Dropping AJ Off At Camp

We drove up to Prescott today to drop AJ off at camp. It is 20 degrees cooler there than in Phoenix.  If that isn't a reason to love it there, then I don't know what is.

I am not sure if this is a good sign, but AJ was recognized by the counselor that checked us in. Everything at check in was going well until someone moved a rock that was holding down papers and they all blew all over. But other than that, it was pretty uneventful.  AJ moved up two cabins, so he was happy about that.

AJ's cabin counselor is named AJ as well, so AJ will be going by Alex while he is there, to avoid confusion.

A Small Highlight From Our Drive Up To Camp:

AJ (after about 45 minutes of endless chatter from his brother) Let's play the quiet game.
Charlie: Ok
 (30 seconds of complete silence)
Charlie: How do you play?

I Have My Very Own Garden Gnome

When Charlie and I started this garden, I bought him his own "Go Diego Go!" gardening set. The set included, gloves, kneeling pad, shovel and a rake. We both promptly forgot about them. My thinking was that if he had his own set of tools, he would become more interested in the garden and help. He actually needs no prompting. He is the first one to volunteer to water each day, and look for produce. I found the garden set the other day and Charlie wanted to try them out. I let him dig in the box where the plants did not survive. We even planted some new seeds. I doubt they will grow, but he was happy digging in the dirt.

A Day At The Zoo

AJ, Charlie and I went to the zoo this week with my friends Kelly and Lauren. Kelly has two kids who are right around Charlie's age, so it worked out well. We had a great time.

 Charlie is trying to take a peek at the giraffes.

 This picture is for Gran. A picture with grandkids and giraffes, what could be better!?

 This life-sized  statue scared the day lights out of us. It is situated right when you turn the corner into the exhibit.  You think for second that one of the animals has gotten out.

 A very docile, and beautiful peacock.

 This is Kelly and her daughter, Katie.

 Kelly's son Sam, Charlie and AJ sitting on a giant crocodile statue.

 I am not sure what this ship's wheel, but Charlie liked it and pretended he was a pirate.

 Sam and Charlie walking back from looking at the elephant.

 The boys loved this statue of a orangutan and hammed it up for the camera.

 Charlie is striking a pose.

 They had a really pretty carousal that featured endangered animals. I didn't realize that fire-breathing dragons were endangered, but you always learn something new at the zoo.

 Katie, Kelly and Sam.

 I think the highlight of the trip was the last half hour when we looked at the sting rays. You were allowed to touch them. AJ loved it.

 And then, for some extra money you could actually feed the sting rays. AJ was really the only one in our group who wanted to do it.  Lauren was not a fan of the raw, slimy fish.

A Summer Project

AJ decided to break out the tools he received for Christmas and make a birdhouse. It was from a kit, so there was no sawing involved. But the corners are square and it is well built. He is very proud of it and can't wait to hang it in the yard. 

Fun Weekend

Last weekend AJ and got the stomach flu and then he got bronchitis on top of that.  He then shared the stomach flu with me. Our Memorial Day weekend was not that fun, to say the least.  We made up for lost time this weekend.

On Saturday I took the boys to Peter Piper Pizza.  They had fun playing the games and we even saw a friend from Charlie's school there.

On Sunday, we had some pool time which included popsicles and watermelon.

On Sunday night we went to this place called Uptown that just opened a few towns away.  It is in the same complex as our favorite movie theatre.  Uptown was pretty great.  We went bowling, and even had dinner while we bowled. Then, they had an arcade that actually had some really great games. 

The bowling was fun because AJ is actually a really good bowler, and gave Shawn a run for his money.  I embarrassed myself fully with my bowling abilities. 

I don't know if you know this about Charlie, but the kid loves music and he loves to dance.  I wish I had video of him bowling.  It wasn't enough for Charlie to walk up to the lane.  No, he had to dance his way up and then dance his way back. Then, he would attempt to breakdance next to our table.  At least he kept the other patrons and the waitstaff entertained. 

As I mentioned before, they had some very cool games at this arcade.  One of them was Fruit Ninjas which Charlie plays on the iPad all the time. He loved this life-sized one.

The biggest hit was this racing game.  You could pick which city you wanted to race in and then you got to race your motorcycle around that city.  I think Charlie played it 3 times.  I am not going to say he was a bad driver, but I am glad he was wearing a helmet.

It Only Took Five Months. . .

but Charlie is finally interested in the bike Santa brought him at Christmas.

He didn't want any pictures taken, so these were taken with with my awesome stealth abilities.