Endless Energy

What: Tot Class 

Where: My Gym

Who: Noah and Mommy  

Thoughts of the Day

First, I'm embarrassed to even put this blurry picture up, but Noah makes it cute! Noah has had A LOT of energy this summer, so we signed him up for a class to meet some friends and burn some energy.  He is a funny little guy.  He loves to run and play at home with his siblings and is very chatty, however when he is out he is very timid and shy.  This was his first class and it took him almost the entire hour to warm up. Noah wanted nothing to do with the staff their but was flirting and smiling at the other Moms. He is a little peanut. Rating 2 out of 3 stars, only because of the cost.  They require you to sign up for 90 days and automatic payments.

I loved the swings!

Ice Sculpting in the Desert

What: Science Experiment
Where:  Front yard
Who: Michael, Lydia, and Mommy

Thoughts of the Day

Who doesn't love to play with water on a hot summer day!?! Well we took it a step further and made a huge ice block, "glacier."  We picked out some animals, mammals, reptiles that we thought would be found during the Ice Ages.  We had to freeze them in layers in order to make it into a huge ice block, so it took some time to prepare but so worth it.  The kids found their kid size hammers and goggles (safety first, wish I had had a pair-ice was flying everywhere). 

They had over a hour of enjoyment OUTSIDE for once chipping away at the animals and then getting creative making sculptures out of the chunks.  We even had some fun watching how fast the chunks melted in the sun.  Bailey also joined in on the fun. Great memories made today! 

 

 We all rated this activity 3 out of 3 stars.  Next time they want to freeze letters, so they can spell their names (teachers in the making, got to love it!).

Books, Books, Books

What: Storytime
Where: Paseo Verde Library
Who: Michael, Lydia, Noah, and Mommy

 

Thoughts of the Day

We have been going to the library a lot this summer to find new books and learn about the library has to offer us.  We decided to check out the toddler storytime.  I was pleasantly surprised how wonderful the storytellers engage the kiddos of all ages.  The kids had a chance to interact with the story with ribbons, egg shakers, and some animal shapes.  They even handed out felt animal shapes for each child to take home.  We will definitely try to participate in more of these events.

 

Michael says, "I liked looking for Pokémon books and Magic Tree House." 

Rating 2 out of 3 stars (because they didn't have any DVDs he liked)

 

Lydia says, "I loved storytime and they have lots of Barbie books for me to check out."

Rating 3 out of 3



Pink Shoes

What: Ballet  
Where: The Rock Center of Dance   
Who: Ballerina Lydia Dawn
Thoughts of the Day
Lydia started her ballet and tumbling class this week.  She absolutely loves her classes and is having so much fun!  She has been doing hand stands, cartwheels, and ballet moves from the time she gets up to the time she goes to sleep.  I love watching this little girl dance and twirl, she has such a spirit about her on the dance floor.

Lydia's rating 3 out of 3 stars. "I like my leotard and my shoes and my tap shoes."

Summer Bucket List Update!

Thoughts of the Day

So far so good this summer, we are having a blast and really enjoying each other which I love seeing!! We have updated our bucket list and the kids are ready to tackle some more activities! We can't believe this month is already half over.

 

 

DeeDee Mobile

What: Scenic Drive to Lake Mead National Park
Where: Boulder Beach area
Who: Mommy, Michael, Lydia, Noah, Grandma DeeDee, and Aunt Maizi

Thoughts of the Day

"We finished up our day by driving down to Lake Mead to have lunch by the water, it was a great day all and all." -Grandma DeeDee

"Grandma almost popped her tire on the beach.  When we were there people were swimming in the lake.  It was very hot and you needed sunscreen, so you wouldn't turn into a lobster." -Michael

"We saw people swimming but we didn't swim because we didn't have sunscreen on.  We saw pretty water and a mountain goat sign." -Lydia

"Beautiful drive out to Lake Mead! Can't wait to get back out there, so the kids can play and swim together, was VERY hot though.  We will definitely need to pack some tents and bring lots of sunscreen and water." -Mommy

Touring Tuesday with Grandma

What: Explored the city with Grandma DeeDee
Where: Las Vegas Natural History Museum
Who: Michael, Lydia, and Grandma DeeDee

Thoughts of the Day
"At the Museum, the Stingray did a somersault and the sharks were dancing under the water.  There was also a weird fish with a white stripe and it looked like an eel.  The Dinosaurs were robots. I saw tarantulas, geckos, and real bugs.  They had animals and a submarine that made noises.  I rate this adventure 3 out of 3 stars!" -Michael

