Celebrating Jon's birthday at Audobon Zoo

On Tuesday, Jon took off from work for his birthday. He started the day by going to the eye doctor and getting his oil changed. Then we headed to the city for a day of fun at the zoo. Both Jon and I thought that this trip was more for Will than any of us, but we both had a great time as you can see by the numerous photos that follow this post (they end with the sign in the Jaguar Jungle). Jon had a great time taking pictures, which is something he would like to do more often. I often had to remind him that Will would like to be able to see the animals too! The zoo was beautiful and very well-kept. I daresay it was cleaner than the French quarter (and smelled better too for that matter). I was completely enthralled (and sometimes scared) of all of the wild animals. I hadn't been to the zoo since I was a teenager, and I don't think I have ever appreciated the animals as much as I did on this trip. Will, of course, had a ball. He was anxious to see the giraffes and kept reminding us that he must see the Alligators ASAP! We stopped for lunch at the Cypress Knee cafe in the middle of the swamp habitat (which, of couse, was extensive and very wild). Will talked the whole time, and he would sometimes give us fun facts about the animals that he learned from his books, watching Diego, or that he just made up. He was quite entertaining. Driving home, I thought about how many different animals we saw and how many different species of each animal there was. I know that God created each animal for scientific reasons and that they are all crucial to maintaining balance and order, but since I'm a right-brainer, I think the animals are our Creator's way of expressing His perfect creativity. Enjoy the picturs that our resident photographer enjoyed taking...and you should know there are many many more, and I chose only a small sampling!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Lions...

...and tigers...

...and bears, Oh My! (Will said this was Papa's big black bear--he came all the way from Franklin Co. VA)

What Elephant?

Will makes friends

If you look closely, you'll see that this orangutang is going weewee from atop his high perch because as Will said, "he doesn't have a potty."

The rhinos were so incredibly huge!

Will was most excited about the giraffes!

This is not zoomed in--this alligator was this close!!!

There was a large display of different types of snakes from the area including five venomous--YIKES!

Crawfish--Jon took a picture of this mudbug right after he woofed down a bowl of crawfish ettoufee

A rare white alligator (not albino-discovered in LA swamps in 1987)

A red fox indegenous to LA ("but it's not Swiper the Fox, Mommy")

Will let us know this was a scarlet Macaw (Thank you, Diego)

in the jaguar jungle

Parks and Recreation

We have been getting out to various parks and festivals lately. Last weekend we went to the Abita Earth fest where Will helped plant flowers for the new park. The park is absolutely beautiful, and he loved running through the spouts. It has been especially hot, so we've enjoyed finding ways to beat the heat. Please enjoy the pictures--they start with Will's flower-planting.

so handsome

B&B best buddies

The park that beer built

Granddad's distant relative?

Will playing in the spouts

Daddy and Will look for pirates

William Craig

Mommy and Brighton take shelter from a brief rain storm

Brighton smiles for Daddy

Will has his first "sno ball"

Will lending a hand

Southern Living

I have not updated the blog in a little while and for a very good reason--we've been busy doing other things! Our days and weeks are getting fuller now that it's so warm down here. Between the MOMS group that I joined and the MOPS group that we're part of, we have plenty of fun things to fill our weeks. Will got to try hoopster tots with the MOMS group. He was one of the youngest to participate, but as you can see on the video, he was very into it. I decided that he needed a basketball hoop at home, so after trying to find one through Craig's list, I ended up buying a new one at Walmart. He is quite the little basketball star, and he gets very serious about making sure that the ball goes in the hoop. I am continuing with Will's homeschooling, and I am also trying to get involved with a homeschool co-op for next year. It is possible that I could even teach some writing classes there, which would put a little extra cash in our pockets. Brighton continues to grow, and she wants so badly to be on the move with her brother. She gets so excited watching him, and her little legs start kicking so hard that I sometimes think she could just take off running if I were to put her down. She has been enjoying the company of a little lamb that Miss Jan from Jon's office gave to her for Easter. She has become very attached to it, and it's so fun to watch her grab it every morning with both arms and try to cram it in her mouth. Brighton is often "along for the ride" as she spends time in both her jellybean carrier and the Baby Bjorn. One nice day last week, we met some friends at the park, checked out books at the library, and grabbed some groceries (even stopping back at the house for a quick potty break), while never going more than five miles from the house. I am really loving small town living in Covington. The weather is beautiful right now, and although I know that intense heat and humidity are waiting for us in the coming months, I can't help but soak in all the great things that life in the deep south has to offer. These small blessings help to make life so far away from friends and family (including my new sweet baby neice, Callie) a little easier.

Hoopster Tots

Daddy's lil helper

Brighton's Buddy