dallas aboretum

oops...i accidentally forgot to include this post. the dallas arboretum was AWESOME! a great way to let the kids work off some of that extra energy, and a great place for mommy's photo taking obsession!

i love how vivian is so daintily touching the flower!

and who wouldn't love the big b's cheesy grin?!

"look at this one mommy!"

"i love the purple ones, mommy!" me too, miss vivian!!

they also had a great display of playhouses based on children's books. obviously this is peter pan...

the little prince... (it rained that morning so please excuse the mud)...

city green...

...and of course, one fish two fish, red fish blue fish.

when i saw these beautiful japanese gardens i instantly thought of my master gardener mother-in-law. she would have LOVED this place!

i'm not quite sure what this is. vivian wanted me take a picture of her finger and the purple flowers...ok...hmmm...

did i mention the tulips? they were in full bloom and are my FAVORITE!

there was also a neat little frontier village where the kids could play in a covered wagon.

and see how people once farmed and lived.

everywhere you turned was another beautiful oasis (vivian actually took this picture)!

our little family had a great day (please disregard vivian's facial expression, three out of four ain't bad!)

dallas or bust...

spring break 2009 was just that....a very needed BREAK! clif had business in dallas and we decided to tag along. the next four posts tell about our fun little trip, and keep-on-a-reading after that...because i finally have caught up from the past month!
we decided on a "fun place" aka hotel in central dallas with an indoor pool, so the kids and i wouldn't get too bored while clif worked, but who needs all that fancy big city fun when you have a bedside table! huh?

bauer found several ways to amuse himself rather quickly.

much to vivian and i's delight! at night we had lots of fun in the pool...

even though the camera didn't seem too happy about it! (what is up with the steam?)

and of course some days are just too much fun. at lunch one day, i realized bauer was being awfully quiet in my lap. THIS is why...

i guess vacation got the better of him....

;)

natural science and history museum

this museum at fair park came highly recommended by a high school friend of mine living in dallas. he has always been a super funny guy, so when he mentioned it, i knew it wouldn't disappoint. the first exhibit was about homes and architecture and had this neat mongolian tent and a place for the kids to build their own houses.

the next exhibit had a prehistoric theme, complete with huge dinosaur skeletons. but even more cool, was the excavation sites.

vivian got right to work.

while bauer surveyed what tools would be best for the job.

"mommy, i found a bone!" that's great vivian let's move on to the next thing...

ummm....so this was bauer's fav. maybe he wasn't too excited about moving on...

but he soon found happiness at the water table.

as did his sister!

next it was off to explore the tunnels of ground hogs.

and daddy, well he went to explore...well.....there is no nice way to say this. vomit. yep, folks there was a thing about vomit. and here is the picture to prove it!

and to continue with the human body theme....here i am...the human bogie. i guess it is safe to say, clif and i enjoyed the museum, too!

but the most fun was yet to be had....this place had a firetruck!

with VERY highly skilled firepeople!!

"how can i help you, mam?"

"um, mr. fireman...my husband got his head stuck in his nasa helmet. can you please help?"

"don't worry, we'll just saw him out." says the trusty construction worker.

"i'm your girl!"

;)

seriously, the best part by FAR was the bubbles. i could have stayed there all day!

and the kids kind of liked it too!

dallas world aquarium

what could cause this sort of reaction?

why....penguins of course!!

the dwa had it ALL! it was a four story rain forest that was VERY interactive (vivian even got pooped on by a bird...ewwww)!

the place was packed, so the kids spent more time than usual in the stroller, but they didn't seem to mind!

vivian did get out to have her picture made next to the stingray and turtles...i didn't get why she wouldn't let go of my hand and seemed so scared until i saw this guy...

oh....i guess i might be a bit scared too, miss vivian!

the sting rays were close enough to touch....but i wasn't encouraging that since his "neighbor" seemed a bit close, too.

in the reef part of the aquarium i asked vivian to please look at the camera...she obliged...in her own way, of course!

next it was off to the night creatures, and sharks...

the whole shark tank was full and amazing...but this was the only shot that came out.

our little family. (please excuse my hair...i mean come on people it was a RAIN forest. it was a bit humid!)

the pink 'mingos...with a top view of the shark tank behind. it was MY favorite place, i would highly recommend it...

and i think these silly gooses would too!