Raspberry Picking!

We have been talking about going back to Larriland Farm and we took the time to go today.  They had a nice selection of raspberries for us to pick from!  It was a beautiful day with a nice breeze, too!  Nya was spent after about an hour but we came away with over 3.5 pounds of raspberries!

Inspecting the raspberries

Some of our stash

Keeping Nya Busy

I am trying to make sure that Nya is busy and enjoying each day of summer.  Before we know it, summer school will be starting for me and Nya will be going to camp.  We are thrilled to have a park that we can walk to right in our neighborhood.  There are usually alot of kids there for Nya to play with, but lately it has been too hot for a large turnout.

Over the weekend we attended a birthday party for Kwesi's Aunt Lo.  It was a nice time with the family!

Cousin Jordan and Nya

Brief Respite from the Heat

It was so hot last week!  Thankfully, we are experiencing a short break from the heat wave.  Today was glorious!  Nya and I visited the National Wildlife Center for a presentation on bees.  It was really cute.  Nya learned about how to react if a bee lands on/near her, how bees communicate, and made some bee crafts.  I was impressed with the program and we will be back for more of their family programs.

Coloring bee pictures

They made bee antennae.

Going on a bee walk

Listening intently...preparing for the bee dance

Cousins

Kim came in town this week!  We miss her so much and it was great to see her.  We all hooked up on Thursday for lunch.  I had hoped to see more of her but was glad that Nya had a chance to see her again.  We always have a silly time when we get together.  We wish Kim safe travels as she heads back to Atlanta today.

Aunt Lauren, Nya, Kim, and Steph

Has it been a week already?

We have been enjoying summer for one week now.  So far, so good.  I usually find that Nya and I have to find a rhythm when we don't have a routine to follow.  We have been trying to enjoy ourselves as much as possible.  For Father's Day we went to the inlaws.  Nya and Mani didn't want to leave their grandparents! 

Yesterday we went to the library for a zoo presentation.  They brought some animals and taught the kids about habitats.  Nya enjoyed herself but was disappointed that she was not chosen to hold any of the animals or props.

Today, we went to the movies for $1!  United Artists is offering a kids movie (previously released) every Wednesday for 9 weeks at 10 AM and it only costs $1/person.  We arrived at 9:45 but Happy Feet Two was already sold out.  We had to see Dolphin Tale.  It was a cute movie!  We will be back next week!

Striking a pose on our way out to the movie

A heat wave has hit the area so we can expect high temps in the mid to upper 90s for the rest of the week.  Nya wanted to play outside this afternoon but I decided that we would have to incorporate some water play!

Nya has a Barbie pool but enjoys using a basket instead. Brings back childhood memories! 

Nya had to explain to me the importance of adding rocks to the Barbie "beach".

Pineapple popsicles help beat the heat

Summer 2012 has Arrived!!!

Finally!  Summer has arrived!  It has been too long since I have updated this blog and I am hoping to keep up with it this summer.  We are so excited for summer!  So much to do, experience, and see! 

Nya's last day of school was June 8.  A promotion ceremony was held at the end of the last day.  Nya received the math award for her class!  Yay! 

My last day of school was June 12 and I checked out on June 13.  What a nice feeling! Nya came to school with me for the last few days and it wasn't too bad.  I don't know why she was suddenly so shy when I know my child is the exact opposite of shy.  :)

Nya has been helping me out quite a bit around the outside of the house.  I am really grateful to my parents for their numerous visits over the last couple of months and sharing gardening/yardwork tips with me.

Blooming hydrangeas

Mama's lil herb
helper

fresh peppers

So proud of her work...

Yesterday was the 2nd day of break.  We spent the day at the library, IKEA, and ran numerous other errands.  A few weeks ago, our beat around car was totaled while sitting on the street.  It didn't look like much damage, but it was enough to total it.  I had to turn in all of our paperwork and release the car to the insurance company and I must admit it was a strange feeling. 

Today, Nya and I ventured out to the National Zoo.  It was a perfect day for the zoo.  Sunny, but not too hot and not too cool.  Really perfect.  We had a blast.  At times, I think Nya was very overwhelmed by all of the excitement and seemed to want to wander around.  I was so excited to see that she was having a good time. 

We visited the Kids' Farm section first:

Then we moved on to the other animal exhibits.  So amazing!



Beautiful flamingos!

The awesome beast...

Lions chillin...

"Look, Mama!"

Regal!

Beautiful panda

It took forever to get rid of that popcorn!!!

Cute little prairie dog

Sleeping gorilla...

Break time

The tiger did not want to be bothered.  :)



Silly Nya





Peek a boo!