We're Going to Ride a Train... errr Wait, We're at the Zoo!

So as the spring semester was winding down we tried to think of something fun that we could do as a family once I was done with finals. We had heard that Santa Barbara had a nice zoo so we planned a family trip to the zoo. While looking at the zoo's website, which had a picture of the little train at the zoo, j* got really excited about riding the train. We told him that we were going to ride the train and he could hardly believe it. We live a little over an hour from Santa Barbara and needless to say, we were asked a few times when we were going to get to the train. As we pulled into the zoo parking lot we told j* that the place with the train was actually a zoo with animals... he was blown away and quickly began asking if they had various types of animals. T* remarked that it was a good thing we didn't tell him that we were going to the zoo before we left the house and I quickly agreed.

The Santa Barbara Zoo was great. It is not the biggest or fanciest zoo in the world, but it is also not the most expensive and it is across the street from the ocean. We were there on a "postcard" Santa Barbara day and really had a good time. They had elephants, lions, gorillas, giraffe(s), eagles, California condors, penguins, snakes, monkeys and more. The really cool thing was how close you can get to the animals. One of j*'s favorite things was feeding the giraffe(s) with his mommy. One of his other favorite things was playing on the little rides that cost fifty cents. Luckily for us, he still thinks its cool to play on them without putting any coins in. The gorillas were also pretty cool. We lucked out and they were really close to the glass. One was probably about 6-8 feet away. As far as the snakes go, J* is not a real fan and when we first arrived at the zoo j* asked if they had snakes. J* told him they did and j* got a little freaked out. Then J* told j* to make faces at the snakes and all of a sudden he really wanted to see the snakes, in fact we had to go back to see the diamondback a couple of times.

We would really recommend the Santa Barbara Zoo to anybody with kids. One cool thing is that it doesn't feel like they are trying to get you to buy stuff around every turn. They have their souvenirs and stuff, but they aren't to get your kids to notice them and beg for them everywhere you go. The ocean view from the giraffe pen and the accompanying breeze are two other reasons to go. Also, there were school kids there until about 2pm and the rest of the time the zoo was wide open. If you can avoid the train, you can save some money. It is a little overrated since you don't really get to see a lot in the way of animal life. Finally, if you do get the chance to go make sure you take some pieces of cardboard. The good people of the Santa Barbara Zoo put in a sweet astro-turf hill for kids to play on and it is one of the most popular attractions. With a little piece of cardboard the little munchkins can get flyin' down the hill.

Here's a few pics:

Feeding the giraffe... more fun for j* or mommy?

Face-off with the gorilla... thank you thick glass.

No coins... but we still got a thumbs up.

Memo to the City of Santa Barbara... thank you for putting the zoo so close to the ocean!

Astro-turf hill without cardboard... luckily no holes in the shorts!

Finals, Toddlers, and Wrinkles...OH MY!

Finals...
J* completed his last final today!!!!! He has worked and studied very hard, and we are very proud of him. We've come a long way over the past 2 years! Way to go babe!

Toddlers...
Okay, just one toddler, but what an life-force he is! He has survived finals as graciously as any two year old could be expected! He and I went to a local cupcake bakery (with a coupon, of course) today to get a cupcake to share with daddy! The last hour before daddy made it home was just about too much for him to handle, but I wish I had a video of how much he enjoyed the bites of chocolate cupcake. Not to mention the joy in finding out that daddy was not going back to the library tonight!

They say children make sense of their experiences through play. Here's an example of j*'s attempts to make sense of law school finals. Over the past few weeks, he's has been packing up a little bag full of toys and saying, "I'm going to school." He walks down the hall to his room, and comes back within a minute with a big grin on his face. When I ask him what he learned about at school, he says, "Wills and trusts!"

I think that l* gets the award for smiling the most during the past few weeks! Thank goodness for his goodness!
Wrinkles...
Calling all friends, family, and beauty experts! My skin and I really need suggestions for a great, budget friendly moisturizer. Leave me a comment with your beauty tips....PLEASE!

