Carson anxiously waited for Daddy's arrival...

even though Daddy was still two hours away!

Hitting the Trails

On Sunday we went to Friedrich Wilderness Park only about 16 miles away from my parents house.   Natalia was dragging her feet all along the way until she heard me say that Carson was being a great leader.  Then, all of a sudden, she was leading the way.  That didn't go very well with Carson.  Everything was okay though once they worked things out and compromised.  

Name That Bird!

Last Chance Forever, The Bird of Prey Conservancy, receive sick, injured, and orphaned birds of prey blown out of their nest by storms, hit by cars, caught in fences, electrically shocked, displaced by thoughtless development, and sadly, as shooting victims. Their goal is to set them free, but sometimes setting them free is not an option.

On Saturday, we felt the wind as a hawk passed right over our heads. As a matter of fact, I felt his wing on my hair as he flew passed us! We also saw a vulture, a falcon, and an owl up close and personal. We learned so much. Surprisedly enough, although the whole presentation lasted an hour, the kids behaved very well. Thank goodness they were good since I decided that we needed a good seat, so we sat all the way in the front. Now, what was I thinking!

Notice the hawk flying right above the lady's head!

A picture of the vulture

Can you believe this owl is only 7 pounds?

I just loved this little house. Do you see the bird in this picture?

I Thought He Would Never Ask!

"Mama, you know something?  

When I get bigger I want to marry you."

Oh, and Daddy, One More Thing...

Can you add one more thing to your list?  Is there any way you can put a swimming pool in our backyard?  In addition to our tennis court, of course!  This little kiddie pool is just not good enough...

"A Bird in the Hand is Better than Two in the Bush"

Okay, so after a fun night at Retama Park, I was ready to put the kids in bed.  It was late (10:25 p.m.) and we were all tired.  Oh but wait, what is this by our front door?  A bird! 

 

Poor little thing, he wasn't going anywhere.  Of course, all three kids were so concerned about this little creature that we ended up getting a box and a little container for water for the bird.  You can probably imagine all the questions and comments I got from Natalia, Carson and Luke.  Luke was so worried that the bird didn't have his daddy or mommy with him, he kept saying "Mama, me call bird's dada and mama."  You could see this was really bothering him by the look in his face.  I kept calling all the veterinarians that were opened after hours to see where I could drop this bird off, but had no luck.  Finally, I got a hold of Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation and they told me what to do and where to drop the bird off the next day. ~What a relief!  No, we were ready to go to bed.  By this time, it was very close to midnight. 

This morning, I woke up early to go run but first I decided to check on the bird.  It was dead.  It broke my heart when I saw all three kids rushing to the garage to see the bird.  But there was no bird anymore, the box and the bird were gone.

"Hold Your Horses"

Friday night was "Fifty Cent Night" at Retama Park, which meant free admission, $0.50 hot dogs and free activities for the children.  Hey, why not, right?  

  

We just had to go!  It was such a neat experience.  The kids got to ride the ponies, Natalia got her face painted, Carson & Luke got a balloon, they had fun petting a few animals, we ate hot dogs, chips, and cotton candy and we got to see the horse race.  During the first race, the kids really didn't know what they were looking for.  They pretty much missed the horses as they quickly, and I mean quickly, passed in front of them.  By the second race, they knew what to expect.  They were so excited and were cheering for the horses.  

What a fun night we had.