Adventure to the Train Museum...

Day #1 of President's week vacation:
Monday we took an adventure down to the Railroad Museum. Our adventure started by catching the light rail in Folsom and riding it almost to then end of the line downtown. We were lucky and didn't have too much company on the rail, because the company can be a little strange sometimes.

From the light rail stop, we walked a few blocks across the downtown mall, under the freeway into Old Sacramento.

They were featuring toy trains and toys/games about trains, they had a special area set up to see some of the neat things. They had a double track set up that ran on a timer.

We toured through as we always do, checking out all our favorite things. Here we are in front of one of our favorites, and it's orange, so that helps.

We made our way upstairs for some time around the train tables. Cody will still get fully involved with the trains, love that he's still little, as much as he wants to be big.

Tyler playing along...

After making our way through the museum, we headed down to sit by the river to eat some lunch. Then we spent some time just walking around Old Sac, without the time limit of the car meter! Climbing on the old Caboose.

We toured through the different shops, like the kite, toy, and novelty stores, then stopped for an Icee before heading back to the train stop. We lucked out and got to the stop about 2 minutes before the train came, phew!

On the way home, definitely tired.

Day #2 of President's week vacation:
Tuesday we just hung around the house most the day. I did however bust out the new steam mop, a homemakers dream. Cleaning that's hassle free, just fill it with water and plug in, does a good job and there's no chemicals. Now if I can just get my hands on a Dyson, my cleaning arsenal will almost be complete. (Welcome to Homemaking 101)

After a bit of cleaning, we ventured out to get Cody a hair cut. It's $10 day at the kids salon, and I'm cheap, so its works. That being said, I hate getting the boys' hair cut. I'm not sure why I'm so hung up on it, probably because I haven't found a style I love for Cody's hair. Tyler is just the shaggy little devil, and will probably stay that way for a while.
So we went, the boys played some video games, Cody had his hair did and they walked out with suckers, good times. We had someone new cut his hair today and she acutely listened and only trimmed around the ears and bottom, then across the front a bit so he can see out. It's one of the better cuts he's had in a while, but still not awesome. I hoping in the next year, his hair will thicken a bit so that not every cut is shown.

Speaking of hair, mine has been a bit boring lately, can you see a difference?

Maybe there???

I can't cut it, cause I always regret it a day later, and coloring all over is really expensive. So we'll see how long this lasts.

Playing catch-up....

For some reason, trying to get around to updating has been quite a task. We've been busy, we've had stuff, but really just haven't been able to fit it in. So here it is, two weeks worth of things we've been up to!

A couple of Saturdays ago, they had an art show at the community center, featuring art from kids from the local schools. Tyler's class made special snowman pictures to display...

Then his school went up on stage to perform a few of the songs they sing in class. This is a mix of all three classes, those who were able to attend.

Their last number was on the floor with lots of dance, you can see his blonde head and brown jacket right in the middle.

After that we headed over to the creating area where they painted pictures and stamped cards.

They also made necklaces using foil and etching a design onto them.
Somebody was being ornery, and having a not so good hair day.

Last Tuesday Cody's school held a skate night at the local roller rink. The boys and I strapped on some skates and headed out for a good time. Tyler had the walking skates (where the wheels don't really roll) and Cody was in the medium speed skates, so the first bit was spent with death grips on my arms trying to get around in a circle. They were doing well and we stopped off for a break.

After a while, and seeing his friends out there alone, Cody found his courage and ventured out on his own. He did great, only fell a few times, but was back up and going again.

Tyler was also going really well, he's requested that he wants rolling wheels next time. Hoping to take him back soon for a morning Tots session.

This last Saturday was free museum day in Sacramento. It was a bit rainy, but we started our adventure at the zoo. Luckily, we missed the storms and had a nice, dry time.

First stop was a ride on the carousel.

We walked around and saw all the usual suspects. The giraffes are always a favorite, can't wait to go back and see them up high from the new observation area that is opening soon. They have a huge new enclosure and much more space to move about. Cool to see this one spreading his legs to get lower to eat.

Zookeeper Tyler

Red panda...

and the flamingos.

After the zoo we jumped on the freeway and headed to Woodland to visit the Ag museum. This is a new one for us, but totally worth the drive. We stopped into Sonic and ate before heading over to check out the old tractors and trucks.

Tyler by the tractor that's kinda like Grandpas, only bigger.

Some of these were huge.

Toy trucks section, found an old Wonder Bread toy.

The wooden tractor, Tyler driving, Cody's the engine.

Today Tyler had a field trip to Petsmart. What a cool place! They did a great tour, going around to the different areas, taking out animals to see and lots of explaining. They all seamed to have a great time.