"I had fun at the Museum. The dinosaurs roared when you pushed the button.  The triceratops kept moving his head.  There were snakes.  My favorite part was seeing the snakes on the ground, they were real. I rate this adventure 3 out of 3 stars, I want to go back." -Lydia

"We saw many beautiful animal species, ocean animals, African animal scenes and desert animals.  Mike and Lydia also were hands-on with excavating fossils, building pyramid blocks, and scanning an xray of an Egyptian mummy. 3 out of 3 stars." -Grandma DeeDee

Fishy Monday

What: Water Play
Where: Home 
Who: Lydia, Michael, and Noah

Thoughts of the Day
"Noah had a blast squirting the fish, pouring water in and out of buckets, spraying paper with water, and sorting out the colored fish! He played with them for over a hour!! Noah rates this activity 3 out of 3 stars." -Noah and Mommy

Happy Father's Day

What: American Idiot

Where: The Smiths Center for Performing Arts 

Who:  Mommy and Daddy

Thoughts of the Day

"What an amazing show! The cast told the story very well and had us hooked in from the very beginning.  I think both of us were surprised how emotional we got during the performance, definitely would recommend this show and give it a rating of 3 out of 3 stars!" -Mommy

"Great show, I would definitely recommend it for anyone who likes broadway musicals. It brought back many memories from when the CD was first released. I didn't realize how much emotion was in the music until you see it acted out on stage.  I rate this show 3 out of 3 stars!" -Daddy

 



Goodnight, Moon

What: Star Gazing
Where: Our driveway
Who: Mommy, Daddy, Michael, Lydia, Noah, and Bailey

Our Thoughts

The kids are always fascinated by the stars, moon, and planets.  We have had lots of conversations about space and the solar system (time for some library books on that topic!). They love to find the moon at night, so we decided to do some star gazing in our own front yard! I loved seeing Noah pointed out the moon, Lydia and Michael counted the stars and kept an eye out for falling stars, and Daddy found the big dipper while Mommy pointed out Orion's belt.  Michael wished he could've seen a planet but liked how the stars sparkled.  Lydia was very comfortable and almost fell asleep.  We can't wait to take them camping so they can REALLY see some stars.

Under the Sea



I love this little smile, she was so happy

What: Mermaid Show
Where: Silverton Casino
Who: Mommy, Lydia, Noah, Aunt Maizi, Grandma DeeDee, and Grandma Evelyn

Thoughts of the Day

 

"The Mermaids were beautiful, and they kept making things in the water for me.  They liked my mermaid I brought.  I saw many mermaids.  They touched the fish and the stingray. My favorite part was that the mermaids could spin on their heads.  I rate this 10 out of 10 stars!" -Lydia 

 

 

"The Mermaid show and the aquarium with all the fish and stingrays was a hit.  We have been to the Bass Pro Shop many times before and had no idea this was here!  Noah loved watching the little fish race around, he was all smiles and squealing with delight the whole time. The fact that we can go any day for free to see the fish is fantastic! They also have stingray feedings which we will try to catch next time. I was surprised to see all the family activities that Bass Pro Shop has to offer on a daily basis. We spent 2 hours there, so I would rate this adventure a 10 out of 10 stars!"   -Mommy

Superhero Saturday

What:  Las Vegas Comic Con

Where: Southpoint Casino

Who: Daddy, Michael, and Uncle Matt

Thoughts of the Day

 

"I saw Pokémon stuffed animals and then I saw a big pack of Yu-Gi-Oh cards.  I asked the lady about the cards but the Storm Troopers came by and they were really loud, so she didn't hear me and I couldn't hear her.  It was cool. Dad got Jim Lee's autograph and signature on his comic books. I rate this adventure 10 out of 10 stars, that's the best."  -Michael

 

 



DeeDee's Pet Shop

Friday we stayed home to recover from our busy week and prepare for our long weekend of fun activities and visiting with my Grandparents.  We went over to Grandma DeeDee's house for dinner, and her house magically turned into a local pet shop.  The kids were thrilled to set up the shop in my Mom's house and sell us animals.  I bought tree frogs and some dragons.  I always wondered what my Mom would do with all these animals as the years go on and now I see.  I loved watching them play together!!  My Grandma and Uncle also got in on the fun and were convinced to buy many animals and aquariums and food AND toys for their pets.  We are so blessed that we had another great visit with the family!

