Return to the Zoo

In mid-July we went back to the Houston Zoo with just Addison. It was pretty hot out, and we didn't think Kara would be able to make it out there all day in the heat. Kelly's company was having a get-together there with other survey companies as members of this organization whose name I forget.













This guy below was a very rare type of fox. He moved super fast and was very hard for me to get a picture of.
Addison had a great time looking at the animals, but as usual she loved the slides there the best.


Slide Movie


They also had a small water park which consisted of mainly sprayers on fake palm trees and other items. Addison had a good time, however, I kept thinking of the sanitary implications the whole time we were there. The reason this came up was there was a baby who was playing among the other kids in the water his diaper. Not a swim diaper, but a regular diaper! I kept a close watch on Addison here as there were a bunch of older kids going nutso and I didn't want her to get hurt.
See the kid in the red shirt below? Check out the size of that diaper.

Kara's First Birthday

Kara's first birthday was a blast! We had all the grandparents there in addition to Aunt Debbie, Aunt Nita, Aunt Mickey, and Uncle Hector! It was supposed to be a pool party, but the rain off- and-on that day put that on hold. We grilled hamburgers and Johnsonville Brats(instead of plain hotdogs) despite the rain. Kara was in a good mood, and Addison wasn't as jealous as I thought she would be. Addison did think the gifts were for her until we reminded her that it was Kara's birthday. We did have to reminder her more than once though! Kara and Addison have a lot of fun playing with each other, and did so throughout most of the day. They really had a good time chasing each other through the tunnel for Addison's tent in the front room. You can tell if they are having fun by the ear-piercing screams and laughter.





Kelly handled the gift opening as you can see below. Addison was always offering to help, thinking that most of the boxes and bags were for her. Kara was great throughout this, smiling and mostly being content playing with her new cards, boxes, and gifts.








The confetti pictured above was another favorite for the kiddos.

Here are some quick movies of Addison "helping" to open the presents:

Presents Movie

Presents Movie 2


Here is more of that screaming and chasing I was talking about. Below is a movie of them chasing each other through the tunnel:

Tunnel Chase

We had fun trying to explain that the cakes were for Kara and not Addison. Having her help blow out the candles made it all better. Below is a movie of us singing happy birthday and blowing out the candles:

Happy Birthday Song


The smaller, yellow cake was just for Kara to go nuts with. It took her a while to get started, but she eventually made a wonderful mess of it.




Here are two movies showing Kara and her cake having fun.

Kara's Cake Movie

Kara's Cake Movie 2

Kitchen Screaming and Magnets

Kara now makes frequent trips onto the tile floor of the kitchen from the living room. Usually she will get excited and "chase" someone(usually me), or she will just want to explore a bit. I wouldn't think she would like the cold tile, however, it hasn't appeared to bother her. Kara has discovered her the bucket of alphabet magnets that he sister used to play with all the time. These are especially fun in the kitchen since you can either put them on the refrigerator or smack them on the tile. Addison would quickly join in anytime Kara was playing, which Kara likes as long as Addison doesn't take away any toys Kara is currently playing with. If Addison gets riled up enough, she can get Kara screaming and laughing loud enough to hurt my ears. Below are some pictures from earlier in the week when they were in this playful mood. There are some movies below as well, however, I must warn you that there is some screaming on some of them.






Kitchen Movies:

Kitchen Chase

Addison takes a quick Break to watch TV

Kitchen Chase 2

Kitchen Chase 3

Magnet Time

Feeding Time

Here is Addison helping feed her little sister Kara. The mess afterward was worth it for this photo.