Petting the Guinea pig.

and a rat...

the turtle...

and the snake. Wasn't sure what that look was all about.

But his hand went right up to pet it.

Then we went over to the vet clinic and they showed them how the animals go to the doctors. The kids disappeared with Ms. Suzanne and the vets for a nice chunk of time. We contemplated a coffee run, but they were just heading out.

Watching a pup get a hair cut.

Then over to see the fish.

They handed out cool little goody bags with coloring books and crayons, and a bunch of papers Ty said were for me.

Next up on the agenda is getting things ready for Valentine's at the boys' school. Tyler's class is having a party complete with cookies and sandwiches, then handing out Valentine's to his friends. Being the typical overachiever I am, I decided to make suckers for him to hand out. Seamed like it wouldn't be too hard, stupid assumption.
I started out using the Wilton candy melts, but as soon as I tried to flavor them, the melts went lumpy, so one batch thrown out. I next tried using almond bark and the first few I made went well. That was yesterday. This afternoon I finished them up and had little success getting the bark to melt to a nice creamy consistency, the flavoring was messing it all up. But they aren't awful and they taste really good so we're going with it!

The messy process begins...

Popped out and needing a shave.

Smoothed out..

Bagged and ready to go.

It always starts out being a good idea.

Cody's class is handing out Valentine's, but not really having a party and we can't take any kind of candy in. So we found the cool Lego cards that gives you a sticker puzzle to figure out.

Tonight we are headed to the school for a PTA sponsored pasta dinner. Can't beat $3 a plate for dinner. They are also holding the Feb PTA meeting during dinner, in hopes of getting some more participation, and to make sure all the officers for next year are put in place. This is where I'm diving in head first! I'm on the list for doing fundrasing next year. After seeing what was done this year, I'm not too afraid and hope to maybe find some new things to bring to the table. We are also gearing up for the annual school carnival that is held in April. It's nice to be able to do things for the school because it hasn't worked out for me to work in the classroom much this year.

No worries though, Cody's teacher has been keeping me busy! I've been taking home things to enter into the grade book, grading tests, cutting flashcards apart and other things here and there. She seams surprised every time I come in with a stack of finished things looking for more to do, nice way to make the evening pass.

So that's our happenings and up-to's over the last couple of weeks. The kids are out of school next week for the Presidents holidays and teacher in services. Hopefully we can keep ourselves entertained!

Alexander...

And the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day!

Tyler's class took a field trip to a play house in Roseville to watch this story come to life. It was cute and fun, goofy actors not far from high school, so-so singing and okay acting. But they put a lot of heart into and the kids seamed to enjoy it.






In other news of the week...

Cody has an admirer at school. She Loves him. The way she says good buy in that long, drawn out way, looks over at him, and gives him pictures and cards she's drawn. Lord help me make it through the teen years with this boy!

Thanks to VW my new camera came this week as well. My poor Kodak camera was coming up on being 6 years old, a life full of much abuse and trips and falls. So a new Nikon point and shoot was in order. It's not the camera of my dreams, but hopefully it will do what we need it to and it's tiny! So I'm still trying to figure out all the settings to find which work best in different settings.

That's been our week, the good of the week.

Have I mentioned lately how much ALS sucks, if I haven't, it really does. As we close out the week, we'll be saying goodbye to my dear friends dad after his long, hard battle with this awful disease. So if you have the means, please send a donation to the ALS association in honor of Steve Hall. Much love Jen...

Bouncy party...

** Check out my crafty for the week: http://acraftychristmas.blogspot.com/


Last Saturday we were invited to a Birthday party for one of Cody's preschool friends at the bounce house place. These are some of the best parties we've been to, everyone always has a great time, and it produces an awesome nap!

Aww, That was Awesome!

Head first....

Little Tyler, Awwww!

Havin' a great time!
And yes, he has on two different socks, that's his current style.

Juice and super hero masks before snacks and cupcakes.

Yep, need to go and do some open play, especially with all this nasty weather we've been having.

Carseats....

Oh car seats, they keep our kids safe, and are such a pain in the rear! So here is a bit of a PSA for this week.

Online last night trying to figure out a better fitting booster seat for Cody in Keith's car. He's been riding in a Cosco booster for a while, but it's a bit wide for the seat and it's a little sideways, annoying more than anything. I think our problem will be solved, and a safer ride, by taking the back off and having it be just a backless booster.

