another Zoo

This time we went to Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

Elena learned that she is as tall as a polar bear cub. She loved the belugas and got a mommy and baby figurine to play with. When we went to the underwater viewing, we could hear them talking to us. Elena says they were welcoming us to the zoo.
We caught 3 shows - fish feeding, wild wonders, and belugas. The wild wonders show was amazing with birds flying low right over our heads. Elena thought the wild wonders show was really funny and the beluga show was good.
We also saw penguins, reindeer, a stinky muskox, polar bears, meercats, and elephants. No bats though... Before leaving, she rode the carousel twice. Riding the mermaid horse was her favorite.

Here are a couple beluga videos we took.

Elena's great idea (she actually has a lot of "great ideas"...)

Let's sit on Daddy! Now let's sit on me!

Gymnastics at Sky Valley

Elena has Olympic fever! After watching the gymnastics events, Elena has decided she wants to give it a try. We signed her up for a trial class and she loved it! She wanted to stay past the hour and play some more. Now she is signed up for classes on Tuesday afternoon (right after preschool) starting in September. Here are some videos of her class - one of her following the warm-up course and one of her on the trampoline.

the Zoo

Grandma had a great idea - going to the Woodland Park Zoo! We took Zachary and Mommy too. It was a little wet, but I wore my raincoat. We saw the flamingo exhibit and can't wait to see the new penguin area next summer. My hand isn't as big as a hippo foot. Not even close. I liked seeing the hippos hiding in the water and the zebras and gazelles were fun too.
This little fox is the same color as Auntie Tracy's Gizmo! Isn't he cute?
I rode the carousel two times. The carousel ponies have names - I rode on Robbie and That's Our Boy. Mommy and Grandma took turns riding with me.
We saw the farm animals too. The cows were stinky! And the fat fat piggies!
My favorite was the night house and I went through 4 times to see the bats! I want to sit outside and look for bats at my house or at the River House. I also really liked looking at the map and deciding where we would go and how we would get there. I liked the gift shop and otters too, but didn't like it when I spilled hot chocolate on my legs...

Mommy says we can go back to the zoo soon since we didn't make it to the elephants or monkeys. Maybe Grandma can come then too.

Love, Elena

Sophia turns 4!

It was a pony party! Sophia had 3 ponies come to her house and give rides to all the little ones. This little one is just for petting.Here's Elena on the unicorn.
Elena had to ride each of the ponies, so here she is on the pink one.
And what's a party without cake??? A pink pony cake made with raspberries fresh from the garden - yum!
Elena kept busy at the party bouncing on Sophia's trampoline, hiding from Sophia's new Great Dane puppy named Fluffy (a birthday present), running around with all the little girls, playing quietly with Sophia's toys, and eating the delicious buffet. Thanks for including us in the celebration!

Making a book

Elena got a pony book kit (from Nana and PopPop I think) that she worked on yesterday. There's a story all about horses that she colored and embellished with rhinestones and foam shapes.She worked really hard on it and had fun coloring backgrounds for the horses.
Next time you come over maybe she'll read it with you! Or at least tell you her inspiration for behind the final project - she loves giving details...

Spending her money

Elena spent her money on this zebra purse then she took a picture of it. She was very excited to buy it with Auntie at the outlet mall. Elena will treat it more like a stuffed animal than an actual purse... What kind of look is that, Elena?

Gizmo's visit

Gizmo got to visit Grandma's house. Cody picked some blueberries for them to enjoy together. Yes, both dogs are eating blueberries - crazy. Elena was fascinated by the little dog, but also a little nervous. The puppy was a little more interested in her than she would have liked... She made sure he didn't get her toys though and always put her stuffed ponies on the counters!

Gizmo loved visiting Grandma's house because Auntie's Rai has her own toy box full of toys to share!

Weigh in!

Everyone to the vet!

Whitto 17lbs 9oz - Fat Whitto needs to go on a diet!

Warrick 13lbs 4oz - Poor kitty had some owies that required his face getting shaved and a dose of antibiotics. The vet guessed another cat put Warrick's head in their mouth.

Cody 114lbs - So noisy he had to go in the back room and get muzzled for his exam.

Kiddos to the doctor!

Elena 45lbs 6oz - She's 44" tall, but we measured that at Target.

Zachary 13lbs - See his 2 month update here.

Hot Stuff

Here's Elena thinking she's hot stuff sitting in the passenger seat wearing Mommy's sunglasses. Big smile!
She loves sharing the fact that her swimsuit and shoes match - they both have the same palm tree sunset scene.

Busy with Grandpa

During the river house visit, Grandpa and Elena found activities to do together. Bike riding was one of them. Elena did great on the flat roads in the neighborhood. Grandpa enlisted Elena's help in making coasters. He placed some mushroom stamps on coasters and Elena painted on the sealant.