Let the Good Times Roll....

July 9 & 10, 2010
Lots of time was devoted to play during Ken and Baba's visit. Bailey was tickled to have a puzzle partner and everyone got in the mix with new Lego's courtesy of Grandpa Ken and Baba.

We spent some time playing outside and even managed to harvest a strawberry before the bird and bunnies had their way with it.
Nothing says summer like a frozen snack in the wagon!

Soon it was time to commence with what has become a bit of a summer tradition, celebrating "Ken's Birthday Observed". We treat it much like a legal holiday and celebrate during their summer visit since it is so close to the actual birthday. This year's treat consisted of a group of penguin cupcakes in honor of Ken's favorite animal.

Hayden was selected to do the honors and deliver the birthday cupcake on our special celebration plate reserved for the birthday gal or guy depending on the occasion. The kids were jazzed to dine on the penguins!Some time ago, Hayden and Grandpa Ken got started with showing off their post cupcake mouth makeovers and this year Miss Bailey got in the mix!
Here's the popcorn bowl the kids painted for Ken's gift. Long live movie night!

Visitors!

July 8, 2010

We did a bit of spiffing up around the house on this day to prepare for important guests, it was clear the kids were excited since they were happy to help clean up! H was inspired to draw a rendition of our vacuum to represent the mornings efforts.

After LOTS of peering out the front windows, our visitors arrived! Michael's father and Grandmother (Ken and Baba) were here in time to play that evening and at last the adults outnumbered the anklebiters!

Hayden and Bailey even eagerly provided a restroom orientation for Baba. She graciously listened as if she hadn't had this knowledge for some time and the kids felt pretty spiffy for helping her get settled. Several books were read, including Monday the Bullfrog which was a gift to Hayden from his Uncle Josh many moons ago. That book has had some staying power with both of the Minimarx's over the years!
Baba and Bailey had a chance to cuddle up as Hayden narrated a space slideshow from the laptop. He was so pleased to have an audience for his presentation! Bailey was fine with paying attention while she nursed her giant marshmallow which had been sent as a treat by our Michigan peeps!

Before long it was time to bid our weary travelers goodnight so that they could rest up for a busy start the following morning. Hayden was quite a little gentleman and walked Baba to the car.

Bailey tried to make a break for it and Hayden continued his gallant behavior by offering Baba a book to borrow for her bedtime routine. Those are the kind of little kindnesses that make a Mommy proud!

Prehistoric Zoo

July 5, 2010

Last summer a Dinosaur exhibit set up shop at our Zoo. Of course, we loaded up the Mini's and took them out for a peek. Before heading down to the exhibit, Hayden had to stop at the water globe to locate North America....

Then we moseyed down to the dinosaurs where Bailey checked out a T-rex skull and a baby T-Rex. Apparantly all it takes to make "Bailey Long Legs" look short is hanging out with dinosaur replicas!
As we strolled along, a guide appeared and let the kids touch a dinosaur claw.

Along the way we happend on a fossil dig and the kids decided to have a go at excavating dinosaur bones.

The kids oohed and ahhed over the baby dinosaur nest. Perhaps when they say all babies are cute this reaction is proof!
Hayden was pleased to make the acquaintance of an Ankylosaurus. This creature is a favorite of his pal Alex which made it extra interesting to our little guy.

It must be said that the most fabulous find for H was the meteorite. He is captivated by this theory regarding the end of the dinosaurs. Go figure, it is where dinosaurs and outer space collide - literally the joining his two major passions at the time.

It was an interesting stroll back in time for our crew. After dodging the gift shop we were ready to head for the hills and check out our dinosaur books in the cool comfort of Casa Marx!

Our Junior Jockeys

July 3, 2010

Somehow we managed to live in Derby City for over two years and not make it out to Churchill Downs. Madness! So last July we finally got our act together and hustled over to the track. Both kids were superexcited but Bailey was truly over the moon since by this time her love of horses was in full swing.
Fortunately for us, Michael had been to Churchill Downs several times to entertain clients so he was able to step in as our guide for race day and steered us right to a great place to watch race preparations.

