We Get There Eventually

We’ve been to the playground before but it took us more than a few attempts to get to the castle ruins on site. 

 
These are from one of the earlier playground-but-not-castle sessions.

On our way to the castle site finally and the view of the Keramas on the horizon is spectacular!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few other sights along the way.

 

 

 

In comparison with some of the other things we’ve seen, the ruins themselves weren’t particularly noteworthy BUT it definitely had some other features going for it.  The view was amazing.

And the altars were unusually well-tended and active.  Note the lit candle at the base; there was incense too although you can’t see it.
 
Looking inside this little grotto . . .

we found this shrine, again obviously recently visited, at the back of a small cave.
   Plus there was lots of natural beauty and room to run/roam.

On the way down, we discovered that they’ve made considerably more progress in restoring the nearby tomb of the castle lord.

   
Not seeing much of the castle ruins, it’s hard to tell how well these people lived but they certainly died in style!

The tomb was carved right into the side of the (solid-rock) hill.

And it had a nice, roomy courtyard in front of it.

The stonework was impressive.

And then, of course, we did have to go back to the playground again.  Not that I blame the kids at all, it’s one of the best and has Mommy’s favorite roller slide on island.

Really, look at this thing!  Does that not look like one heck of a fun ride? 

 

Somebody has to do everything big brother does, and she usually can!

Which is why she was all tuckered out by the time we left the playground.

Au revoir!

Rainbow Fun for Rainy Days

You remember the oatmeal box, right?  Well, it was getting played with A LOT and the oatmeal was turning to dust.  It needed to be refreshed.

A little searching online provided the inspiration for some rainbow-colored fun.  Ingredients: rice, food coloring, rubbing alcohol and one handy assistant.

We had to let it dry in batches, so the red/orange/yellow was ready to go first. 

The full color palette.

Color swirling fun.

Wheee!!!  So much fun!

 

The final product.

 

Naomi didn’t get in on the action until a bit later, after she finished her nap and had a snack.

Have you come up with any cool projects lately?

Read Me A Story

Lately I feel like Scheherazade—she of the 1,001 tales.  Aided by a slew of new books showing up for “Christmas” (over the last month) and another round from the library, we’ve been in total book-mania! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current favorites: Moo (by Matthew Van Fleet)—thanks Aunt Rach!
                           See Inside-How Things Work (an Usborne book)
                           Little Blue Truck (by Alice Schertle)—thanks Mom!
                           Watch Me Throw the Ball! (Piggie & Gerald book
                                   by Mo Willems)

What’s the current favorite for you and/or your little one?

Sakura

 

 

Just Another Day

This is what happens when Mom puts my hair back in a ponytail and I pull it out about three minutes later. 

A nice day and a long weekend requires an outing of some sort.  A simple walk/bike ride down at Araha Beach fits the bill.

Logan zooming off on his bike and Naomi (with Dad’s help) keeping up on her trike.

Oops, pit stop!  We MUST walk on the wall.  Because it’s there.

Remember the bit in Alice in Wonderland with the dodo bird and the “caucus race”?  Any time the kids get going in circles like this, that parody of the phrase is what comes to mind.

Love that red dot of a kite there in the sky.
   This is a statue on the beach.  Admittedly, it’d be cooler if it were Jake and one of the kids (probably Logan, based on the size) but still, I’m pleased with the shot.

  We found a great little, new (to us) cafe at the end of the beach where we stopped for dinner. 

And had a nice view of the ferris wheel on our way back out.

Hope your day is full of pleasant moments and that all your surprises are joyful!

Accessorizing, More or Less

More?                                           or less?

  

Much more?                                  or much less?