We have had one busy month! Since them the weather has more or less warmed up (today it will be in the 70s, but next Thursday they are calling for flurries again, sheeh!) we have been getting out and doing lots of fun stuff! I think Michael's 17th month has been the busiest of all so far! Below are my best attempt at getting a 17 month picture. Michael wanted Freddy or the camera, he did not want to sit nicely in his chair.
Two weeks ago my mom and I took Michael to see Dinosaur Train Live! Michael loves watching dinosaur train, so when we found out the show was coming to Atlanta we knew we had to go! I was a little worried that Michael wouldn't be interested in the show or would freak out and cry the entire time. Turns out I worried for no reason! Michael paid attention to about 80% of the show. He was dancing and talking and yelling at the characters. It was adorable. There was a technical malfunction. One of the big giant dinosaur puppets (King Chryolophosaurus for those of you familiar with Dinosaur Train) deflated or something so they had to break the show to fix the problem. That's when Michael started to get antsy. Luckily it happened very close to the end of the show and was quickly fixed. The show was great, Michael enjoyed it so much more than I anticipated. I will definitely take him again next year! I can't wait to take him to Sesame Street Live either! Wow, being a parent sure does change your idea of fun! Ha!
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| The pink one is the one that broke. |
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| Dancing to the music in the aisle! |
The week after Dinosaur Train was Rob's 30th birthday! He had the day off and wanted to celebrate by going to the wildlife preserve we worked and met at in Dahlonega! The three of us spent the day hanging out with our old boss, CW. Michael LOVED visiting and playing with all the animals! So did his daddy. I was on camera duty a lot. It was a bit chilly, but it was super sunny and beautiful. Much like Rob, Michael seems to be completely at ease around wild animals. I am in so much trouble with those two! After playing at the preserve all day, we met our family for dinner in down town Dahlonega to celebrate some more. I think it was a pretty good birthday for Rob!
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| What are these daddy? |
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| I'll chase him, no big deal. |
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| Too cool for school. And zebras. |
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| Assimilating into the herd. |
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| Hi Tiger, what's up? |
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| The only animal he seemed cautious around was the hedgehog. Go figure. |
We had more animal fun the following weekend! We went out for breakfast and then headed over to the botanical gardens for an exotic wildlife show. It was PACKED! We had to sit way in the back, but I was still impressed with the animals. I had seen/heard of most of them- red tail boa, iguana, box turtle, cockatoo, green wing macaw, etc. But there were quite a few I hadn't seen or heard of before. There were some interesting snakes, turtles, frogs, and a really cool owl. Apparently the biggest owl species... That eats other owls! Michael wasn't super interested, but I think it was because we were so far from the front; when the host walked around with the animals Michael snapped to attention and had his eyes glued to the animals as the passed by. After the show we wandered around the garden for a bit. It was nice because Michael got a chance to run around and play. He is always on the go nowadays!
Last Friday we had a very fun play date down at the Georgia Aquarium with our friends Allie and Parker and Mauri and Ezra. It was awesome! First of all it was awesome to see some of my good grown up friends, and it was nice for Michael to see his friends! Also, I think he liked messing around with Parker (he is a pro walker!), although I'm sure Allie would say Parker is too fast! ;) Michael once again did not shy away from animal experiences. We tried all the touch tanks- star fish, urchins, crab/snail (not sure what the thing in the shell was), anemone, and sting ray. Yes, sting ray. He was too small to reach the rays and shark in the big touch tank we did first, so when we tried the smaller touch tank with rays he went for it. Seriously, I thought they were too deep again, but he pitched himself forward and made friends. Of course his sleeves were soaked, but he was quite pleased with himself. Michael was all about checking out the tanks and pointing fish out and barking at them (barking like a dog is his go to sound right now). Much like dinosaur train, I was surprised how involved he was with all the exhibits. In the big ocean voyager exhibit he walked right into the giant glass viewing window. It was actually kind of funny. The big manta ray went by, and he decided to walk on over to pet it. Bang! Right into the glass! He was ok, good thing too, cause I laughed at him. Before we went I had found a good deal on a season pass and splurged. I'm so glad I did cause I definitely want to take him back since he enjoyed it so much! So if anyone wants to go... I get discounted tickets! Hint hint!
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| Aquarium play date! |
On Saturday we had planned on going to story time at Sandy Creek Nature preserve. We unfortunately missed the story cause we ran late, but we decided to do a little mini hike on one of their trails. It was a lot of fun, we walked down to the ruins of an old brick factory and a little log house. After our hike we went inside the nature center and played in their gallery. I love that place!
Yesterday we celebrated my father in law Don's, birthday. We headed out to the farm for a family fun day! The weather was beautiful and the sun was shining. As soon as we pulled up, Rob and Michael jumped on the off road golf cart with Don and drove off to feed turkey's. They are so wildery. We had a really nice lunch on the dock with Rob's aunt and uncle, and some family friends too. After lunch Don and Rob took Michael out on the boat. He was so cute in his tiny life jacket sitting in his grandpa's lap. He loved being on the boat and didn't want to get out. Lucky for Michael his grandpa and daddy took him out a second time! He also got to swing in the hammock and play badminton with his friend John. There are loads of pictures: baby photo shoot in the daffodils, on the boat, and chilling on the dock.
I think that's everything we have done this past month! Next month we have lots planned too! Including our trip to Disney World! In fact, Michael will be celebrating his 18 month birthday IN the Magic kingdom! I'm so excited! Today Michael received a box in the mail from Mickey Mouse. Inside were our Magic Bands to use while we are at Disney! Yay!
