Circus Circus!

And the circus was in town once again! 
This was another of "Ramsey's Firsts", as he had never been to the circus before.   Last year, Eric and I were in Cabo and the year before that, he was two and we didn't think he'd sit for too much of it.

Eric, Ramsey, and I ventured out on Friday to the Shrine Circus.  It started off well, as the first thing we ran into when we arrived was a concession stand selling nothing but light-up swords, staffs, blasters, and other crazy fun toys.   Ramsey scored a sword and a blaster, so he was happy.

 When we sat down, they had pony and elephant rides set up.  My heart sunk, thinking we should have went inside earlier so Ramsey could get a ride.  Bummer.

 When the show started, everyone waved their light-up toys and the place went wild.  Admittedly, I got a little excited.

 The disco ball made the entire place glitter like sequins.  

 The first act after all of the chaos was the tiger act which included three regular tigers and one white tiger.  The white tiger seemed to be there "just for looks", as he didn't do much, but sit on his stool.  He was one cool cat though!

There were also many aerial acts (no trapeze).

 And a contortionist/balancer who shot a balloon with a bow and arrow, using her feet.

 Many juggling acts were spread out through the show.  Ramsey really liked the jugglers (he's always asking Daddy to juggle the dryer balls at home!).

At intermission, there was the usual reprieve and we had another opportunity to get Ramsey an animal ride.  Before we went to the floor, we'd asked Ramsey if he'd rather ride the ponies or the elephants.  No question, he wanted a pony ride.

When we got to the main level (omigosh, what a madhouse CLUSTER down there! ugh!), I wanted to show him the elephants close-up, so he could see what marvelous beautiful creatures they were.  I asked him again if he'd rather have a pony ride or an elephant ride.  With a spirited answer, he had changed his mind and wanted the elephant ride!  So, off we went to stand in line to get a ticket.... then stand in line to get into the elephant line.  Oye.

He stood so well in the lines (I marveled, thinking he'd be a crazy man) and I was very proud of his behavior.   We met a little boy and a little girl in line and he made quick friends with them.  He was able to ride behind them on the elephant.

They only went around two times, but Ramsey enjoyed it so much!  I was a bit shocked that he didn't squirm or feel fearful at all; it's quite high up there!

 The elephants were beautiful creatures.

 After intermission, the elephant act was on stage.

 There were more jugglers and aerial acts, then the grand finale, the "Sphere of Death".  Ramsey called it "The Death Star" (like in Star Wars).  He took his blaster and was "shooting the Death Star down" like Luke Skywalker.  As the motorcycles revved their engines, Ramsey had to put on his earphones, as he has a low tolerance for that much noise.

 They had two, then three, then four motorcycles in that tiny orb.  At one point, Ramsey took his glasses and put them down on his nose, looking at the act over the top of his spectacles (like a little old man!) in amazement and was like "whoah".

Another great first for Ramsey.  It's so heart-warming and fun to watch Ramsey with each new enjoyable experience.  Loved it!

Eating Icicles in the Winter Time

Ok, so technically, it's "Spring", but it's still chilly outside and there's still snow everywhere (with more coming soon, so Mr. Weatherman says).

I've always had a "thing" for ice cream in the middle of winter.  It might sound strange, but a big ol' bowl of cold ice cream, snuggled under a warm fuzzy blanket is pure heaven!   It seems that the boys have a deviated version of that too.

Connor made popsicles for himself and his little brother the other day.   He has taken a cooking class in school, but, thus far, these are the the only things he has made around here (other than a sandwich when he's in a pinch).  And, technically, the ones he made here should be called icicles because they're just frozen water!    Later, he did decide to freeze some Diet Coke too, so that added a bit of creativity.

Connor loves them.  Ramsey now loves them.  And, as you can see from the pictures, Riggs loves them (oddly, he's a huge fan of ice cubes), as he was sitting there begging for one the entire time they were slurping.

"Cheers!" says Ramsey. 

Meeting The Easter Bunny

We had quite a surprise on Sunday, during our weekly trip to Walmart (other than the hefty bill at the check-out!).  This was actually a fun surprise; we ran into The Easter Bunny!   Mr. Bunny gave him a cute little bunny sticker which Ramsey proudly displayed on his lapel.

After we left the Easter Bunny and his helper and moved on down the aisle, Ramsey told me, "Hey, that Easter Bunny is ingenious!"  I asked "why" and then he said, "Mom, what does ingenious mean?"

We actually crossed paths with the famous rabbit three times.  When Ramsey saw him in the store thereafter, he called out, "Hey Easter Bunny!  Hiiiii!!!" and gave him a thumbs-up.

Snow Much MORE Fun

We were so glad to have another beautifully sunny weekend in the mid 30s, with little wind.  The days and outside winter play were even more perfect because Connor was with us!

Before sledding, Ramsey needed to make snow angels; a total staple for snow playtime.

