goochland farm tours

There was another reason that enticed Isabela to go with us to Touch A Truck last Saturday....the Goochland Farm Tours.  Six farms opened their doors to the public for the day...a llama farm, two horse farms, a dairy farm, a beef farm, and the farmer's market.  And if you read this blog, you know we love to visit farms.

The llama farm was first, of course.  We were probably there for an hour...and Isabela can tell you ALL about them....ask her about 'junior girls' and she'll have a lot to say.


Feeding them was the most fun...although I didn't want to.  Did you know llamas have no top teeth?  That way they can't bite you.  This one was about five weeks old, I think.



The farm hand led us out to the field and we were surrounded.  They're pretty skiddish, though, so nothing to worry about.  Isabela led them around like she worked there.



It looks like these two are hugging, doesn't it?  So sweet.   (But really they were fighting/playing.)  Apparently there's a lot of money in selling alpacas...some cost as much as $300,000 depending on their color.  Wow!



And this is why I remember I don't like farms. Spiderwebs.



Next, we headed off to a horse farm.  Diego's favorite part was jumping off this mounting stand, as Isabela named it.



Most of the horses were in their stalls.  Diego told our tour guide,  "You sure have a lot of horses."  This ranch specialized in breeding and medical care.



Whoa...that's a big wall of hay.



Diego wasn't so interested in the horses...just enough to wave and say hi to them, then went on his way.



We went out to the fields to see the stallions.  Do you know what a stallion is?  I asked.  Oops.  Anyway, here's Isabela feeding one...apparently they can be quite temperamental and there were danger signs around the fences.  But a carrot makes them happy.



We didn't get to the other farms because we ran out of time.  But it was a great way to spend a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

truck yeah

This past weekend was our first time ever to Touch A Truck.

My own two words of advice for any activity that takes place in Richmond...."GO EARLY."



We got there about ten minutes before it officially started.  There were barely any kids there!  We were climbing on these trucks with no line.



Contrast that with when we left...all lines were at least 15 deep.  Who wants to wait that long to sit on a truck for 10 seconds while those still waiting glare at how long you're taking?



This boy was in heaven!  Every night before bed, we read My Big Truck Book, at least once.  He knew all these trucks by heart.



The monster truck is one of his favorites...although this one wasn't as monster as the ones he's seen in the books.



To see him so excited...trying to contain it...was priceless.



Isabela reluctantly had to go along with us.  It was either that, or sit at Joaquin's soccer game.  She acted way too cool for most of it, but there were some things that caught her eye.

This is one of those surveyor scopes...just like a telescope!



We got to see the chopper land, too.  All the parents rushed their kids over to see it as the wind whipped dirt into their little eyes.  We used the Coke truck as a barrier to the wind....



...and then realized everyone had ran over to the helicopter, so we really had the run of the place.  Going up on the Coke truckbed was definitely a highlight.



Diego really did touch some of the vehicles.  He seemed to have a quiet moment with this digger.



Our longest wait was for this fire hose game....Isabela's idea....and she would make a great firefighter!



I'm glad we didn't miss this.  Bringing kids' books to life...there's nothing better.

TRUCK YEAH!

pipiripi

One thing that never fails to entertain us in La Paz are the parks.  They are always so different than our own and very exciting...and normally, slightly dangerous.

Here we are on our way to Pipiripi, which is like a children's museum, full of fun games and activities for kids.
But this is just the sidewalk along the street.  The kids asked their uncle what those bars were for, and he said they were for skateboarders.  Can you imagine?  I didn't ever see any skateboarders on it.  The kids walked along it...and yes, Isabela fell off and hurt her elbow on the sidewalk.  I'm glad we didn't have a skateboard around, or I know someone who would have wanted to try it.



To get to Pipiripi,  you have to climb the steps to that yellow elevator, then ride it up the mountain.  Always an adventure in Bolivia!



A lot of the games inside are 'old-fashioned'.  The boys took a little time to play soccer with a handmade ball.  It's definitely more fun with a real one.



Joaquin and his cousin played this soccer game with little bottle caps.



And bubbles are always a hit with Diego.  The cut-off water bottles make huge bubbles!



Juan Pablo wrote me a little message with the hanging words...something about wanting a beso.  How sweet!



There was also an arts and crafts area...picture frames made from recycled newspaper and cardboard.
Joaquin wanted to get creative and make something completely different, but the teachers were a little stingy and wouldn't let him.  Strictly picture frames there.

Isabela is hiding her lips because she had the WORST chapped lips almost the whole time we were there.  We must have bought five chap sticks, but they kept disappearing.  It finally got better when we got home.



And here's a view on the way down.  What do you think?

tiwanaku

Our big vacation this summer was to Bolivia...three and half weeks.  And while my intentions were to have us visit lots of places we'd never been to in our many trips there, I was pretty sick the whole time, which put a huge damper on us doing lots of fun stuff.

But one place we did get to was Tiwanaku, the mysterious ancient ruins located just a short drive from La Paz.

