DANCING QUEENS!!!

It would appear that the dancing bug has hit our house. Kenyon had been asking very regularly when she could start ballet. I have to admit that I held off a little bit, kind of hoping that she would decide against it. Then I thought I would sign her up for 1 lesson. I was certain that after 1 lesson, she would then decide on her own that ballet was not for her. That backfired on ME!

After a single lesson, Kenyon was IN LOVE! Off we went to the store to buy all the NECESSARY ballet essentials. This included one pink skirt, one pink leotard, 1 pair of ballet shoes, and 1 pair of socks. I opted out of the tights, because I did not want the hassle of trying to get them on Kenyon, knowing that 8 out of 10 times we would be racing out of the door to make it to lessons on time. I only got to watch the first 2 lessons. After that parents are not allowed to watch, as the instructor feels this distracts the kids from learning.

Our little princess is in love with ballet and is preparing for her first recital in December. Funny thing is, I am learning right along with her. I now know first position, and how to hold my arms. I think it is a little late in life for me to become a dancer, but not so for Kenyon. She informed me that when she grew up she was going to be a princess and a ballet dancer. AHHHH...I love the dreams of a 4 1/2 year old.

Thanks to MiMi, Kenyon also has a black ballet outfit. Kenyon attempts to wear this outfit at least once a day. Here she is in our neighbor's backyard playing in ballet gear and running shoes. I think she is on her way to setting a fashion statement!

Kenyon in class. I had to take the picture through the window. She has music, she is wearing pink and she has a wand. Can you say heaven?

Learning 1st position.

On our way to dance class number 2!

Even Ashtyn is getting into the dancing spirit. Well sometimes...Other times she can be found running around half naked, but no matter what she is wearing, she is NEVER wearing shoes.

Playing around the house in their dance gear. Kenyon had just had a hard day's play at school, hence the hair do. I find myself singing Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" when I see this picture of my girls.

IN THE WORDS OF STEVE IRWIN...

A short 1 hour drive from our house sits the Australia Zoo. Home of The Crocodile Hunter. With James being on a week's vacation, or holiday as they call it here, we decided to start the week off with a trip to the home of Steve Irwin. Thanks to our trusty alarm clock (Ashtyn) the house was moving at full speed at 6:20 on a Sunday morning, and by 9:00 we were on our way. Upon pulling into the Zoo, we were met with the above sign. By a little after 10:00 we were in the zoo on a whirlwind trip trying to take it all in in one day.
The handsome guy above is Agro, named because he is very aggressive. Evidently he likes only Cookie, who is his mate (for life). We also found out that he HATES lawnmowers. So much, that he has attacked the mowers and there are now 4 mowing machines at the bottom of his pond. I was surprised at how still and quiet he could be just sitting there. He kept his mouth open the whole time and never once closed his eyes.
Our first show of the day was at the Crocoseum. This is where Steve used to perform his shows as well. Crocodiles are actually very slow land movers, however, they can swim almost as fast as a dolphin. It is amazing to think that these animals have been around since the days of dinosaurs.
Kenyon and Ashtyn both got to feed the elephants. This elephant's name is Bimbo. Poor girl...wonder what she did to get that name. Evidently she is Bindy's (Steve's daughter) favorite.
Ashtyn had more fun feeding the sheep. I am beginning to see 4H in my daughter's future. However...how to explain that we can see plenty of sheep back home in Texas?
Sister bonding moments on a giant turtle. They actually had tortoise's on display. The only pictures we got of them were of their backsides. The tortoise's were over 135 years old, and were the largest in the world.
I think our favorite part of the day was seeing the tigers. The tiger above was having his 3rd birthday the day we were there. They had frozen "treats" in ice blocks for the tigers. These are Sumatran Tigers, found only in Sumatra. As of now there are only 300 left in the wilderness. Tigers are hunted and killed for their skins, and parts of the Tiger are used to make ancient medicines. We learned there are 9 different kinds of tigers, and as of now only 5 are still found in the wilderness.

Brother and Sister Sumatran Tigers.

The Tiger show. This was the male. He did not enjoy playing in the water, and could not be talked into doing something he did not want to do.

However, his sister put on a great show! We were told most tigers love to swim. The handlers played with her and got in the tank with her. The handlers are around the tigers from the day they are born. For the first 3 months of their lives, they are under 24 hour care. The handlers will eat and sleep with them. The tigers have a 2 bedroom house on the premises were they lived as cubs.
We have been traveling with Ashtyn for over 2 years now. We are well aware that she is not necessarily the easiest traveling companion. So, with that in mind, I made over night reservations at a hotel...I mean motel...I mean side of the road, in front of the train tracks, sort of reminded you of Psycho no tell motel! Not to worry though...The Saenz family left our mark. We can trash out any hotel room. After our day at the zoo, we checked into the sleaze bag inn and then went out to get pizza. Nothing like a picnic on the floor...
Kenyon and Ashtyn were most excited about having bunk beds! A little argument about who was sleeping on top (Kenyon won), but at the end of the night it did not matter. Ashtyn fell asleep in our bed and was transferred to her bunk. At 4:53 AM, James and I got a wake up call to find Ashtyn trying to make the climb up into sissy's bed. That was fixed by putting her in bed with us, where she slept till 7:00.
No bathtub at The Bates Motel. Ashtyn made due with a shower and loved every minute of it.
We ended our excursion with a Monday morning stop at a Farmers Market...attached to a gas station. However, we found some great fruit and veggies.
Monday afternoon, safe at home from our trip to see the animals. A little tired, a lot of bedhead, and memories to last a lifetime!

