A Milestone Birthday

I used to think 40 was old. Seriously old. It's not so old anymore. At least, it doesn't feel old.

So, Matthew hit the milestone last month, and I will reach it in a few months. And the good news is that we will be running in the Masters divisions in some of our favorite local races!! We have an excuse for our graying hair. And, I think being 40 gives us the green light to begin stories with "You know, when I was a growing up . . . "!! (Insert rolling eyes by our beloved children!)

Thanks to a thoughtful sister-in-law to dropped off this sweet surprise! What a fun idea! It only took a few days to reduce this beautiful arrangement to a pile of empty cans and wrappers!

We celebrated with white chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting -- Matthew's choice!

We had to improvise with our candles because we didn't have a "4" candle. And we didn't have 40 of any candle. SOOOOOOOO, we used a 20 + 10 polka dot candles + 10 primary colored candles. Apparently, our cakes promote addition!

B-Ville Easter Egg Hunt

Thanks to all who helped with the egg hunt at the Blandinsville park this afternoon. It is always a fun day for the kids and it is great to see so many people enjoying the park!

Nashville Zoo at Grassmere

Who doesn't love the zoo? Finding ourselves in Nashville with a full day to fill we headed over to see what we could learn for the day. Fun, fun day, and an outstanding zoo with an amazing play place!

First we stopped by the Unseen New World. We had fun looking for camouflaged animals. Amazing how many creatures are hidden in our world. Next time we take a walk, I will be better tuned to how many "unseen" creatures are watching us.

Watching the bats feed on fruit was very entertaining. You can't appreciate form this short video clip, how active some of these bats were!

Matthew saw a documentary on this crazy-looking fish called the Indo-Pacific Lionfish. This fish is native to the Pacific Ocean. In its native habitat, the highly-venomous lionfish population is controlled by natural predators. In 1992, the lionfish was introduced to the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida. In the absence of natural predators, the lionfish has thrived. Unfortunately, this has created a drastic decrease in fish native to the area and has threatened commercial fishing. Now scientists are trying to find a way to balance the ecosystem. Just one example of how perfectly balanced the food chain is, and how easily it can be disrupted.

Kangaroo Kickabout was my personal favorite attraction at the zoo because you are surrounded by kangaroos! No cages -- you are in with the famous fighting marsupials. We even spotted a few mama kangaroos with joeys in pouches! They were very entertaining! 

I apologize that I cannot turn the video. These guys were putting on a show for the crowd.

Their flamingos are a brilliant shade of orange! But, did you know that flamingos are white or light gray when they are born? Their color appears as they consume their food!

Eli's buddy!

Playful meerkats!

Beware of the stone hippo!

This zoo has an amazing jungle gym area -- three stories high! Lots of climbing. Lots of sliding. Lots of tired legs!

This guy reminds you that your winter dry skin could be worse!

Which way do we go? Which way do we go?

I always love these creatures. The beautiful markings, lanky limbs, enormous feet, funny horns and awkward lips. What's not to love?

There was a great padded pavilion for little ones to burn off energy. Eli must have done a hundred somersaults off this bench.

Christmas in January

Ok, this post is out of order chronologically, but that tends to happen when one doesn't keep up with blogging. But I want to add this in so my family can view the photos.

My extended family celebrates Christmas in January due to work scheduling for my long-distance traveling brother and his family. It actually works out wonderfully since December can be overwhelming with so many different commitments. So, we do Christmas in January!

This year, my mom wanted the grandchildren to act out the nativity story. Lissa played the part of Mary, reading a fictional (but hopefully pretty accurate) story depicting Mary's perspective of Christmas. 

The angel led the shepherds to the manger birth, although we are missing a shepherd in this photo.

Then we had our Magi from the east. Next year we hope to add Ella to the cast!!

A nice photo of Grandma and Grandpa with Ella.

And then they get photo-bombed!

This was the year of the frozen treats! It was unplanned, but Aunt Mary and Uncle Jeff found an ice cream maker for the girls, and then Uncle Michael and Aunt Hannah gave each of the kids a slushie maker. We have had so much fun. Most mornings at our house now begin with a healthy slush made of fruit juice!

Eli got a new game -- Share-a-Berry. It is a lot of fun and teaches early addition and subtraction and SHARING. I don't know which is more difficult to teach.

Emily stringing her berries!

 

 

We had a gingerbread decorating "contest." Each family had a pre-assembled gingerbread house to load with icing and candy. No prizes awarded -- just bragging rights. Grandpa judged the contest and each house won a different category! Score! Everyone goes home a winner!

Ok, this toy is a lot of fun! It's a soccer ball that glides on the floor! Perfect for kicking around the house!

Sweet Ella! Look at those pretty blue eyes! Next time we see her she'll be mobile!!

Our Christmas celebration was so much fun, although we missed my oldest brother who couldn't make the trip home. The food was abundant and soooooo delicious! The company was fun, but the time was too short!