damn good luck.

C39 was telling me today that during lunch prep he and C4 had done some math. And to show off her skills he asked her what 6+2 was.

But before C4 could answer Q2 piped up: "8!"

So C39 asked another question, what was 2+3? "5!"

Jaws dropped, and he asked another, 4+3? "7!"

We were stunned. Astounded. Amazed. C4 is our reading genius, but clearly we had a little math whiz here.

Until a little later we asked some more math questions ... and all Q2 would say was 8.

New Park

Well, not the park that we have officially named "New Park" but the park we normally call "Hidden Park" which isn't to be confused with the neighborhood that everybody calls the hidden park, even though its official name is "Dietz Park" (sheez).

Anyway, OUR hidden park is behind a row of houses on the south and on the north, a ditch and a levy. It has in the past been a favorite of C4 and Q2, but I didn't like it much because the equipment was old and dull. But on my way home with Q2 the other day, I noticed (from the other side of the levy) new equipment!

Not that you'll see any of that new equipment here. I'm having video issues. But here is some old equipment & 2 cuties!

Haircut

Her hair was getting unruly to match her attitude. So this morning Q2 agreed to a haircut.





Doesn't she look adorable?

Again

Q2 is going through another wake-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-and-stay-awake-for-3-hours thing over the last few nights.

Arg! The latest one included talking, holding hands, music, music trauma, monsters, cuddling, a bathroom visit, a diaper change, and a visit to our bed.

After most of the above, Q2 was in our bed for about 30 minutes last night and then calmly walked herself back to bed. I had to go in a bit later to give her some stuffed animals who could protect her from monsters, and she was fine for a bit. But after C39 went to work she was up again and I put her next to me in bed and she slept there til 8 am.

Hop hop hop

I made Q2 some bunny ears & mittens ... She said she wanted them, but I'm a fool and I believed her. Whatever, it was one more thing to practice sewing!

Trip to the zoo

We knew it was going to be such a beautiful day ... we got our act together early and headed to the national zoo. FUN, right?

Well, ultimately, yes, but we started with a temper tantrum from C4 because 1) she didn't want us to put on of C39's business cards in her purse in case she put it down and didn't pick it up and 2) we wanted to see animals.

Q2, however, was THRILLED to be there. She started right on into the zoo. While C4 was tantruming (and this wasn't helped by the multitude of truck driving around on the sidewalks ... it was early, animals getting fed, food stands getting set up, so vehicles were around and freaking C4 out) Q2 ran up the hill with C39.

Finally, C4 calmed down and decided to walk up after them ... and to see the PRAIRE DOGS!



C4 took a lot of pictures there with her own camera. Then we headed up a little further to where C39 & Q2 were ... at the TURTLES!



Tons of turtles were out sunning on logs, lots swimming, etc. Q2 & C4 must have spent 15 minutes looking at turtles, and even C4 had fun looking at them.

The girls really wanted to head back down the hill, but we managed to convince them to go up to get there ... and we readed the open small mammel house. The joy surrounding this statue was infectious!



Then we went in. I personally don't like going in the houses much, because they generally smell. The small mammel house isn't overwhelmingly disgusting (like the primate house is!) but it is whiffy. Apparently Q2 has the same feeling as I do. She spent the whole time in the small mammel house like this:



But she managed to get through the small mammels without much of a problem. Every so often if we lingered anywhere too long she'd start to cry because of the smell, but then we'd move on and be OK.

We spent a lot of time with the naked mole rats, which I usually don't like, they are hairless rodents after all, but today they were being fed just as we got there, and it was really fun to watch them (and their hairy cousins just above them) grabbing food and moving around. Watch the creatures in the upper left corner of the video ... they just climb all over each other! What C4 says in that crazy voice(Shearing what she thinks one of the rodents is saying) is "Mine, mine, this is mine!"



Once we left there we mad it as far up as the elephants ... and had to have a break and a snack. That hill was big!





We checked out the pandas (out of view) and walked a bit, and took a rest on top of a rock. Something freaked Q2 out, I'm not sure what, but C4 was very big sisterish:



and finally we got them to smile:


Then we finally walked down the hill all the way down to the farm and the play pizza, which is what they'd really wanted all along.



They would have spent more time at the play pizza but C4 put her hand out to a stranger and he gave her a pretzel. We reprimanded her, told her not to take food, then she found another on the ground and ate it. So, we moved onto the farm & cows & then lunch/snack.

After lunch snack we returned to the farm to pet the bunnies



and finally headed home:


C4 insists she didn't have a good time. But 3 hours and a bunny later I can't say I believe her.

Do you recognize this hat?

That's my hat. My hat that my sister made me. My hat that my sister made me that my husband is wearing to bed.

But I guess I can forgive him because this picture is so silly.