I had read up on a little of the history of it beforehand and tried to share some of the mysteries surrounding the  site with the kids to peak their interest.  Juan Pablo's brother was also able to point out lots of interesting facts and stories to keep them going.  It was a lot of walking in the oppressive Bolivian sun, but definitely worth it.



We saw a sign as soon as we got there about not taking photos of the excavation sites.  What??  Not sure why that would be, but Mariana (Julio's wife) and I were weary of taking lots of pictures, so we tried to hide our cameras and take them when no one was looking.

That's why you see a quick shot of the back of this monolith.



The most amazing part was the accessibility of the entire ancient place.  A simple rope is blocking off the most important structures.



But as you can see here, we were able to run our hands along the rocks to find the smoothest ones.  Some felt almost like silk.  So you can't take pictures, but you can touch it and mess it up with your hands, right?



Part of the Tiwanaku site includes a place called Puma Punku...fun to say and even more mysterious and not to be missed.  Lots of large, heavy stones, cut to perfection...but how?

Here's one of the more amazing ones...a perfectly chiseled line down this hard stone with tiny little holes drilled along it....only... there were no drills back then, were there?



Check out Diego in the back.  He found a long, fluffy piece of grass and started sweeping the dirt path. I thought it was so funny because it's similar to how you'd see people sweeping around the city.



Here's a quick picture I snapped at the park of a broom and dust pan one of the workers was using.



So here he is sweeping around the ruins again.



Somewhere on one of these rocks, there's an image of an elephant type animal.  The mystery...there are obviously no elephants in Bolivia.

Notice how they're leaning on these possibly thousands of years old stones.  Don't touch them!  That would never be allowed here in the states.
(Oh, and check out Diego sweeping in the background.)



And one more to prove I was really there.  Beautiful blue sky, right?!



Get off of those ancient ruins, kids!



If you're interested in learning more about the mysteries surrounding Tiwanaku, it's worth looking up.  There are lots of sites out there that will leave you wondering who built this place, how did they do it, and what happened to them?

eight is great!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

Happy Birthday, Joaquin,
Today you are eight!
It's time to wake up,
September 7th's the date!

Time to flip from the couch
And climb the walls
Time to play hide and seek
And run through the halls.

Ice cream for breakfast,
Cake for lunch,
A box of candy for dinner,
Your favorites to munch.

We'll have lots of fun
Cause there's presents, too.
It's your day, don't forget,
It's all for you!

We love you so much,
Today you are eight!
It's your birthday, Joaquin,
And eight will be great!

by: mom

Have the best birthday ever, Joaquin!  You're amazing!  We love you!

off to school

When I was a kid, I always remember going school clothes shopping with my mom before the start of the new year.  It was sometimes torturous, especially as I got older.  She would want me to try on things I never would have touched.  I resisted, but in the end caved, and was always surprised they looked much better on then when hanging on the hanger.  (Except for those saddle shoes....I never liked the saddle shoes!)
But I don't do that with my kids...I suppose it's for financial reasons.  But whatever the reason, that's how we got to the night before school, and Isabela only had one shirt to choose from.  The rest were either tank tops or long sleeves.  Then we realized she only has one pair of shoes that are not flip-flops.

It made for an easy choice the first day of school, that's for sure.  And while I contemplated running out the night before school to look for some stuff, I knew it would be easier if I just held off until the next day.



Besides, all she cared about was wearing hook earrings.  Of course, hers were lost... so I looked through my tangled mess of a jewelry box and found these.  She was very excited.



And this is something you don't normally see the first day of school.  A smile on Joaquin's face.  Remember last year?  or when the principal had to pull him kicking and screaming from the car the year before?



The plan was Isabela would ride the bus and I'd take Joaquin to school.    Taking them to school and picking them up is one of my favorite things...it's extra time in the car to talk and find out about their day.



We were out there early and turned it into a family affair.  I love how Kitty even comes down to wait for the bus with us.  She always keeps her distance from Diego though.  Poor thing, all he wants is to hug her and pet her and just when he reaches out and is about touch her...she leaps away.

So the bus pulls up and I get in a quick question with the driver as Joaquin says, "Mom, I'm just going to ride the bus."  And like that, they were gone.

I came back in a little sad....it all happened so fast.  I thought we'd have the drive to school.

But I'm lucky...I've got one left to cuddle with.  For Diego, it's business as usual...just him and me and a grand ol' time.


ps.  Diego and I hit Target and got a handful of t-shirts on sale, girls, size 10-12.  She ready to go now.

unsupervised

Oops.



Really, he wasn't unsupervised.  His brother and sister were in the same room.  In their defense, he really can be very quiet when he's doing something naughty.

In comes Diego and plops down next to me on the couch.  I didn't even notice at first, his leg was bent under him in some weird angle.

But when I saw it, I thought he had hair all over his leg!

His story, of course, is much better.  I'll let him tell it.



Moral of this story:  Beware of raptors with sharpie pens.