Wild Thursday

 

What:  Lunch with Mom and then off to the waterpark

Where: Wet n Wild, Las Vegas 

Who: Michael, Lydia, and Mommy

 

Thoughts of the Day

 
"At Wet n Wild, there was a pink and green slide, and we went on it.  I almost fell out of the tube. It was fun. There was also a park there.  When we heard a bell ring a bucket of water would dump on everyone. I rate this adventure 3 out of 3 stars!!" -Michael

"It was great. There are a bunch of water slides. I liked the big bucket that dumped water.  I loved when we went down the big water slide. Michael almost fell off. I screamed a little because I wanted to make Mommy laugh. I rate this adventure 3 out of 3 stars!" -Lydia

"My favorite part was seeing the kids running around in the water laughing and smiling.  The park wasn't pack which was surprising since we got there about 11:30.  We found some lounge chairs in the shade even!  We really only stayed on one side of the park, playing in the kids Splash Cove and going down one slide.  The lines went pretty quickly and there were umbrellas over the waiting area which was great!  We will definitely be going back to explore more of the park! My only concern is if we take Noah with us.  There isn't much to do for toddlers because of height restrictions on everything besides lazy river and wave pool.  He is going to want to follow his big brother and sister, so we may need Daddy on those days.  I loved our adventure today but can only rate the park 2 out of 3 stars.  Not sure how you create a family park without having the youngest kids in mind also." -Mommy

 

 

 

Pinterest Wednesday-Water Play

What: Pool Noodles
http://www.bathactivitiesforkids.com/2013/03/fun-math-activities.html

How:  We bought some cheap pool noodles and cut them in half.  One side we cut into 2 in pieces while leaving the other one whole.

Our Twist: Instead of using them in the bath tub, we played with them in the pool.  The kids stacked them, sorted them, played catch, and even played baseball.

Kids Rating: 3 out of 3 stars

 

Boing, Boing, Boing

What: Two for Tuesdays!!
Where: Flip N Out, North Las Vegas
Who: Michael and Lydia (Noah was at his first day of school, such a big boy!)

Thoughts of the Day

Michael:  "It was so cool, you could bounce all around, off the side of the wall, and run up and down and even shoot baskets. You could play arcade games if you bought tokens but Mom said we were just here to bounce.  They had 2 bounce houses too.  I want to go back for sure."                         Rating 3 of 3 stars.

Lydia: "It was so fun, I could climb up the wall and they had two bounce houses.  They had games and snacks but Mom said we should save our money for other fun stuff this summer.  I loved bouncing all around and climbing up to the slide in the bounce house.  My legs were so tired."  Rating 3 of 3 stars.

Mommy: "What a fun place to spend a hour, $10 for 2 kids to jump and run around was so worth it.  Lots of smiles and laughing was happening, next time I will jump too.  I really liked that it wasn't to busy so the kids had plenty of space to jump around without fearing they would get hurt."           Rating 3 of 3 stars

Michael Makes Breakfast

Michael has been craving French Toast for a couple of days, so he was in charge of making our breakfast this morning.  He found a video on Youtube and....

I cracked the eggs and Mommy poured in the milk.  I stirred it.  Then I cut the bread and Mommy added some cinnamon.  I stirred it again. I then put the bread in the pan and Mommy pushed around the bread to get egg on it.  Mommy then put it on the hot griddle.  It was tasty with syrup.  I will make it again.

Summer Reading Program

Where: Paseo Verde Library

What: Summer Reading Kickoff Festival

Who: Michael, Lydia, Noah, Mom, and Dad

Overall Family Rating: 3 out of 3 stars

 

 

Thoughts of the Day

Lydia, "I liked getting my face painted, tattoos, drawing stuff, and going to lunch with Avery.  I also liked my Barbie book even though we didn't read it yet, but I know I will like it. I loved playing ring toss."  Rating: 3 out of 3 stars

Michael, "I liked looking for the Yu-Gi-Oh books and DVDs.  They had Pokemon books there too."

Rating: 3 out of 3 stars




 
Daddy, "I was surprised they had the Graphic Novels I like even thought most were checked out.  I really enjoyed my Macaroni and Chesse burger at lunch."Rating: 2 out of 3 stars


Mommy, "I was suprised that Michael knew how to use the card catalog and was impressed with the toddler section for Noah.  I can't wait to use the library more this summer."
Rating: 3 out of 3 stars

Summer Bucket List

I'm so excited to finally have the summer off to make up for all the lost time I've missed with my munchkins.  Special thanks goes to Jane Lithopoulos for sharing this great idea to kick off our summer adventures!!!

Everyone had a chance to add their ideas to our list, it was so fun!