"Excuse me? Why they call you Booger?"

DON'T YOU JUST LOVE THE CUTE THINGS THAT KIDS DO?

Ashtyn...aka..."Booger"

Good thing these feet were clean. Hope they tasted good.

BOWL-ER-AMA!!!!!

Ever had one of those days when you realize you want out of the house, but you have no idea what it is you want to do? Then add the fact that what ever you decide to do also has to entertain a 4 1/2 year old and a 2 year old. At that point your choices become a little limited. Ho-hum...The park - been there, done that. The beach - too COLD at the moment. The Zoo - yea, we've seen it. So, why not BOWL?!

9:45 on a Monday morning found Ginger and myself taking the girls to the local AMF bowling alley. Upon our arrival, we quickly realized we were the only 4 people under the age of 70. Evidently, Monday's are geriatric bowling day. This did prove to work in our favor, as every one stop to stare and admire the 2 cute little girls. We even got Ashtyn in for free. I think the only one of us who was impressed with our all too cute bowling shoes was Kenyon. She LOVED them! Shoes on...time to find some balls. Now, finding a ball that will fit the hands of my girls is impossible, BUT...I did figure out that my girls are strong...bowling with a 6 and 7 pound ball respectively!

Since daddy took bowling in college, our next bowling date will be with him, so he can show us how it is done!

Kenyon dressed the girls for their bowling date!

SOOOOO in LUV with "our" shoes. Who knew they came so small?

Is it just me, or does she look a little drunk? She was actually saying CHEESE!

GO BALL GO!

Big A did grow tired of bowling and decided to enlighten us with her "booty" shaking dance moves. The 80's were the popular music choice at the bowling alley. There is the possibility that Michael Jackson was playing as she was dancing.

Kenyon showing us how to bowl a strike.

This is what bowling scores look like when you let my little darlings help you bowl. It's ok...a good time was had by all!

Team Lunch at "Mackers" after bowling. The girls won some Shrek ears in their packet of apple slices.

My little some ogre!

SYDNEY or BUST!

As usual, when attempting to travel with 2 children and 3 adults, things never start out as planned. When you think about taking a trip, there are a few things that you DO NOT want to happen on the day you leave, or over the course of the trip itself...

1.) Someone is sick when you leave for your trip. (James)

2.)Child falls at school and hurts herself. (Ashtyn)

3.)Someone gets sick while on the trip. (Ginger)

4.)Mom gets an attitude during the course of the trip. (Brandy)

Day of departure adventures:

My poor husband had been fighting a stomach bug and then a head cold prior to us leaving Brisbane. Then, as we are going through security, James gets stopped due to the fact that the x-ray machine picks up a picture of his pocket knife in his carry on bag. James then has to run to the nearest "newstand" buy some stamps and an envelope and mail his knife to himself. (Knife was delivered upon our arrival home!)

Ginger and I drop off girls at school and head to the gym for a quick workout. After a lovely leg workout, we head back to pick up Ashtyn. When we get to her school, the director informs me that "Ashtyn has had an accident" DUH, DUH,DUH!!!! Evidently, Ashtyn was running forward, while facing backwards, and ran into a large wooden post. Post - 1, Ashtyn - 0. Ashtyn ended up with a bleeding top and bottom lip, and a busted gum. BLOOD everywhere. However, Ashtyn did not let that stop her. She continued to play, eat and only cried for only a minute! Post -1,

Ashtyn-1! Ginger and I took her home for lunch and a nap.

At 3:15, taxi arrives to take our brood to the airport. I wake Ashtyn up from her nap, she bumps her mouth on my hand...BLOOD EVERYWHERE!!!! Cup of water, ice and many paper towels later...we are all off in the taxi...airport bound! The girls were angels in the airport and on the plane. Even though the plane was delayed about 45 minutes. We proceeded to have the slowest taxi driver ever from the airport to the hotel, and then played musical beds with the kids trying to get them to bed. At the end of the night it was James and Kenyon in one bed, Ashtyn and I in another bed, and poor Aunt GG on the fold away bed. Not to worry though, because the sleeping arrangements were different each night there.

