Oddly Familiar

Okay, I know I already posted about this but I was playing around with Animoto and these were my most recent photos. They must be posted - at least there are five new photos. Besides, the song is "Elusive Butterfly." I don't think this is what the artist had in mind but I could not resist.

Wildlife Encounters

Yesterday was a jam-packed day but the best part was at a sanctuary in our neighborhood: Heron Haven. It was their big fall event with activities throughout the day. We made it just in time for the wildlife encounter. Joshua was called up first to help and had these...placed on his shoulders. I wish I'd had my camera because his face was priceless. We heard all about the Madagascar hissing cockroaches and their importance in the world while we watched them hang out and crawl around on Joshua's shoulders.

When Noah was chosen to help his surprise animal was much cuter:
He got to hold the kinkajou (also known as a honey bear) while it ate fruit loops out of his hand. I could have done that.

There was also an alligator, giant boa, scorpion, African Serval and a Fennec fox (smallest fox). It was interesting to see and hear about some animals we hadn't seen before.

After the wild animals the boys enjoyed time in the butterfly tent.

We didn't have time to walk any trails. Hopefully we can make it back before the snow hits. I think this would be a fabulous activity with cousins!

Neverending Questions

Saved by the Discovery channel....I thought.

I only have a couple of weekends left to finish up my coursework. This means that the boys have been free to do just about anything while I'm studying on the weekends. This meant that last Saturday they enjoyed killer/danger day on the Discovery channel. First up, Killer Ants. Followed by Killer Jellyfish, Worlds Most Dangerous Animals and other deadly titles.

After watching Killer Jellyfish Joshua has been rethinking his "diver" career path. The Killer Jellyfish program has sparked much discussion at our house and has led to even more questions about the killer jellyfish. All of which Noah has posed to me. When I was unable to answer his questions and grew more frustrated with each one, I finally asked why he thought I would know this. (He did just watch the program, not me!) He replied, "Because you've been to high school." Oh yeah, how could I have forgotten the jellyfish elective???

This is when I realized I'm taking the wrong classes. Instead of improving on my 21st century literacy skills I should have been focused on all things deadly. Maybe there is a class designed to answer all of Noah's questions. Better yet, I need a class that teaches me how to breath through all of the questions without coming unglued by question #937 of the day - the kid asks A LOT of questions!

They often sound like real questions:

Noah: Do you think it's better to be a teacher or an astronaut?
Me: Teacher?

But just when you think you're going to learn something insightful they take a turn to the 9 year old boy side:

Noah: I think an astronaut because then when you hurl it would just float out into space until it hit something. That would be so cool!

I fall for it every time.

Just when I think I can't take one more question, musing or revelation though, I remember that it won't be forever. As hard as it is to picture now, I know at some point he will start talking more to his friends then to me. It's inevitable. Just thinking about it now makes me a little sad. So, I'm going to embrace the questions and engage in the dialogue that is being so desperately sought (unless it's about my driving). We'll start here which I'm sure will lead to more questions and quandaries.