Church Carnival

Saturday we had our church carnival. The kids got to jump in the bouncy houses for hours! They also loved the games. I ran the ring toss then helped out at the bouncy houses. Frank was performing in the play. 135 people saw the play and there were many others who only visited the carnival. The adults left with church schedules and most were witnessed to.





Sabrina's heart did not wash off. We had to let it fade on its own. Thankfully Alex's paint washed off.

Marie-Anne

Homeschool Carnival

Friday we met the homeschool group at Acacia Park for a potluck and homeschool carnival. I was running a Nerf shooting range so I didn't get many pictures. Sabrina's favorite part was the ring toss. Alex loved the apple bobbing.

Marie-Anne

Stu Miller's Pumpkin Patch

For family night we took the kids to a pumpkin patch. Although we didn't buy any pumpkins the kids each chose their favorite for a photo op.





They absolutely loved the petting zoo. They spent quite a bit of time in there. Alex's favorite were the chickens . Sabrina's favorite were the rabbits. They also had a lot of fun on the inflatable slides and obstacles course. They did those several times each. Both kids also got to play a game where everybody's a winner; Sabrina got a tiny green bear and Alex got an inflatable bat.





We also took the opportunity for a few pics. This was the first time we took the kids to a pumpkin patch and we all enjoyed it.

Marie-Anne

Giving our Children Experiences

While I was pregnant with Alex one of my teachers said, “As an older parent I want to give my child experiences.” That idea has really stuck with me.



When we moved from Washington I realized that there were several places we really wanted to visit that we never made the time to go. I told myself that that would not happen again. I researched places to go around Las Vegas. I made a list of museums, state and national parks... I can honestly say that we've been to most of the main ones on my list, though we add new ones as we learn about them. Now I am researching places within a day trip's distance. Even when we go on vacation or visit family I research that area as well.



At 6, Alex has ridden a camel, been to mountains, lakes, the ocean, been in the cockpit of a plane, held an alligator, been camping, been in a children's concert... At 2, Sabrina has been right there for most of these adventures. Some of the experiences these kids have had are ones I didn't have until I was an adult!



We aren't rich. We have no plans for a vacation in a foreign country, but there are opportunities available for us to give the gift of experiences to our children, if we look for them.



Marie-Anne

Winchester Park

While Frank was at music practice I drove the kids a few blocks to Winchester park.

Marie-Anne

Stewart Place Park

After service we took the Park Challenge. Stewart Place Park is only a few minutes from our house, but I didn't even know this park was there. I happened to catch a glimpse of the park sign a few days ago. It is a nice park that's almost within walking distance of our house.



Alex said it is his favorite park because it has a fireman's pole.

Marie-Anne

Winterwood Park

Our church had an outreach at Winterwood Park. The kids were thrilled to play at another park today.

Marie-Anne

MLK Park

We met our friends Crystal, Seth, and Naomi at MLK Park.

Marie-Anne

Only my Kid

Alex is a one of a kind of guy. Only he could possibly have what happened this morning happen to him. Alex and Sabrina were on the merry-go-round in front of Food4Less when a paint chip fell into his eye! As I said only Alex... I couldn't get it out so to urgent care we went. After the first few minutes he was acting as if nothing happened even though the paint chip was still in his eye! The doctor used what looked like a Q-tip to get it out. (Tears started then, of course.) I'll have to stop at the pharmacy to get some antibiotic drops for his eye; after all he had paint in his eye for about an hour. He's perfectly fine now.



This picture is not from today, but this is the merry-go-round.

Marie-Anne

Ocean sensory tub

Our ocean sensory tub has aquarium rocks, shells, little people, a toy boat, two beanie babies, and various fish. Sabrina asked me to add water so I took the stuffed animals out and added about an inch of water. She has really enjoyed this one!

Marie-Anne

Wetlands Park

Frank got off early today so we could go hike the wetlands trail.







We took a trail that we haven't taken in a long time. It was a beautiful day for a hike. We all had a good time.





Of course the kids' favorite part was the play ground. Sabrina is the “super hero princess.”

Lost Creek Trail at Red Rock Canyon

For family day we went hiking at Red Rock Canyon. It is an absolutely beautiful day.







Our first stop was the visitor's center. They were out of Jr. Ranger booklets, but Alex did a scavenger hunt.





We slowly drove the scenic loop until we got to the Lost Creek Trail. I was proud of how good the kids did. We had to go at Sabrina's pace, of course, but she hiked all the way! Alex wanted to climb every boulder along the way. He says he's the family expert at climbing.



Our hike led us to a waterfall, that at this time of year is just dripping. That didn't matter to the kids or to us; we had a lot of fun. Alex and Frank climbed rocks there. I stayed with Sabrina at the waterfall and sand. Both kids got what they wanted.

Marie-Anne

Winterwood Park

Our church had an outreach at Winterwood Park. We arrived about dark. While Frank invited people I took the kids to the playground.

Marie-Anne

Freedom Park

We took the Park Challenge and went to Freedom Park. As we were walking up I noticed that some of the playground equipment looked old which surprised me because this park recently had a makeover. The older equipment is actually part of this park's charm since it is totally different than the other parks we have been to. Needless to say the kids had a blast.

The only problem I have is that this park is super crowded. It was hard to keep track of the kids. In fact, Alex got a lecture on why he must never go to a public bathroom without telling me. Thankfully, I saw him just before he went in or I would have had a panic attack.

As we were leaving Frank bought hotdogs from a vendor. They were good!

Marie-Anne

ABC Sensory Tub

This week we are concentrating on ABC's. Sabrina's sensory tub has foam letters, letter magnets, letter tiles, letter dice from Boggle and Boggle Jr. I also included the cards from the Boggle Jr and plastic tweezers that came with a bug kit. The Letter dice are by far Sabrina and Alex's favorite part.

Marie-Anne

Outreach

One of the things that I absolutely love about the Christian Fellowship Church is how they do outreaches. When a church has a special event all the local churches and even churches from several hours away come to help promote it. Today's outreach, at another church in Las Vegas, had people from Redlands, CA and Barstow, CA in addition to the other churches here in our city.

Marie-Anne

Please, Please, Please no Barbies!

As Sabrina gets older she will inherit these Barbies from my childhood, including some I inherited from Aunt Mindy and some more that I collected as a teenager. Just so you know there are 23 Barbies in the picture. That does not include the Barbie, Ken, and Kelly dolls I already gave her. Nor does it include the two Barbies she broke.



I recently bought these Barbies to give Barbie a more racially diverse neighborhood. The only other Barbies I plan to buy are some Ken and Steven dolls and the new Stacie.



This Barbie traded in her hoochie mama dress for a princess dress, (that I got for $0.49 at a thrift store). If you absolutely must buy Barbies please buy furniture, pets, or princess dresses.

Marie-Anne

Happy b-day to Frank

Happy b-day to my most wonderful husband and best friend!



This morning at WalMart the clearance toys were 50% off the marked down price. I got Alex a Nerf Super Soaker Hydro Cannon as an early b-day gift. I ended up going back to WalMart to get Frank one too. Alex needs someone to play with, right? Both “boys” had a lot of fun trying them out.



Frank said he wanted chocolate cake so I got a chocolate lovers cheesecake with 4 different kinds of cheesecake. It was very VERY good. After dinner we sang Happy B-day.

Frank said he wanted to tell someone about Jesus for his birthday and he got to do just that. He also got a card his Dad made, phone calls from our family members, some money, a CD, and a computer game.

Marie-Anne

Acacia Park

We met the homeschool group at Acacia Park. We had not been to this park in a long long time. The kids were excited to go back.

Marie-Anne