Happy Mother's Day

To all of the women who have had a mothering influence on my life I say, "THANK YOU!"

Throughout my life I have been nurtured by friends, sisters, teachers, aunts, grandmothers, in-laws, roommates, cousins, co-workers, neighbors, strangers, and of course my very own mother.

Inspired by your influences, I choose to develop a mother heart!

What an adventure it is proving to be!

(*As you can see, watercolor is one of our new favorite activities! The credit for painting goes to j* and I added my tearing skills!)

Brings Me Joy

Just a quick note about how much joy I find in using our stroller! So many of our friends and ward members helped us to buy this stroller, and I send them thank-you-vibes every time I use it. It is easy to push, fits both boys or only one, makes navigating an airport with two kids a breeze, and even fits in our tiny trunk! I LOVE it! Just thought I would share.

More than Half Full

With J much more occupied with school (finals are approaching), I have had a lot more solo time with the boys. There have been lots of great things to do, but I noticed that about 30 minutes into each great activity, I would be thinking, "If only I weren't alone doing this...This would be so much easier with someone else helping...etc." At one such moment, I looked down to see the boys in the stroller, both smiling and just enjoying the beautiful day. I thought, "Okay, time to see the cup as half full! Make the best of the good that is around me. Enjoy what there is to enjoy, and let a beautiful day with my boys be 'enough'."

View of the boys in the stroller

Our days have been much better since then! The three of us have made it to the library, to the park, and even to the beach together. And when loading them in the car seems like too much, we have just walked to the courtyard or dipped into some watercolors! My cup is much more than 1/2 full! (Plus, my husband will back soon ;))

Just to See You Smile

Spring Cleaning!

Because we live on a college campus, many of our neighbors are in the process of moving. We have been blessed to be able to stay here over the summer, but I have found myself feeling envious of our neighbors' chance to sort/throw out, etc. while moving. So, I thought I would spring clean!

Although it has taken much longer than I would prefer, I am loving it! I have found about an hour a day that I can work on a closet or cabinet. Slow and steady wins the race! One of my favorite projects was giving our book shelf a face lift. With only two bedrooms in our place, our room serves a bed-room, baby nursery, office, library, 'cold storage', and much more. Needless to say, it is not oozing with style! I saw a design show where they sorted all of the books in a room by color, so I thought I would give it a try.

The result is one of my favorite face-lifts ever...and it was FREE! (Since I neglected to take a before picture, I am including a picture of our other book shelf which has not been overhauled:))

Faux Before

Fantastic After!

Even with all of my love for the new look, the best part came a few days after the project. The shelf at j* eye level includes a Bible and Book of Mormon. While he was checking out that shelf, he found both. He grabbed them, put them on the bed, and said, "Mom, read me the scwiptures, pwease!" How could I pass up that kind of request! We had a great time reading several favorite verses and talking about how much God loves us! Gotta love how organization and de-cluttering bring peace and clarity to our lives!

Fun With Cardboard

One of my best 'mom-spirations' ever!

J* is easily bored with his toy selection. As I wondered what I could do (short of getting new toys constantly), I thought of hiding and rotating toys. Since we are very short on storage space, I wasn't sure I could make it work. Then, the mom-spiration'! Cardboard to divide half of the shelf. Look closely, and you will see that there is white cardboard blocking off the back half of each cubby. Every few weeks, I hide the toys that have been out and switch them with toys that have been hiding! This simple idea has breathed new life into our play time! YIPEE!



I have heard people say that children often have more fun playing with the boxes their gifts come in than they have with the actual toys. I am not sure if that is always the case, but we have gotten a lot use out of several different boxes around our house. Here are a few of our cardboard creations! Enjoy.

Car seat box....I mean playhouse!
(complete with pipe cleaner door and window handles)

diaper box...oh, I mean deluxe cook top, stove, and sink combination
(complete with play food that is probably toxic plastic, photoshopped burners ala joey, basin from hospital for the sink, and an old towel bar as the stove handle)