New Experiences

I can't post pics, and I know that makes blogs WAY more fun, but I'm going to try little synopses instead.

I realized I'd been posting a lot about MY perspective of life right now.  Today's post is all about HER perspective of various things we've done.

I was going to try to do this chronologically...but please...that's too much brain work! ;)

The Dallas Zoo:  LOVED it!  Went with a friend and her two girls.  I have a PRECIOUS picture of J and E holding hands while walking to the crocodiles.  It was REALLY hot!  She'd been asking to ride a pony, practically daily, so we made that happen.  She thought the pony should be smaller than it was.  We fed a giraffe!  I think I was more enthralled with that than she was.  It was COOL!  She fed goats and touched a box turtle and a pot belly pig.  She saw a zookeeper holding an owl and feeding guinea fowl.  She did not understand why she couldn't touch the flamingos or the tiger.  She still talks about "When I rode the pony yesterday?" and "I touched it?"  when talking about almost any animal we saw.  (We're still working on timing.  We went about two weeks ago.)

Rode the DART Rail:  She'd been wanting to ride a train.  This was okay and all, but why doesn't it "choo choo"?

The Perot Museum:  She had a BLAST in the Children's Museum exhibit.  She put on a construction vest and went through the farmer's market with a basket filling it up with fruits and vegetables.  She got to "drive" a farmer's truck.  She also enjoyed the conveyor belt that hauled foam triangles, rectangles and squares up and then dumping those same shapes down the appropriate chute before loading them on the conveyor belt again.  She didn't really care about the dinosaur bones, though she did want to feed one of them. ;)  She liked the machine room (my wording...no idea what it's really called).  She was able to build some things with plastic-y, lego-type pieces.  She really liked that.

Swim Lessons:  When we first went swimming at my apartment complex pool, she showed ZERO fear.  The first day of swim lessons, though, she was a little nervous.  However, she's now half way through the third session, so 5 weeks total.  She's doing great!  She loves jumping off the side of the pool.  She knows how to hold her breath and go under water.  She can swim "free style" for about three or four strokes on her own before she wants to be touching something.  She can float on her back.  She LOVES wearing goggles, but she's okay without them, too.  She's having a blast!

Enrolled in school:  I gave her a tour of her new school.  She wasn't sure about the cafeteria or the gym, "Alyssa, I don't know how to play basketball."  "I know, honey, they'll teach you.  And, it's not JUST basketball.  You'll have races and hula hoops and jump ropes."  "Races?  Hu-a hoops?  Jum ropes?"  :)  We walked into the Kindergarten pod and saw the computers and the bathrooms two of the classrooms.  We even got to meet a Kindergarten teacher!  Her favorite part was the library.  We've been to the public library a few times and she loves reading stories every night and even will pick them up some during the day.  (I LOVE that she loves books!)

Oklahoma:  We've been to visit my family in Oklahoma twice.  The first trip was super short, just one day, but the second trip was for the weekend.  She had a blast!  She got to hold guinea pigs and catch a frog and play dress up and be tickled silly.  We went to my cousin's little league game and she enjoyed nachos and a pixie stick.  She was taught the downward Longhorn sign that Sooners do, but she gives my cousins a hard time, by doing the correct Longhorn sign. ;)

Gymnastics:  We went to an introductory class today to see how we liked it.  She LOVED it!  She did a FABULOUS job of following directions.  Today's theme was Barnyard Bonanza, which thrilled her since she loves animals.  She got to bounce on an air trac and learn to do head rolls and swing on a low bar and do the beginnings of a cart wheel.  It's all about gross motor skills.  It's great!  We're enrolled for the next month.  She's going to have so much fun!  On a side note, they had Legos and Lego animals out for the kids to play with before class starts.  She knew exactly how they worked and how to attach the train pieces and began building a great train to carry a plethora of animals off somewhere fun!

Coconuts:  Every night at bedtime, we read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.  (If you're not familiar. all the letters of the alphabet try to climb a coconut tree.)  Today, my parents bought a real coconut and we busted it open and she drank the milk, "Is GROSSSSSS!" and tasted the coconut.  It wasn't her favorite, but she still had fun!

I'll try to do this every so often so it won't be as many next time! :)