field day

field day started outside at the track.....

..... {hugs for a teammate} {fraternizing with the enemy}

.....

field day was moved into the gym (can you say Advil?).....

.....

{hippity hop relay race -

Carly took them from third to first -

they ended up winning 2nd}

{Carly with her ribbon}

Carly's tug-a-war team won a couple of rounds but ended up in third place. There was a little disappointment because even though other events had third, fourth, and even fifth place ribbons, they did not give out third place ribbons for tug-a-war. what? was that a way to save a couple of cents? All you ask for is consistency.

reading campout

Just imagine being given the chance to stay

in your pajamas all day and read -

not just given the chance but told that is what you are to do today and to be encouraged by everyone to have fun and enjoy yourself.

{all cozy with pillow and pajamas}

{staking out camp out spots - look at all that pink}

{fun day with friends}

{list of things to bring today:

blanket/sleeping bag, pillow, stuffed animal,

flashlight, bag of snacks, and

lots and lots of books}

wordless wednesday

march and april reads

Italy travel got in the way of a book post last month,

so here is 2 months worth of reading....

• Back Spin by Harlan Coben

This is the next in the Myron Bolitar series. I took it with me to Italy mostly to read on the airplane. Light, amusing, fun reading. The back of the book described it as a novel that "crackles with wit and suspense". Okay even that is funny.

• Pandora's Daughter by Iris Johansan

Suspenseful and full of twists and turns but a little too much super-natural for my taste. It was about decedents of a medieval family which have "powers" and the bad guy who wants to rid the world of the "freaks" because they "made" his son go mad with their powers. See it even sounds like X-files.

• Tiger Lillie by Lisa Samson

This was a good story with a good mixture of humor, emotion, and a little romance. The story was about 2 sisters, one "Tiger Lillie", whose father is a minister, so there is a hefty dose of religion thrown in. I noticed that another title by this author is "The Church Ladies". Getting a pattern here? Only a couple of months ago, did I start venturing outside my reading "box" so Lisa Samson might be a WELL -known author that I am just discovering. I might try another one by her.

• Drowning Ruth by Christina Schwarz

I found this novel gripping. I zoomed through it, not able to put it down. I just wanted to know what was going to happen and what had happened because the whole book was centered around mysteries from the past. The book was written with continuously changing narration between the 3 main characters as well as using flashbacks. I really liked it.

• Sweet Potato Queen's Guide to Raising Children for Fun and Profit by Jill Conner Brown

Laughed OUT-LOUD. It was hilarious. Yes, sometimes over the top and sometimes crass but FUNNY!

• The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

Huge hype, lots of awards, bestseller lists - so when I saw it at my used book store, I picked it up. I didn't love it so much. It was okay and I finished it. But nothing to write home about. Like I tell my daughter, that is why there are so many choices because everyone doesn't like the same things.

• Dark Side of the Moon by John Sanford

Vintage Sanford, written much like the prey series but the main character is now Virgil (previously a detective working with Lucas Davenport, the main character in the prey series). Virgil is a cool character that gets a lot "you don't look like a cop". Engaging read with suspense and twists.

guess how many times

we will be stopping by here at this new, very cool playground?

I know today will not be the last time.

.....

{as usual, no fear}

.....

{baseball cleats are not the footwear of choice for climbing}

.....

{"hey mom", "come here", "watch",

"did you see me?", "I bet I can climb this",

"look at me", "mom, this is so cool",

"are you watching?", "see what I can do?",

"it's time already?", "can we come back?",

"one more time"}

Wordless Wednesday

mam mam and the zoo

{MamMam & Carly sitting in a bubble window watching sea lions}

.....

My mom (aka "MamMam") came up for a couple of days.

Friday when she arrived it was gorgeous, and the weather was just screaming for us to do something outside.

So we packed a little cooler, picked Carly up from school and headed to the zoo. I was worried that it might be crowded because of the beautiful weather but nope, it was really quiet.

I have a rule about going to the zoo during April and May. I don't. But that is during the day when the place it packed with end-of-the-year field trippers. We got there about 3:45 and stayed until 6:00 and about had the place to ourselves. Just the way I like it.

Carly likes to be the tour guide. This trip she wanted to show off the polar bears, sea lions, panda bears, otters, gorillas, and hippos. And just like every trip for the past 7.5 years, we ended our trip at the playground.

home alone

Occasionally Kenny goes out of town for hunting or golfing, maybe work. This time he is on a boys' weekend at Talladega for the NASCAR race. Kenny leaving means I get a new sleeping partner. Thank goodness the older she gets the better bed-mate she has become.

Field Trip

Carly's ACT class went on a field trip to the Biology Field Lab at the University of Mississippi. They were exposed to the concept of biology experiments and what the scientists in the lab are studying right now. That was everything from ground water pollution, turkey behaviors in the wild, wild bird migration, to salamander nesting habits. We took a van tour around some of the lab property and listened as the van driver/tour guide provided very interesting information about what goes on at the field lab.

..... Inside at the lab, the kids got to observe up close some experiments that were going on with fire ants. I did not pose the kids for these pictures. It was amazing how interested they were in those ants. I, on the other hand, started feeling a little itchy. I think they would have stayed for hours watching buckets of ants.

..... Carly has really enjoyed participating in her special ACT class this year. ACT stands for Accent on Creative Teaching Program. Carly spends 3 hours a week with this group of 10 other 2nd graders. The program focuses on creativity, thinking, leadership, research and communication skills. I've been excited with the exposure to science Carly is getting and critical thinking skills.

wordless wednesday