Butterfly House

There is a butterfly habitat in a neighboring town, so I thought we'd give it a try. The trip went smoothly until we pulled into the lot and saw that not only was the Butterfly House next to the beach, it was next to a playground and a splash pad. After some convincing, we decided to see the butterflies first and then get wet.

For all of you in Santa Barbara, you should know that this little exhibit didn't come close to comparing with the Butterflies Alive! exhibit you can see now through mid-September. The Butterfly House boasted dozens of butterflies in their garden, as opposed to more than a thousand in Santa Barbara. Despite its modest scope, it was very beautiful and the docents were friendly and informative.

Recent Adventures

We have been pretty busy, so I've been quite remiss in the blogging. To catch you up on things I haven't blogged yet, here are the CliffsNotes:

-Kevin was captain of an on-base intramural volleyball team. It made us all miss Team Condor. To see how they fared, watch the slideshow.'

-Kevin had a birthday. We celebrated all day and all night and had lots of fun showing Daddy just how much we love him.

-Stellan had his "Show Off To Your Parents Day" at gymnastics. OK, it wasn't called that, but that's basically what it was. I've included a video of his performances at the bottom of this post for you grandparent types, and anyone else who has a strong resistance to boring-to-just-about-anyone-but-family-of-child-that-is-not-yours videos. I would like to point out that this took place less than 12 hours after we got home from a cross-country plane ride, so it's a miracle he was even standing.

-The McKneeleys came to visit us. Melissa served her mission in Houston with me and Kevin, and Stephen was the ward mission leader in an area where Kevin and I spent 7 months. 10 years and 4 kids later, here they were at our front door! We were happy to offer them a place to crash on their way home from their Disney cruise. Come by again soon, McKneeleys!

-We baked. I know, not a banner item for most families, but we're not really bakers. However, when Kevin was charged with delivering a cake for a coworker's birthday, I busted out my Food Network Magazine and we rocked that cake. Entertaining and delicious. Watch the slideshow for details.

-We have spent this week with Natalie and Amanda, daughters of a friend who is chaperoning Cub Scout camp with her son Devon. Stellan has had the best time ever with "The Girls", who love to play with him and his toys. We've been busy exploring the lake, rivers, parks, our backyard and Stellan's new preschool (starting in the fall). Today they are with their dad, and while I'm enjoying the downtime, I miss hearing them say,"Can we do your hair after we make flowers out of pipe cleaners?" Girls are so fun.

Gymnastics May 2011 from Krissie Cook on Vimeo.

Father-Son Camping, Mom-Daughter Snuggling

Stellan and Kevin went on the annual Father Son campout with lots of friends from church. Things seemed dire on their way out of town, what with the torrential downpour and thunderstorm. But it stopped long enough for them to pitch a tent, eat some dinner and hang out with friends. It poured all night, proving that our tent is very close to waterproof, and then cleared up in time for morning adventures.

While the boys were gone, Rachelle and I spent pretty much the whole weekend doing what we like to do best - cuddle. Really. I just plopped her down in the living room with some toys and started reading The Hunger Games. She would play for a few minutes, then crawl over to me to snuggle. Then she'd play for a few more minutes and then she'd come over with her toy to snuggle while she played. Sorry there are no pictures, but I'm pretty sure no photo could do this weekend justice to the memory I'll always have of me and my super snuggly Angel Baby Rachelle.

When are you going camping again, boys?

Santa Barbara, I Miss You Already!

My dear friend Monica married Ian in Santa Barbara and she was kind enough to invite me. I was thrilled to share that happy occasion with them both. Their reception was at the Museum of Natural History, so it was like a double homecoming. The reception was lovely, I have reaffirmed how much I miss all my Museum friends and also how glad I was to have grandparents there to babysit my kids.

While we were there, we also got to see my sister Jenn and her kids (including brand new baby Noah - so precious!), go to National Astronomy Day (thanks for letting me a couple of planetarium shows, Javier!) and celebrate Mothers' Day with 3 of my 4 moms. What a great trip.

46

46 months old and 46 weeks old. Exactly. Today.