More Weekend Activities

The weather was great for this hike on a mesa in Rockville. Guy stayed hydrated with Jack's water pack.

Guy thought the rock looked like sea animals.

This rock was part of a whale.

This rock had gills like a shark.

Now he is in an eyeball.

We collected a lot of petrified wood.

Guy wants to send some to each of his grandparents.

 

Last weekend we went to a bike rodeo. Guy and his friend Joshua rode 4.25 miles on their bikes! They got t-shirts and Guy got a new spider helmet.

When Guy grows up he wants to be a police officer who rides a bicycle.

Pond Project

When we moved into our house, a corner of the backyard was made into a pond. The previous owners took the pump to the pond, so it no longer worked. It was also very deep and we were afraid the kids would drown in it. I rented a pump and pumped out the rain water that had accumulated.

Guy was eager to help with demolition.

I then rented a roto hammer thinking I could drill holes into the bottom of the pond for drainage. The concrete was much thicker than I anticipated and it didn't work. When I let go of the trigger after drilling my first hole, I also relaxed my grip and the whole drill spun around and slammed into my arm.

(Guy took this picture for me.)

Next we rented a jackhammer. I enlisted Jack's help this time. We hoped to break up chunks of concrete at the bottom, but this also did not work.

We had to bust up ALL of the concrete. Jack used the jackhammer for 2 hours one evening and I used it for an hour the next morning.

I moved the chunks of concrete to cut the liner underneath. Then I filled the pond with the concrete pieces and dirt from the hill behind the pond. I was able to take the project this far.

We hired a landscaper to put in curbing, 3 trees, and to fill the hole with sand. I added some plants and the pond has been transformed into a sand pit.

It is nice to have a backyard the kids can play in without worry.

Busy Saturday

We were busy this Saturday. I competed in my first 5K of the year. I am mad that I didn't push myself a little harder. My time was 25:19. I was the 20th woman and 4th place in the 30-34 age group. It wasn't my best time, but it wasn't as bad as I was expecting.

I ran home (literally, the race was through our neighborhood) to take Guy to soccer. He is taking a soccer fundamentals class. Sloan enjoyed watching with snacks from her stroller.

             

When soccer was over, Jack took off to ride his bike and I took the kids fishing. A local shop provided fishing rods and bait. We saw a boy catch a fish and Guy and I had the following conversation:

Shannon: Can a fish live out of water?

Guy: No

Shannon: That boy has a choice. He can look at the fish and then put it back into the water or he can take it home, cook it and eat it.

Guy: Disgusted look

Shannon: If you catch a fish, what do you want to do with it?

Guy: Put it back in the water.

Later on Guy: I want to take it home and put it in my fish tank.

Guy and I were sad to leave with out catching a fish after 2 hours, so we finished the afternoon with some frozen yogurt.

Note that Guy is wearing his Superman shirt again.

Easter

We went to at least 5 Easter egg hunts the week of Easter. Guy had soccer, so we were late to the neighborhood egg hunt. I made it up to the kids by helping them decorate their bikes so they could win a prize. They got first and second place.

The park cleared out fast when the candy and eggs were gone. Sloan's favorite park toy is this bouncy frog. Guy bounced on the duck at the other end.

Then we went to the city Easter egg hunt. They rope off areas and throw out candy and eggs for the kids to run for. Sloan loves suckers! This is Guy's favorite shirt and it is hard to get him to wear anything else.

On Easter Sunday I went for a quick run while Jack fed the kids breakfast. I hid eggs in our backyard before going back into the house. We had to encourage Guy to hurry up before Sloan grabbed all of the eggs.

They found their Easter baskets in the big bathtub. Guy couldn't believe the Easter Bunny knew he wanted an Iron Man costume. Sloan just wanted the chocolate. Their cousins Cody and Ella sent homemade Easter cards and awesome Superman patches. Guy insisted I pin one onto his pajamas immediately. Grandma Peggy also sent Easter cards.

 

We went to the Tuacahn Ampitheatre for Easter service. It was a very nice setting.

Jack went with friends on a mountain bike ride after lunch while the kids took naps. Gorgeous! (Jack, the bike, or the view?)