Catching Up

A compilation of all the things I would have blogged about over the last few weeks if I had more time....just more concise.

Yesterday, the kids decided to shower outside.......

 

We had corn on the cob a couple nights ago, so yesterday we made corn husk dolls

 

We should have made clothes too but everyone got tired and we ran out of good husks. 

Maybe we'll try next time we have corn,

 We spent a few hours at a local wildlife park.

A few years ago, we had an annual pass and came here all the time. 

          Last year, one of the tigers escaped, prompting me to declare that I would never go back....... 

In reality, all it took was a free day (and a higher fence) to get me to change my mind.

 

It's hard to see, but this orangutan was covering itself with this blanket 

because it started raining. It was really very cute.

It was blazing hot, insanely crowded and very loud, but the kids had fun 

and no one was eaten by a tiger.

My husband read that they were filming the movie version of the musical "Rock of Ages" close by, so we stopped by the set to check it out. My oldest daughter loves filming and making movies so she was especially fascinated.

 It was interesting how fake the set seemed surrounded by the real world

No matter how many times we've been to the beach, or bay, it's always fascinating to watch the marine life.

 pointing out a small shark (we think).

We took a walk around our "lake", a small body of water nearby that was probably quite picturesque in the 50s when this neighborhood was a quiet suburb. It is now littered with garbage, drug paraphernalia and junky cars. While it is depressingly littered and unkempt, it's also home to iguanas, ducks, fish, tadpoles and turtles and a pretty cool place to observe nature. My middle daughter and her friends brought their notebooks to record what they saw.

 

This was hers.
(Disclaimer: I, personally, do not recall seeing jellyfish or an octopus in the lake)

 We also made a trip to the History and Art museums where they made a tornado in a jar and a rain sticks.   We took a walk through the woods at a local park and fed some horses. The kids helped a group of volunteers paint and do some more work at our church. My youngest performed in a dance that my oldest choreographed and spent most of the summer teaching to a group of  little girls. My son started playing drums at our church again. My oldest daughter led worship while my husband played the guitar and my son played drums. And, I have been blissfully content feeding an angelic baby, reading Les Miserables and watching movies with my family.

There. 

Now I feel like I'm all caught up.