No alarm clock needed when traveling with Ashtyn. She had us up at 6:30AM, 5:30 AM, 6:30AM, and 6:00AM. Day 1 started off with breakfast at Starbucks and mass quantities of coffee. We walked Circular Quay (pronounced key) and The Rocks. Saw the Opera House, The Syndey Harbour Bridge, The Ice Bar, The Founders of War Bar (oldest pub in Sydney), napped in the hotel and had pizza for dinner. Unfortunately this is also the night Ginger ended up sick, and Saturday morning is the morning Ashtyn decided to wake us up at 5:30AM, which meant that she was ready for a nap at 11:30AM. James and Kenyon went off to explore. After nap, we all rode the ferry to Darling Harbour and visited the Aquarium. Sunday found us back on a ferry headed to Darling Harbour again to explore the shops, International Fan Fest for The World Cup, lunch, train rides, and the largest outdoor McDonalds ever. James and I also got a Sunday afternoon run over The Sydney Harbour Bridge...beautiful views! Monday we returned home, tired but glad that we were able to see the sights. I very quickly fell in love with Sydney and can't wait to go back!

Ginger and I at The Ice Bar. It was a cool place to be. No pun intended! The whole place was made of ice. Chairs, the bar, the decorations, statues... The really fun part was the attire they made you wear. Very attractive overcoats (sized for the big and tall), some ancient Ugg's (also sized for the big and tall). You were only allowed in the bar for 30 minutes, due to the temperature. Tourist trap...but it was worth it!

Kenyon at The Aquarium. She LOVED this mermaid. Yes, we cut Kenyon's hair. She asked for it. It makes her look like an 8 year old and not my cute little 4 year old :(

Yup...Ashtyn doing what she does best...chasing birds. I am still waiting for the day when one poops on her, until then...run for your lives birds!!

This little pub was neat. Ginger and I went in and had a few beers.

The girls riding inside the ferry that took us from The Quay to Darling Harbour. It was a little chilly outside, so we opted for inside rides instead.

International Fan Fest. The World Cup was/is very popular in Australia. They had the big screens set up to play every game live. Too bad the Socceroo's (yes, that is the name of the Australian soccer team) lost their first game to Germany 4-0. And to think...I bought a Socceroo shirt!

Looking back at The Quay.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge. James and I did our Sunday run over the bridge and back again. Amazing views from there.

The family with the Opera House in the background. Planning for the opera house began in the 1940's, with final completion in 1973. The construction stage began in 1959 and the overall cost was 102 million dollars. It was amazing to see up close.

The family with The Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background.

Kangaroos, Koalas, and one little devil.

We have figured out that a main attraction for visitors that come to see us, will be the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Who would not want to see kangaroos, koalas, all sorts of birds, dingoes, and tazmanian devils? Kenyon and I are now the proud new owners of a year long pass to Lone Pine. (Ashtyn is free, at least until she is 3.) Beware family and friends...we will get our money out of these passes, so be prepared to feed some kangaroos and hold a koala!

This time around, we bought some kangaroo food. Needless to say we were a very popular group and easily had our choice of kangaroos to feed. Unfortunately, this also meant we had kangaroo poop to try to avoid. Ashtyn managed to pick up a kangaroo poop pellet and ask me what it was. Washing hands was a must after that.

This guy grabbed a hold of Ginger's arm. Take a look at how tall he is compared to Ashtyn. He was a little aggressive with the food bag. Ginger's food bag looked like it had been attacked by a paper shredder by the time this guy was finished with it.

Me and my girls feeding the roo's. Kenyon walked around to EVERY kangaroo to make sure that each roo got some food. It seemed like she had the never ending bag of food. It took about half an hour for her to give each roo a food pellet.

As you can see, the kangaroos are a big hit with both girls.

Kenyon sitting in front of the geriatric ward. The pin behind her is where they retire koalas that are older than 12 years of age. The oldest koala in captivity lived to be 23 years old, her name was Sarah and she resided at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.

This little guy is a tazmanian devil. I was a little disappointed. Warner Brothers had me expecting a twirling twister of an animal spitting everywhere.

They keep the koalas that are carrying joey's in separate cages. Kenyon spied this little guy inside his mother's pouch. Ginger had to grab a photo. Awwww... :)

It's a Pirate's Life For Me.

Several weekends ago, the girls had their first invite to their first Australian birthday party. As you can see, I am a little behind on getting these pictures posted. A good time was had by the whole family. James took his usual place at the grill, or the bar b que as it is called here. The kids took part in all the party games, and I made sure that I kept one eye on the kids and one eye on the snack/food table.

Kenyon and her little friend Annaka. They make cute little pirates.

Ashtyn has a new favorite face. She is quick to share her "new" look with me when she doesn't like what I say, doesn't like what I do, does not agree with me, or does not get her way...so I pretty much get that look off and on all day.

My little cutie blowing bubbles.

Our little athlete! She can get up to the monkey bars by herself and get all the way across by herself as well.