Friday, February 15, 2013

The Other Side

The other side of Legoland, that is.  When we enter, we habitually go to the left and so there are certain things that we’ve always skipped over as we near the end of the park and naptime.  Throwing convention to the wind, this time the kids and I headed RIGHT!  That’s big, I know.
 P1130435The boat tour, our first new ride, isn’t exactly a thrill-a-minute but it is scenic.

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Let me know if there’s anything here that you don’t recognize.

P1130460Wow!  What else have we been missing?

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This airplane ride is definitely the fastest of all the ones that Naomi is eligible to ride.  Best thing about going in the morning on a weekday?  Getting to ride two or three times in a row because there’s no one else waiting in line!

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Look at that teamwork!  “It’s time to reload.”  “Can we help you with your donkey, sir?  All together now, PUSH!”

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Moving on, we enter the castle/fort for knight training.

P1130491Jake introduced the kids to Star Wars.  That’s right; the only princess that my daughter can identify at this point is Princess Leia.  Not sure how I feel about that really . . .

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Heading back around, we catch a couple more new sights.

                              P1130495 P1130496 P1130497And take a short detour through D.C.

P1130499Gah!  Run, run for your lives!  Gigantic monster ducks; they’re as big as the boat!

P1130500 Now if we turned RIGHT when we came in, what way do we have to go to get back to the entrance gate?  I’m so confused!

Monday, February 11, 2013

Saturday Stroll

We had other plans for the weekend, but those didn’t pan out.  Instead, we kept things low-key, plopped the kids in the stroller, headed down to the pier, grabbed some lunch and walked home again.  Simple, sweet and fun!

P1130346I should have put a pedometer on this thing when I bought it.  According to my very rough estimate, it should be somewhere around 2,000 miles by now.


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Just some wildflowers along the beach trail.  It’s not uncommon for us to head down this way, but it is unusual for me to have my camera with me when we do. 

P1130366 Scoping out the waves near the pier.

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Necessary activities include: swinging in the swings, digging in the sand, and watching the trains go by.

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A cute little cafe just off the beach served up some delicious crepes and comforting drinks.         

The ride home is brought to you from the kid’s perspective.       
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Portrait of my Sister, by Logan








P1130384State Park Entrance, unknown. P1130385







                                                         My View, by Naomi.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Quiet Days

These are the sorts of things we’ve been doing recently, on the days when we’re “not doing anything”. 

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I put Logan’s Legos away for a while and brought these out instead.  I’ve discovered that when we get to the point that the toys are just dumped but not really played with, it’s time to rotate.  After I did that, I came in to get Logan at the end of his quiet time to find him busily playing with this “airport” that he’d created out of the magnet set.  Then he asked me to help him set up a marble track and we played with that for nearly an hour (Naomi even joined us).

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In the garage one day, the kids figured out that they can give each other rides on the tricycle.

P1130344Naomi has really just started pedaling, so she’s making better time on wheels now.

IMG_4562More playtime in the garage.  A late Christmas package occasioned the re-introduction of the sensory bin; all those packing peanuts were just too good to let go to waste.

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Crunch, crunch, smoosh, squash, snap!

IMG_4597Introducing trucks, teddy bears and other accessories to the mix.  What happens when you . . . ?  How many peanuts fit into . . . ?  This is good science going on here!

IMG_4603I adore it when the kids get quiet and I find them tucked away somewhere like this!

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Time to go for a walk around the neighborhood.  On a side note, if you look closely, you can see where one of Naomi’s teeth is still a bit gray.  The grayness seems to be receding though, so I think the tooth may actually hold!

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On my run earlier that morning, I had suggested that we needed to bring binoculars to look at a colony of sea lions that lives just off the beach.  That afternoon, the kids, of course, had to bring their binoculars with them, which they used (or not) to keep a close eye on a neighbor washing their car (Naomi) and to spy out some kids throwing a frisbee (Logan).

IMG_4620The recent rain has brought out all sorts of flowers!

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Back at home, Naomi sings “Rock-a-bye Baby” as she puts her teddy bear to bed; nearby Logan rows his boat merrily down the stream.

So that’s us.  What have you been up to?