forgotten what fun it can be! Even with the snow sneaking up the back of my coat and into my not-so-water/snowproof boots. We even built a snowman! Which was kicked over about 5 minutes later by a little girl.
Perhaps the best part is that Camden's monster friends came with us. They've been gone since a few days after the post I made about them, but they showed up this morning (plus one, so now there are three) before we went grocery shopping/sled hunting. He put them in my purse to keep them safe during the grocery shopping, although they escaped in the middle of Walmart and Cam had to run about trying to catch them! While sledding, he held them in his hands, except the first time he went by himself, when they sat on the sled with him. And then I sat on them. :( Oops! I think they were okay, though.
I failed to get pictures, which makes me pretty sad. But we'll be going back tomorrow if the weather stays good, so hopefully I'll be able to get some pictures then.
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