What we did this Fall

Since the boys birthday we have been busy with the ordinary and not so ordinary.

The boys played soccer for the Fire Dragons and Jaime coached. They took tennis lessons and started going to gymnastics again. We attended the Plano Balloon Festival, we hung out around the house, carved pumpkins, went to the Dallas Symphony, explored the Dallas zoo with friends, and went to carnivals and festivals. My dad visited in October and we got to go to the Texas State Fair twice as well as many other entertaining things. My cousin Kim and aunt Janice arrived in November and we all had tons of fun together being tourists in Dallas. We enjoyed an Uptown food tour, the Dallas Arboretum and Chihuly exhibit, the Sixth Floor Museum, the Gaylord Texan Hotel, the city of Grapevine, and the Historic District. We hung out at home, made Indian headdresses, ate, drank, and played.

Once again, here is a video catch up:

Tyson's 5th Birthday

Tyson insisted on having an outdoor horse riding party in the middle of August. So, Molly found a camp with lots of activities, including horseback riding, and set the date. The party was scheduled for the morning hours in the hope that we might escape the record breaking temperatures just a bit.....

What an excellent birthday surprise when the Metroplex woke up to RAIN this morning!! Just enough to cool everything off for a comfortable and fun birthday celebration. As a matter of fact, the temperature never rose above 90 degrees today!! What a treat since the rest of the week should be right back up around the 107 mark. I think all the kiddos really enjoyed being outside helping Tyson celebrate his 5th birthday.

Avery's Birthday

Avery turned five years old earlier this month. Wow, I can't believe that many years have passed already. We headed out to Trav's on a Saturday and helped her celebrate on Sunday. It was a great party complete with a bounce house, horses, BBQ by Trav, a pinata, a Tinkerbell cake, and a very happy and tired girl. Happy Birthday Avery!!!

Another Day at the Zoo

Beautiful weather almost demands a trip to the zoo. We decided to hit the Ft. Worth Zoo one more time as a family before Jaime started his new job. We didn't know the dinosaurs would be there!! It was a fun and beautiful day.

Dinosaurs Live!!

We are back into some beautiful weather here in Dallas, so the boys and I ventured over to McKinney to visit the Heard Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary. This was the last week of their Dinosaurs Live exhibit and I thought the boys would really like it. Not only did they enjoy the dinos, but they liked the animals of the world and the Bugs! exhibits as well (GIANT roaches and spiders and such). We walked over a mile and a half before deciding to save some of the trails for another day. It is a beautiful place even in the winter, and I hope to return again soon.

The Dallas Zoo

When I heard Friday was the last day of good weather we'd be having for awhile (67 degrees), and then I found out that the Dallas Zoo was only $5 during January and February - Well, it just seemed logical that we go! Immediately.

I have always preferred the Ft. Worth Zoo over the Dallas Zoo because I remembered Dallas being very "concrete and cold." I always felt it was a barren and sad zoo, and just never went back over the past 15+ years. Well, it's not all concrete and sad anymore! They opened a new exhibit last May and it is quite beautiful. The children's area kept the boys interested for awhile. As a matter of fact, I had to pull them away to ride the monorail that runs through the Wilds of Africa Giants of the Savannah , and they LOVE anything that resembles a train.

We only had 3 hours to spend at the Zoo before it closed for the day, but it was enough to know we'd like to go back. Even Connor said that next time he wanted to stay all day. Heck, we might even get a season pass once we know where we'll be living!!

For the second week of Christmas...

Back in the U.S. of A

Hard to believe we've almost been back in Dallas an entire month! Our flight was great and we're as settled in as we can be while intruding on family space.

We spent our first week getting all the "necessities" like a car and a phone and whatnot, and then Jaime got down to the business of looking for work. Lots of resumes sent out across the US, but nothing promising just yet.

Then it was Thanksgiving week...and now it's December!

