Zoo Fun... Phoenix Style

Back in Houston we were big fans of the zoo, we were there almost every week when the weather permitted.  We were also within walking distance so it made for a fun morning activity.  In Mesa we are not as close to the zoo, but it is on the way to Mike's work which has made it convenient for quick stops.  The major problem is that so far it has been too hot, like waaay too hot to be at the zoo after 10 am.  It opens at 7, so we were able to go early, but could not stay long.  Luckily, our first visit was on a cloudy and rainy day which was perfect.  We all got a little wet, but I'd have that any day over being wet with sweat. 

One afternoon while the Meldrums were visiting, we went shopping and these two little cuties convinced Grandma to get them these great dancing outfits.  Thanks Grandma!

The zoo has a plethora of misters throughout the zoo which is always a nice little cool down.  Bonus points for dancing your way through.

There is a spider monkey exhibit where you get to go inside their habitat and be right next to these 16 monkeys.  On this rainy day they were super active and running all around us.  They are also great jumpers so we had to watch below and above us.  This was definitely Mike's favorite!

After playing in the children's playground after the rain, Hadley needed a bath, which was facilitated in the bathroom sink :)  As you can tell, she was super excited about it.

Allie's favorite was the "Ariel Shell" where she sang her songs for a good 5 minutes.

Hadley preferred the turtle look.

I just love seeing my girls interact and in the last month or so, I feel like Allie and Hadley have been playing together a lot better and Hadley actually gets what is going on now.  Lately they have been having giggle feasts which just makes me smile just as big.  I love it!

Don't be fooled, we still live in the desert, the zoo just has a jungle feel to it.

It's Always fun when Grandpa, Grandma and Melanie Come

Just after we got back from Utah, Grandma and Grandpa Meldrum and Melanie came here on Monday and we were all able to explore the town together as we had only been in our new house a couple of days before we went up to Utah.  We were also nice enough to let them help us unpack the last few boxes and set up a bookshelf or so.  We're nice like that.

Everyone playing out on the back porch

 They must have done this awesome dance party while I was gone or getting ready one day, but it looks like it was crazy fun because jazz hands are involved.

 Next we made it to the Arizona Museum for Youth museum which the girls LOVED!  Allie is so centered on "art projects" lately and this is perfect for her because half the museum is hands-on art stations with different projects at each station that she can take home.  The other half is a big play land with lots to pretend with and even more hands-on activities.  

 The Animal Sticker house, but I think Had just liked to eat her stickers instead.

 The Exhibit on display was Extreme Pets and they had everything focused on all things animal.  

 This was a green screen where you could see yourself on TV with extreme pets doing different sports. I think Allie here was practicing her wrestling throw down move.

 This little face is just too cute!  

 This has to be Allie's favorite station- the Veterinarian's office.  She loves to take care of all the animals, making sure they are all healthy.  She looks way too cute in these glasses!

 Gotta love the bone in Grandma's mouth.  She must have been a dog as well.  

 Hadley loves the pixel wall. . . actually she loves throwing the pegs but still has fun!  It is like a lite brite but a whole wall of it.  I find myself making designs more often than the girls do.

To finish off our day, Allie played the Linus piano and off we went to Culvers for some butter burgers and custard.  Don't worry, as soon as we knew where we were going, Grandma checked to see where the closest Culvers was and we are only 9 miles away.  We made it there multiple times to make sure we got the best flavor of the days. 

Cousin Time

One of the best parts of being in Utah is having all of the cousins together!  We were missing cute Benson, but the rest of the cousins got together to watch Cinderella and eat some popcorn while Grandma worked at the temple, Jen and Jake attended the temple and Grandpa and Kevin were at work. I just love the time my girls get with their cousins.  I think cousins have such a cool bond that is not quite sibling and not quite friend, just an awesome mix of both.  I hope that their bonds just grow as they get older.  So far we have been lucky that each of the girls have a cousin or two their age.  Yea for cousins!

Cul de Sac of FIRE 2012!

We LOVE the Cul de Sac of Fire (and by we, we mean Rachel. Everyone else just thinks its a fancy BBQ) (don't worry mom, he really does love it....) and have missed it for the last couple of years, but oh how great it really was!  We started out the day swimming with all the Shaw clan at the Lindon swimming pool which is pretty awesome, and not too crowded.  Afterwards, we got everything ready for the party, including food prep, snow cone prep, donning patriotic clothes, and family pictures.  

 There is not much more patriotic to me than Whitney Houston singing the National Anthem with dozens of flags waving in the breeze against the golden sunset.  That, and fire works!  Hadley wasn't too sure about the loud ones, but she went to bed before all of the major ones started as her only nap was at the pool.

 Allie was not so sure of the humongous sparker, and Brookie took after her brother and Grandma, not liking the loud noises one bit.

Hadley, on the other hand, was a little reckless with her sparkler and kept wanting more.  A girl after my own pyro heart.

Having a darn good time

After a fun filled week with Grandma and Grandpa Shaw, we were ready to come home and get situated in our new house. So we hopped in the car for the twelve hour (yes that is correct, it was a twelve hour drive with two small children) trip back home. The girls did really well for most of the trip, and we tried to make good time while they slept. When they were awake we made a few stops. The most memorable was visiting the Hoover dam just outside Las Vegas.

It was really hot out on the dam, so we don't have many pictures. But this is looking from the dam out to the new bridge that spans the gorge. When you drive across the bridge you can't even see over the sides because the guard rails are so high. 

This one looks back over to the power plant of the dam. This was a good short break from the chaos. Maybe next time we will pay the big bucks to take the tour, but this time we didn't have the time, money, or interest from two toddlers.

I Love the Mountains

We were able to have FHE up in Provo Canyon the Monday night we were there with Tanner and Kevin's Families along with my parents.  My girls just LOVED roaming free in cool temperatures with awesome cousins.  I don't know how I didn't get pictures of Tan and Es, but I think it was because they were taking just as many pictures as we were.  Kevin felt like he was being hounded by paparazzi when we were all together.