A Great Start to 2017

We kicked off our 2017 by attending the Sunday mass and  visiting  my father-in-law after wards.   It is important  for the  kids to spend  as much time with their Pap now  that he is still around. Dad might not  recognize us anymore but I want them to show their   love to their grandfather no matter what the circumstance is.  He was there for them  all those time since they were born and it  is fitting that they return the  love  especially now.  It's sad to see  that Alzheimer's really take a toll on Dad.  

 During our visit, I  discovered that in order to engage him fully in our conversation, we kept telling him about the times when he would rock the kids to sleep and he seems to enjoy that and  laugh about it.  So from now on, we will use this tactic to get him engage in a conversation.

 Dad will be 95 years old this year and we hope that he could be relocated  near our area so we could visit him frequently.  He   gets  very good care at Gables though so that's  a good thing although we are so far away from him.

 He was attending a church service when we arrive so after  we visited him, we decided to take him back to the church.

 Our son  volunteered to  push his w\heelchair which I thought was a sweet gesture.  I remember those  times when Dad would take the kids on a stroller and walk them around all the time.  I miss those times.

 It's really nice that the  facility   provide this kind of service to the senior folk.  The singing really entertains them.

 To end the first day of our new year, we started  building a 1000 pieces puzzle as part of our family bonding at the end of the day.

It was a great day to start our new year.  How about you, what did you guys do during the first day of the year 2017?  My Mom always told me when I was a kid that no matter what you do on the first day of the year, that's what you will  do for the rest of the year.  ABC Wednesday

Farm Surrounding

Foing to the  Amish community last year was a great short  spontaneous road trip that my family did.  The kids have enjoyed a  different sorrounding like houses in the mi-ddle of farms.  We visited this really old  Amish house and there was a cn old couple who  were  explaininlg things to the  visitors.  IT was a really neat experience for us.

Before going in, we had to take pictures because  you can't really tell a good story without a back up photos right?  Hehehe.  Seriously, we just want to document our  unique experience.

My hair is a little short on these photos.   I haven't cut it since then.

These two were super thrilled to see farming tools that  were like used in  medieval years lol.

It's pretty impressive how  they transferred this house  from one place to another  without destroying it.

Roboworld at Carnegie Science Center

These photos were taken two years ago when we celebrated  our son's  7th birthday.  We don't do birthday parties anymore   so we take our kids  in places where  they can enjoy and at the same learn some things.  We have never been to  Carnegie Science Center so we thought it would be an awesome time to  explore on his birthday.  

 I just remember these photos   that I have forgotten to  post because I was thinking EJ's birthday this coming Friday.  I can believe my little man is   turning 9 already, whew!

Anyway both of the kiddos were fascinated by the robot displays in the CSC.  

They were  amazed how this  robot can accurately shoot  the ball in the basketball ring.

 Rylie is into this  sketchbot.  You can basically  sketch anything and the machine will build it for you.

 They patiently watched how  their sketches  were built.

 "That is so cool" was their exact statements.

We had a fun time  at Carnegie Science Center.  I would like to go back there again.  

Last Hurrah of the Summer

A close friend invited us over to their house to swim.  I told my husband that we would surprise the kids  and that we should not  tell them about it.  I [packed their swimming  stuff and towels and put it in the car before they come home from school,  So when they got home, we told them that their piano  lesson was moved at an earlier time so we have to leave  real soon.  They changed their uniform and grabbed their books and off we went.  They were not paying attention when  we were driving  so they did not realize where we are going until we made that turn and they finally saw where were at.  They asked why we were there, we told them that I have to drop off something.  We bought a cake  at Gus's Goodies.  When we parked, the kids asked if they can go down the car nd say hi to the kids.  We said yes.

 When we  got to their  baclyard, the other kids were in their swimsuit and our kids was like wondering.  So we spilled the beans and told them to change their  clothes and  swim.  They were so shocked lol.  We got them really good.  My son kept telling me "Mom,, you lied to us!"  I told him that it was a good lie hahaha.

 They really had a great time out there.

 These two are BFFs, they are like two peas in a pod. I love watching them   have fun.

I hope that when they grow up that they will still be friends.  So this was their last hurrah of the summer this year.  Although, EJ got sick the next morning, at least they have enjoyed to the fullest.  

Ocean City, July 2014

Seeing my children enjoyed the water in Ocean City reminds me of my childhood. I grew up in a coastal area so most of the times, kids swim in the ocean when it is calm and safe. Kids over there pretty much learn how to swim by themselves.  We don't have to go through swimming lessons because it is part of our survival living in the  coastal area.  

I did not have  any fancy things growing up but I experienced fun things that my kids are not fortunate to have  living  in a modern world.  Simple living  to me is the bomb in learning  many things.

Gadgets did not exist in my childhood.  We did not even have a TV in our home but our childhood was  very normal.  We pretty much enjoy whatever is around us.

I am glad that although, we are  living  far from the ocean, we can afford to  go to one once in a while and let them experience the  joy of  things away from gadgets and stuff.

I am glad that my children enjoy even the simplest things like going on a creek and trying to catch cray fish.  You know just for experience.  A lot of kids are not interested anymore in doing those kind of activities.

Our son was fearless in the water.  He is not scared to go under the waves lol.

I miss the ocean ever since I came here but I am not really into  swimming in it.  I'd rather swim in the pool than in the ocean.

So yeah, our trip to Maryland was a fun-filled family trip that I hope my  children will always remember when  they grow up.

I hope that when I am gone and they somehow look through my blog posts and read them, that they would feel joy in their hearts.

We are not rich but we  d our best to  make our children's childhood worthwhile.  I think that is what matters the most.  I always tell them that  even though we can't afford a lot of things that they want, we love them!

Bowling is a Great Family Bonding

We went bowling back in July and the kids had a blast.  Hubby and I  did not bowl, we just let the kids  do it and they had a blast.  

Bowling is definitely one of the activities  that they love doing.  I just wish that they don't charge much for a game hehehe.  It is worth every penny though because you can just see their faces when they  get good scores.

And of course, it's a photo opportunity for all of us.

We had   pizza after their game.  My husband calls this a cardboard pizza but I thought that it was alright.

If you are looking for a good  family bonding activity, visit one of those bowling alley in your area and your kids will sure have fun!