That's My Boy

He did this all by himself, and then called me to come check out his handy work.  Think we've been using many public restrooms lately?

Wordless Wednesday

Memphis - Day Two

The plan was to be at the zoo when they opened and to stay as long as Miles could/wanted to, and then drive home hopefully while he slept.  The zoo opened at 9am and we actually got there at 8:45am.  It was perfect.  We parked very close and there was hardly anyone there.  We took a few pictures while we waited for them to open.

Miles did a little dancing too...

He wanted to take some pictures "all myself", which is how he likes to do everything these days...

This was his first shot...

He redeemed himself with this one...

The first of two reasons we planned a trip to Memphis was the dinosaur exhibit.  It is only there until July.  I wondered how good it could really be since they are fake, but it was actually pretty cool.  I'm not sure if it was "$4 a person" cool, but it was neat.  Miles was a little unsure of them.  They were really big, and they roared and even spit water on you.

He liked this one b/c it had no special effects...

He spent most of his time hiding behind me...

Overall, two thumbs up from Miles...

Since we got there right when they opened, I think a lot of the animals had not been fed yet.  As we walked through Cat Country, a lot of the animals were walking around waiting to eat.  This tiger kept swimming right in front of us.  It was one of the coolest things all day...

And then there was the Teton Trek exhibit.  We got to watch the grizzly bears play and splash in the water.  The whole exhibit was very neat, but all Miles wanted was the geysers at the entrance.  He LOVED playing in them.

Unfortunately they only stay on for a limited time.  Enter the first meltdown of the day....at which point I told Darrin that I thought it was going to be a quick trip to the zoo.

Momma knows best and a Peach Crush cured all...

The second reason that we planned a trip to the zoo was for the camel rides that they only have this summer.  Miles talked and talked about riding the camel, but I was unsure if he would actually go through with it.  He said he wanted to do it "all myself" but didn't put up a fight when Darrin climbed on with him. 

All good things must come to an end, and camel rides are no different.  Enter tantrum number two.  We are surely horrible parents...I had to crop Darrin out b/c he was standing there laughing as I took pictures.

Next we fed some birds at Miles' request.  He fed this one and everything was fine.  Then we found another one that ate for a little while and then flew off.  It scared Miles to pieces.  Enter crying/screaming fit number three.  No pictures b/c I was actually taking consoling him this time.

The last stop of the day was the fountains as were leaving.  They are by the entrance.  My plan all along was to let him play and cool off before we got in the car to leave.  He was so happy to be playing in the water.  Random, but I've kind of always had an issue with kids wearing swimsuits at non-water parks, such as zoos.  Now that I have a kid, I totally see why people do this.  It's just easier to manage the in & out of water all day.  So anyway, he was very happy as he waded out into the fountain.  I told Darrin that he was making me nervous because it gets a little deep for him and there is nothing to keep him out of the fountain.  Darrin said that he would go in after him if he needed to and handed me his phone just in case. 

I'm so glad he did, b/c Miles tried to pick up a "bucket" which turned out to be a floodlight and then started floundering in the water.  He probably would have been fine, but who can wait around for that? No pics b/c I was saying "oh no, oh no, oh no" as the rescue effort was underway.  Below is the after shot of Miles, and Darrin's soaked shoes.  Afterward, Miles said, "that bucket was not a toy, it was a light."

With that, our day was over and so ensued the last tantrum of the day.

It looks as though Miles cried all day, but he really didn't.  I just happened to catch most of tears on camera.  We had a great little trip, and hope to plan some more weekend trips soon.

Memphis - Day One

Darrin and I decided to take a vacation by ourselves this year.  Darrin is in a wedding in New Orleans in June, so we are going to make a week long vacation out of it.  We decided not to take Miles b/c days upon days of "out of the routine" trips are hard on a 2.5 year old.  Instead we thought we'd take one or two weekend trips with him this summer. Plus, the idea of getting away, just the two of us, while it makes my stomach turn a little to think of leaving Miles, it also sounds like a much needed, fun time.

The three of us went to Memphis this weekend.  This weekend was all about Miles.  I planned the trip from advice from friends on Facebook and MemphisLovesKids.com.  Surprisingly there was so much to do, it was hard to choose.  We knew we wanted to go to the zoo on Sunday, so that only left Saturday.  I was careful not to plan too much.  He just can't handle nonstop all day adventures and it ends up stressing us out when he is out of sorts.  All week, we talked up all of the things that we had planned.  We even showed Miles the stuff we were going to do online.  He was definitely pumped about the plans!

First, was the Fire Museum on Saturday morning.  I think he was most excited about this.  From the info online, it looked like it would be fine for us, but that Miles would love it.  And, it was just that.  We only spent an hour there, but he loved every second of it. 

Next we rode a trolley around.  Simple for us, but I thought he would love it.  It was just ok in his book.  He got bored quickly and asked to get off.  On a side note, we used the self timer on our camera a lot this weekend (thank you Carrie!) and ended up with some good shots.  It beats always asking random people to take pictures....and then you never know what they'll take.

A stranger did take this one and I think she did a good job...

After the trolley ride and lunch, we went to Mud Island.  It was kind of hard to tell what all there was to do there, but we decided to take our chances, and I'm so glad we did.

We rode the monorail over, again b/c I thought Miles would like it, and he did.

They have a replica of the Mississippi River.  He loved it.  It was really hard on your feet.  I could only handle certain parts, and he has several cuts and scratches.  He loved it regardless.

I think he could have stayed there all day, but we decided to leave and go swimming at the hotel.  If I'm being honest, Darrin and I were a little bored.  It was neat, but it was all the same after a while. 

He took a very short nap on the way to the hotel...we tried to keep him asleep on the way to the room, but that didn't work.  So we went swimming before it was time to get ready for dinner.  We learned this weekend that water makes Miles happy.  His favorite parts of the trip all had to do with water.  More on that tomorrow.  He loved swimming and sobbed when it was time to leave the pool area.



The plan was to see the Peabody ducks when they march in the lobby at 5pm and then go to dinner.  The ducks were a bust.  I definitely underestimated how popular they are.  I'm not sure if Miles could see anything from Darrin's shoulders or not.  If he could, he wasn't impressed b/c he didn't say a word about them.

We ate dinner at Huey's right across from the Peabody.  Who knows if it was good or not, b/c all we did was try and entertain Miles...

Playing games on Darrin's phone...

We got ice cream and went back to the hotel room right after dinner, which was the plan.  After only having a 30 minute nap, Miles was done.  He watched Toy Story on his DVD player in his "special" bed (the pull out couch), Darrin watched the MBA playoffs, and I played on my phone and went to sleep really, really early.  Perfect end to a great day.