Otherwise we've been hanging out and enjoying the TX weather fluctuations from 84 one day to 37 the very next day. We've been enjoying the local amenities from neighborhood parks to library story time, and we've been attending some of the many Christmas time activities throughout the metroplex. Here's a little video of our Dallas November:

Family Picnic

The day after Halloween was a holiday here in Spain, so we took the leftovers from our Halloween party and headed to the mountains/forest with the family for a picnic and some "hiking." It was a relaxing and delicious day.

Bugs, Bugs, Bugs!!

Besame Mucho

Monkey See, Monkey Do (Video)

Last weekend we finally went to a place here in Tenerife called Monkey Park. I've been wanting to go since I first read about it almost 2 years ago, but we've just never really been motivated especially since we have season passes to Loro Parque.

For whatever reason, we decided last Saturday was the day. It wasn't the easiest place to find, and it was a bit run down (which we were expecting), but we had a really nice time.

It's a small park with several monkey/animal encounter areas. You can bring your own fruit or purchase snacks at the entrance to feed the animals. We brought our own apples and bananas, which weren't nearly as well received as the raisins a couple of tourists shared with the boys later in the day. The monkeys were pretty friendly with the adults, but were more cautious with the kids. The boys had a great time feeding and talking to the monkeys, and Connor even tried to teach them how to share their raisins.

The park had other monkeys in cages or behind glass, as well as several different types of birds, turtles and guinea pigs of all things. Like I said, it was a neat experience for the boys and we certainly had fun...but we hear Loro Parque just acquired a couple otters, so I think we'll be heading there next.

Forest or Beach? (Video)

We couldn't really decide...so we did both!!

No naps plus full weekend days equals getting out of the house whenever possible! Saturday was off to the forest where we walked, collected and threw pine cones, "made" our own playground, hunted for bugs, and then stopped for lunch. Sunday we headed to the beach for some sun, sand, and toddler nakedness!

Loro Parque

We first went to Loro Parque in October of 2008...and we enjoyed it so much we bought season passes. Then they started to build their new exhibit, Katandra Treetops, and we watched and waited and hoped it would open before our passes expired...and it did, except it was two days AFTER we left for our fall trip to the States. As luck would have it, our passes also expired while we were away on our trip...

So, we went back a couple days ago to visit the animals, see the new exhibit, and renew our passes for another year. Yes, we like the park that much. We like not having to "rush" to try and fit everything in on a one day ticket, and we like being "forced" to go back several times a year. It is also great to watch how the park changes each time for the boys as they continue to grow and become more and more aware of everything around them. Here's a video from Friday's visit:

The Milwaukee County Zoo (Video)

Unfortunately, my grandfather went into the hospital just 3 days after we arrived. Since we didn't want the boys roaming around a germ infested facility, I went to visit him while they took their afternoon nap or later in the evening when they were hanging out at the hotel with Daddy. The rest of the time, we found ways to "entertain" ourselves while Papa was trying to recover.

Some days we just hung out and did little things like visiting a local park, playing at the YMCA, or running errands. Other days, we ventured out a bit more. Our first outing was the Milwaukee County Zoo. I hadn't been there since I was a kid, and it was nothing like I remembered.

Since it was winter, all of the concessions and "rides" were closed...but, we practically had the place to ourselves. It was a brisk but beautiful day and we had a great time...especially in the big leaf pile on our way out of the park. I am actually looking forward to taking the boys back sometime in the Spring or Summer.

Miss Landri's Birthday Party

Our trip to Dallas this year happened to coincide with my niece's 7th birthday. We were all very excited to be able to attend her super fun party at a local petting farm. She invited lots of friends and family, and both of my brothers were there as well as all but one of the boys US cousins.

They had rabbits, ducks, chickens, and ponies. They had a pig, a turkey, a cow, a horse, and a donkey named Delilah which the kids got to walk around the property. They played games, "washed" clothes, experimented with a water pump, rode a horse, and went on a hayride (Connor didn't like riding the horse or the hay ride and got off both about 30 seconds after getting on). They served up a yummy lunch and, of course, cake and Blue Bell ice cream!!! What an awesome day, the boys LOVED it! Hope you had a Happy Birthday Landri!!!!

The birthday girl and her family

"Walking" Delilah

On the "farm"