In no time at all we were off to find a spot to watch the races begin. Hayden seemed so serious as he gazed out at the track!

Bailey talked Michael into helping her watch from up close. She was such a happy little gal!

After cheering our way through a few races, we wandered over to the Junior Jockey club to let the kiddos play. It was a great way to get a break from the heat and still be surrounded by all things equestrian. The Junior Jockey Club is basically a play and craft area for little ones. During certain times of the year they have activities for the kids and Churchill Charlie comes by for a photo op.

When we got there Miss Bailey made a beeline for the wooden barn and horse toys. We had to police that scene a bit when other kids came through since Bailey was trying to hoard the fillies. There was no tearing her away from these delightful playthings but Hayden was quite happy to scoot back to the craft area. It didn't hurt that the craft for this weekend was all about rockets for the Fourth of July. This made our little spaceman super happy.

When Churchill Charlie showed up it was time to let the good times roll! What a dream come true for a little horse lover -- playing horses with a horse? It doesn't get much better than that!

From my perch I was able to see that Churchill Charlie prefers sneakers over the traditional horse shoes. What a hoot!

After some horseplay with Bailey, Charlie had a little sit down with our boys. Of course, he didn't make his own rocket since crafting is a wee bit tricky for hooved creatures...

Love this shot of Miss B in her jockey hat. Too cute! It was our last good shot before all H-E-Double Hockey Sticks broke loose. The deal was that everyone had to keep their bottoms clean and dry and take potty breaks in order to stay and play. Once Sir Charlie headed on down the track the kiddos were given a heads up for potty breaks. Miss Thing decided to dig in her heels and refused to visit the facilities. After a reminder about the rules of the day and a chance to make a better choice, Bailey decided to test the limits rather than cooperate. Grrrr. So I checked in with Michael and cooked up an exit strategy. Hooray for having two parents on this outing! Hayden had taken his break and therefore earned additional playtime so Michael stayed with Hayden and I hauled B off to wait in the car.

It should not shock anyone that Bailey did not take kindly to being removed from her horsey heaven. But I must say that of all the fits this chick has thrown, this particular meltdown was at the top of the list. It was hot and she was tired but she dug deep and put on her best performance yet. The thrashing about was epic, I had to walk and hold her slippery shreiking form while trying desparately to figure out how to exit the track (Remember - my first trip was today?). She literally rotated around my arms like the hands on some out of control clock while I booked it out of the facility. And here my friends is the big lesson of the day.... You can make a crazy scene with a child while tearing out of a place and NO ONE will say boo. I could have been some psycho abducting Bailey and not one person stopped us. The only reaction we got was from some sauced up fellow nursing a beer who looked at Bailey and then said to me with a smirk, "Looks like someone's horse didn't win today." Haha!

Eventually we made our way to the car. The sight of the Marxmobile only served to renew Bailey's desire to fight. Tricky times ensued as I worked on containing my banshee while also keeping the car open to avoid roasting us while we waited for the boys. Honestly, she had lost alot of fluids at this point with all the perspiring and boohooing, one had to wonder how hydrated my gal could be! Despite the horrific exit I was oddly pleased with the way things went in that H got to stay and could make the connection between cooperating and having more fun while B got a (clearly necessary) chance to see that she must cooperate in order to have good times. That being said, I will certainly admit that I was ecstatic to see my boys walking through the parking lot and elated to crank up the AC as we headed home. I couldn't resist capturing the moment as we drove away. Yes, she was still going strong with the fit, it was incomprehensible that we were taking her away from the horse racing. Michael thought it wasn't so nice of me to take this photo but I assured him I had earned the right to preserve this scene!

In the end, our trip to the track was alot like childbirth, some fairly painful moments but totally worth it for the good times that surrounded the not so lovely times!