 Then, Connor had to take the first trip down our [awesome] front yard hill, in order to make a pathway for the rest of the sledding.

 Riggs was so excited, he raced down the hill with Connor too.  Ramsey met them both at the bottom.

Here was the boys' first trip down the hill together.  And, incidentally, Ramsey's first trip down the hill on a "big kid sled", not the old toddler/baby sled.  He was so excited (and brave!).

 Connor was so sweet.  He helped Ramsey up the hill the first few times, holding his hand while they trudged through the deep snow.   I helped Ramsey later so that Connor could get some solo flights (literally - he did catch air a few times!), in between.

They had a lot more trips together, laughing the entire time.

 Here's one of Connor's solo trips, with Riggsy by his side the entire time.

On another one of Connor's trips, Riggs was seemingly trying to hinder him from blasting down the hill.  He was plowing up the snow behind Connor.   Riggs was getting so wild that Eric had to take him inside so the boys could continue sledding.

 After one of the sled rides, we saw a very peculiar thing; a little blue airplane swooped down from the sky.  It was getting so low to the lake that we thought they may be in trouble, having to make an emergency landing.  The plane came within just a few feet of the snow-covered lake, stayed there for a while, then soared back up into the sky.  And, that was the last that we saw of it.  Very. Strange.  ...guess they were just messin' around!

After about an hour, Ramsey decided it was time for him to go inside and warm up; his poor little hands were so cold!  Connor was going to stay out for a little while longer for some additional solo trips, knowing this could possibly be the last time he could sled until next winter.

 On the way into the house, I happened to spy this very odd-shaped icicle cluster.  It was on the side of the house, under the eve spout.  Totally off-topic, but I thought it was neat.

 Connor messed around, going down the hill backwards, sideways, and even tried going down standing up (too steep for my taste - yikes!).

 And, after a fun afternoon of sun, snow, and fun, the boys requested hot cocoa.  Yum.

What's a Kid to Do?

We had quite a dumping of snow the last few days.   I don't know how much, but I'd guess about 10+ inches.  Much of the early snowfall was "the wet stuff", melting before it could accumulate.    The school-aged kids had it made; no school for two days!

The snow continued on Wednesday, but it had been the nice white fluffy kind coming down since Tuesday afternoon.   It was bittersweet really; love the snow but it had made for very poor travel for everyone!

No school/no travel also meant no Nana Karen to take care of Ramsey while I worked.  Eric came home at noon on Monday (unsure that if he didn't leave then, he wouldn't make it home that evening!), so he and Ramsey hung out that afternoon.   Thereafter, I had relocated my "office" to the kitchen counter.

So, for the remainder of the week, what's a 4-year-old to do when Mom's busy working 8 to 5 (or more like 6 PM) ?

1.  Hang out in PJ's... all day (um, not much different than normal! ha!)
2. Fill the dishwasher (totally his idea, though I can't say as I minded the help!)

3.  Play toys; mainly Legos, kinetic sand, Duplo blocks, and a little bit of Kindle time.

 I was pleasantly surprised with some of Ramsey's creations.  He made towers, houses, and hover crafts for his Star Wars guys.  His creations were symmetrical and very precise!

Plus a family, made out of Duplos.  He said that they had helmets on.

4.  Sing and hum while playing.   (He stayed by my side much of the time as I worked).  "Bad Romance" by Lady GaGa is the song of choice in the video below:

I also have a rendition of him squealing (I mean SINGING) the Star Wars theme song.  For those with sensitive ears, I chose to omit it.

I was very impressed with how well he played so nicely by himself for the week.  I'm also happy that my boss has a good sense of humor and is understanding!  :-) 

We had a good week!

Snow Much Fun!

I'm having "snow much fun", Ramsey said numerous times last Saturday.  (That's his creative little pun!)

The weather was in the upper 30s, the sun was shining, we had a nice blanket of winter beautiful white stuff on the ground from a recent snow, and there didn't happen to be much wind.  

It was probably the second day all year where the stars had aligned, making it a perfect day for playing outside, sledding and having tons of winter fun!  

 Of course, snow angel-making was top priority.

 Making snowmen was also high on the list.  This was actually the very first time Ramsey had ever made a real snowman.  The snow was ideal for sculpting.   Riggs found that those large balls of snow were also fun to plow through!  We made some of them more than once.  :-)

 General frolicking and jumping made the top of our SNOW MUCH FUN list.

 Since the hill on the front (east) side of the house is SO long and steep (and Mom had to escort Ramsey up the hill each time, as the designated sled carrier), we decided to sled on the slope to the north instead.  It's nice to have options!

 It was the perfect distance and grade for a beginning sledder.  And, enough to give me a work-out, without killing me.  ha!

 And what would a winter day be without throwing snowballs?  

 I hope we can have a few more days like this yet this month!