End of Summer Break!

Last Friday was the end of the kids summer break. Audrey's school had a 50's sock hop to celebrate, and we spent the day with Jackson at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Both kiddos had a blast!

We gave Jackson several options for how to spend his last day of summer break, and his choice above the beach or riding rides or anything else was to go to the museum and a movie. Honestly, I was a little worried he wouldn't have as much fun at the museum, but he proved me wrong! He absolutely love every moment. There was so much excitement over each dinosaur and new discovery that he was exhausted when we were done, which made it the perfect time to relax and see a movie of his choice. We wrapped up the day with dinner as a family at a favorite restaurant. I couldn't have asked for a better last day of summer!

Sci-Port Discovery Center

Last weekend we made our way to Shreveport to spend some time with our families. Friday afternoon we went to the Sci-Port Discovery Center, which has some awesome activities that are really designed to give you an interactive learning experience.

Audrey had a blast learning how different things responded to her actions, and you can tell by the look on her face that she was amazed and entertained by everything she did.

Jackson was into figuring out how things worked and where things should go. He was very focused at times and was good at giving directions to those that were with him.

Our nephew, Mitchell, had a great time too! He enjoyed checking everything out and running around.

We really enjoyed spending a little time with some of Ross' extended family in addition to Nana, Leslie, Philip, and Mitchell while we were there. There are a few more pictures from the afternoon and weekend in the album.

Moody Gardens Field Trip

A couple of weeks ago, I went with Jackson and his class on a trip to the Moody Gardens aquarium. This year's trip was a little different than last year. They had a guided tour this year and got to learn a little about a lot of the different animals in the aquarium. The tour was a bit rushed but, like last year, Jackson's favorite part was the penguin exhibit.

We also got to see some sharks, turtles, seals, and other sea life that fascinated Jackson. After the tour, we had lunch and then played "Let's Make a Seal." This was a fun quiz game that Moody Gardens staff did for the kids. Jackson really wanted to tell the lady leading the game something but I kept telling him not to interrupt. After the game was over, he walked over to her and said "sharks have teeth to eat us." One of the early questions mentioned sharks' teeth and I guess he felt it was important for her to know why they have them.

After the game, we watched a 3D movie about sea life off the coast of Africa. A few of the kids took a nap since it was getting well into their nap time but Jackson was focused on everything going on. It was a fun trip and I'm glad I got to go with them. There are more pictures in the album.

Butterfly Field Trip

Today I went with Jackson and his class on a field trip to the Museum of Natural Science. We loaded onto the bus first thing this morning. Can you tell he was excited?

When we arrived at the museum, the kids got a snack and some juice and waited "patiently" while we got our tickets.

Then we made our way inside where he got to experience his first movie...IMAX in 3D...I think he's spoiled now! It was a film called "Born to be Wild," and Jackson LOVED it! At first he was reaching out to try to touch the orangutans and elephants in the film, but most of the time he was totally mesmorized. Of course, he asked a few questions here and there, but overall, he did great! Here they are lined up and ready to go in!

After the movie we took a short break outside to let some other groups get ahead of us, and we attempted a group photo of the kids...

Next on the plan was the Butterfly exhibit. Here are the kiddos getting instructions not to touch!

There was a big caterpillar to climb on at the beginning of the tour, so everyone wanted a turn!

After wandering through the informational section that talked about all kinds of bugs, we made our way to the live butterflies! It was amazing to see so many in one place. I got several good pics, but these are a few of my favorites.

From there we made our way across the street to a park for lunch and to let the kids run around before loading back onto the bus to go back to the school.

Jackson crashed on the ride back. We both had a wonderful time! I don't think he'll forget this experience! Thanks Ms. Monica and Ms. Evelyn!

There are lots more pictures of the fun in the album.

National Robotics Week

I've been into robotics since I started graduate school and my company has recently started building robots and putting our 3D sensors on robots, so, when I heard that Congress had designated a week in April as National Robotics Week, I quickly started lobbying my company to help with an event to get local kids (and adults) excited about robotics activities in our area. Last weekend was the inaugural National Robotics Week JSC Block Party. I spoke with friends at JSC and we arranged to host an event at Space Center Houston. All in all, we had 5 local companies come show their robotic work along with 7 groups of kids that compete in robotics competitions or have robotics clubs. It was a fun event and I think the kids that came to check things out really enjoyed it. Here are a few pictures and there are a bunch more in the album.

Penguins!

Yesterday, I went with Jackson and his class on their first field trip! It was a blast. They've been studying penguins this month, and Jackson now officially knows more about something than we do. It's a first, but I have a feeling it won't be the last.

Almost daily, we'd ask Jackson where the penguins live just to hear him say, "Antarctica". If pressed, I'd guess his favorite penguin is the Macaroni penguin, which he spent a week referring to as the Jack-a-roni penguin.

Jackson was equally excited about riding on a school bus. When he woke up yesterday morning and we asked him if he was ready to ride on the school bus, he started running around saying, "I'm so excited!" Here he is on the bus...still pretty excited!

When we arrived at Moody Gardens, the crew waited patiently on the bench outside.

This is Jackson's good friend, Cooper. They like doing everything together...including driving their teachers crazy from time to time! They sat on the same row of the bus and had the cutest conversations during the half hour drive.

There was a golf cart in the lobby, which the kids quickly turned into a jungle gym.

As we entered the aquarium pyramid, there was an area where the kids could reach in the water, which Jackson cautiously did.

He stopped to check out an eel that was "talking" to him...the eel was opening and closing its mouth.

As we arrived at the penguin exhibit, the kiddos stopped to see how they measured up in comparison to the penguins.

They were all fascinated to see the penguins in person.

Jackson was thrilled to see a chick too. If you look closely, he's at his mom's feet.

Here he is with one of his wonderful teachers, Ms. Monica!

Before heading out, we got to see the seals and penguins enjoying their lunch.

We attempted a class picture by the shark tank. This was as good as it got. Since we were past their lunch time, they were fading fast!

After refueling outside, the kids were ready to play!

Once they were back on the bus, many of the kiddos quickly passed out. Of course, Jackson was not among them. For a few minutes, I thought he might sleep, but it didn't take long for him to find other things to keep his interest.

It was a great experience, and one I hope he won't forget!

There are more pictures from the day in the album.

The Tims Came to Town!

Barbara, Heath and Carter came for a visit last weekend!

We really enjoyed having them around. In fact, Jackson has talked about Carter every day since they left! We spent most of the weekend just hanging out together, but on Saturday we made our way to the Children's museum. This was Audrey's first visit and Jackson's first since before Audrey was born. Last time we were there Jackson wasn't really old enough to play outside of the toddler area, but this time he was ready to go!

All of the boys enjoyed the water works area...

I wasn't able to capture any smiles from the boys because they were so focused on the activities, but I'm pretty sure they were having fun!

Audrey loved spending time with her Aunt Barbara!

When it was her turn to play, she was ready to go! She crawled and walked, flipped switches, spun wheels, and made new friends.

They all had such a great time that we had a hard time getting them to leave!

I was able to capture a couple of smiles from the boys in the end. I just love watching them play together and am so thankful the Tims took the time to come visit!

There are a few more pictures in the album.