Hogle Zoo

Mom and I wanted to take the boys to Hogle Zoo this year, we just wanted to do it before it became miserable hot. This past week we took them and Dad came along with us. It was a lot of fun and they were both EXCELLENT! From the moment they got to our house that morning, they were so excited. There was no fight or dragging feet to get dressed and have breakfast. They helped me get everything we needed and the car loaded. They also took my phone and took some pictures. Can you tell how excited they were?

We took my car down and Carson loves being able to sit in the very back on his own! When we got to the zoo, it was way more crowded then we had anticipated, but we were there, so we jumped in. Thankfully once we got in the zoo, it really wasn’t that bad. It was more like everyone got there at the same time. Cody was tired so he didn’t want to walk. We didn’t take the stroller since we figured that he would, because he likes to do whatever big brother does. Carson loved carrying the map and navigating the zoo. We saw the elephants first (my favorite). As soon as Cody as it he said, “Woah. Big.” He really liked the elephants and wanted to just stay there. We convinced him that there was a lot more to see and we could always come back and see the elephants again. At this point Dad and I were able to convince him to walk holding both of our hands so that he could swing. We checked out the Rhinos, which were Carson’s favorites. Then we went to the sea lions. They were doing their presentation so they were doing all sorts of tricks. Cody especially liked going in the building where he could sit against the glass. One sea lion kept swimming right by the glass. He was so happy! Carson kept us moving along to see more and more animals. Cody wasn’t impressed with the grizzly bears. When we were checking them out, he said "don’t like it.” After this Carson really wanted to go check out the playground and splash pad. He kept climbing a tower and going down a slide and loved it. When Cody saw the water and the kids playing in it, he got right down and went over to start stomping in puddles! He loved it. He completely soaked his shoes and socks, but he didn’t seem to mind at all. Carson joined him in the water for a little bit and then we decided to get something to eat and give the boys a chance to dry out. Dad and I carried Cody since he didn’t have any shoes or socks on. We got a great pizza for lunch and the boys must have been hungry!

Mom got tickets for the carousel, which Carson wanted to go on. He and grandma went together while Grandpa took Cody. I took pictures for them. Carson liked it, but he didn’t want to sit on any of the animals, he just sat on the bench on it. Cody didn’t like it and Grandpa ended up just holding him for most of it.

 

We got to see the new baby Amour Leopards, monkeys and so much more. When we went to the small animal house, Cody kept asking to hold anything that was small and cute. He would put out his hands and say “I hold it.” When we told him that he couldn’t, he would say, “cute”. He did this with the meerkats, small monkeys and really anything soft and fluffy that was smaller than him. Carson loved finding all of the snakes there. 

We went to see the giraffes before heading over to the train. Grandma Trish bought the boys the opportunity to feed the giraffe. I had never been that close to the head of a giraffe before and I guess I had never truly understood just how big they were. Their eyes are huge!! Carson was so excited to feed it, until they handed him the lettuce and said the worst thing that could happen would he that he would get slobbered on.  Then he was not having any of it! He stood near by while Cody and Grandma fed it. Yes Cody even fed the giraffe. When he was done he kept giggling and telling us that the giraffe licked his hand! It must have made an impression, because when we went to the gift shop, he was only interested in the giraffe stuffed animals.

The boys really wanted to go on the train and we had to wait in line about a half hour. They were so excited. The loved the little train ride and when we got off, we went to get the boys something at the shop and head home. Carson picked out a huge stuffed snake while Cody ended up with a stuffed giraffe. He snuggled it and kept saying how cute it was. Finally something he could hold!

Cody slept a good part of the way home. Carson had quite a bit of energy being pent up in the car, so it made for a long drive for me. We had a lot of fun and the boys seemed to have a great time too!

Long Overdue Update

I got to go to a preschool field trip with Carson. It was their trip to the Smithfield Fire Station. It was pretty cool and those kids got to see some really neat stuff, learn a lot and meet some cool fireman. They even got a turn to each spray the firehouse to knock over cones!
 

 
I had my last appointment with my current endocrinologist. He retired and so next year I will be seeing someone else. He was very pleased with my progress and hugged me while telling me how proud of me he was!

The last few months with Carson have been very difficult. We should start to see an improvement now that steps are being taken to help him. Cody has become quite the tease and is in the stage of testing limits. He also gets into everything, which Carson really didn’t do. We spend time playing, going on walks and taking trips to the “fish store”, Pepperidge Farm.  One of Carson’s favorite things to do with me right now is playing Super Mario on the Wii. However, this won’t last long as he is already a lot better than me at it! For Mothers’ Day, Carson wanted to make something for his mom. So we pulled out my scrapbook paper and a tutorial and we made this. Then he drew sweet pictures on the outside for his mom!

Cody had his 2nd birthday on the 8th of May. He insists that he is 5 now though.  I got him a Mickey Mouse DVD and toy. After work we went over to his house to have cake and ice cream. He loved that we all sang Happy Birthday and wanted us to keep singing it to him. He also had to show us the sandbox his parents made him for his birthday! This little boy is mischievous! The boys like to go to Pepperidge Farm with me and they usually get to walk out with goldfish crackers, so they call it the fish store. We went one day and I opened the crackers for the boys to eat on the way home. As I was turning onto the road, I heard something hit my window. It was a goldfish cracker from the backseat. Code was giggling and when I got him out of the car when we got home, I discovered the entire carton of fish was all over my car. As I cleaned them up I felt I was being taunted by their little smiles….

 

The boys want to be outside every chance they get, which means that I am getting out a lot. I don’t care to be out there, especially if it is at all warm, but it is good for them and it is good for me. My doctor keeps telling me to keep those boys around since they get me outside!
 

Since in the Spring Ipaco has extended Saturday hours and we are busier, I work 6 days a week. I really don’t like giving up my Saturdays, but I do like the money it provides. Chase started working with my cousin Chris Peck and Shiloh Peck. He seems to really enjoy it even though he is often pretty worn out when he gets home.

On Memorial Day we had our annual Griffiths family breakfast at Willow Park. It is always so nice to visit with family and I always look forward to Grandma Andersen’s hot chocolate and fruit syrup!