My 1st PSA comes into play regarding lap belts. Now the van is great, 4 seats with shoulder/lap belts and 3 with just a lap belt, great! Every time we've had our big kid friends in the car, we've put them in the lap belt seats, In their boosters. I didn't know that this is a huge No-No. But now I'm educated and so will you be!
It makes since, the whole point of a booster is to get them high enough for the shoulder belt to cross their chest, and not their necks, so that they are safe. No shoulder, no need for a booster. It says that it can throw off the position of the lap belt, making it unsafe if they are in a booster with just the lap belt. So Now we know.

Cody will be happy because next time we're in Boise, he can just ride with Grandpa in the hot
rods, not extra seats required.

In the best of worlds, a harnessed seat is the best option, even for big kids. Luckily we have a large seat for Cody that he rides in every day in my car, it has a harness weight of 65 lbs and then it's a belt positioning booster until 100lbs. He could probably use this harnessed seat for the next 2-3 years, but he won't. Tyler is going to outgrow his seat in the next year, height, not weight. So we'll do the big shift, and Cody will be totally boostered after that, he'll be so happy.

Anyway, just wanting to make sure my friends are all well informed, because I obviously wasn't!

Ummm, yeah....

So the blog is a bit neglected again. Sorry. We are just coming down from the holidays and settling back into the school routines. Life isn't very exciting right now, just normal.

Happenings over the last couple of weeks:

* apparently superheros ride scooters and eat lots of cheese.

*We've eaten a lot of fresh, fully homemade meals over the last couple of weeks, thanks to the Weight Watchers cookbook, that's been fun.

*Speaking of Weight Watchers, thanks to them, I'm down 7 lbs in the last 2 weeks, that and a lot of Wii and walking. Now to kick this stupid candy habit....

*Speaking of Wii, Wii is awesome. Love that little dude. Moving and working out should be fun, and it totally is.

*Can't find my crafty desk, the crafty has spilled over and exploded, hope to find it again soon.

*Cody is getting better at reading, almost have him to the point that he doesn't sigh and roll his eyes when he doesn't know a word, just stops and sounds it out.

*Tyler Loves his teachers at school, he told Ms. Suzanne this on Thursday, we were both near tears when she told me.

*There's a major ending that is probably coming soon, and I don't really know how to handle it, supporting my friend the best I can, but not sure if any of it will ever be enough.

*Most of my shows started this week, Yay for good TV again!

*Spaghetti squash is a good noodle substitute, as long as you don't mind a mild crunch.

*Tyler is going to the music class again starting in Feb, not sure who's more excited about this, him or me?

*Has several spots to rearrange in the house, but that also means needing to buy a few new shelves, hooks and shoe racks. Stupid money.

*Life is just puttering on, and on...

Something crafty....

is happening over there.

http://acraftychristmas.blogspot.com/

Gifts from the boys...

It was brought to my attention that I had mentioned all these wonderful things the boy were doing for us for Christmas, then never said what they ended up being. Oops!

Both boys worked hard at school and with Gma & Gpa Scollay and great gifts, the were very proud of their accomplishments!

Tyler's class made plates , decorated by the kids. Very nice snowman!

Cody's class made a pillow case.

Over at Gma & Gpa Scollay's they put together, then added to food for bird feeders. We haven't put them out quite yet, wanting to wait until spring when the rain won't wash them away.

And a New Year Begins...

So here we are, the beginning of another year. Like a lot of people, this is a bit of a reset button and a ready-set-go button.

I'm really not going to set resolutions this year, things that tend to not get done. There are goals that are running around my head:
~full effort put forth for the 12 week Biggest Loser competition with my online mom friends
~then doing the next one, and the next one until this body is in the shape and size of healthy
~to find a doable, lifestyle, running routine
~run at least two 5k races, getting faster with each one, and end the year with a 10k
~put more effort into crafty things, not just in Nov/Dec
~love more, laugh more, stop being so angry
~play more

So maybe a bit resolution-ee but there you go.

Set forth and accomplish!

last week of the year...

Tuesday we headed over to Cody's school to play on the big, open playground. Everything was damp, but they seamed to have a good time, especially when a couple of friends came along.

Stomp rockets...

Scooting...

and a short spell of remote control cars, until they died. Forgot to check the batteries, Oops!

It's been a really mellow 2nd week of vacation here. Monday we lounged around and watched a couple of movies we had borrowed from the library. Yesterday we went out to see Alvin and the Chipmunks, very cute and the boys were excited to see it in the theater. Today we are headed to the park, as long as the rains hold back.

Tonight is supposed to be some big party night, or at least that's what I've heard! But we'll just be hanging out at home. Tomorrow will be much of the same until the evening. A Christmas present from my MIL, a night out with her, SIL and SIL's MIL to see the musical Xanadu. Probably need to go read up on that a bit, I just said yes to going out!

Yep, today's the end and tomorrows the new!