Introducing Oscar

Well, you've "met" him before, but he finally has a name!  Bless the little guy's heart... going nameless for so long.  But I've settled on Oscar because he's starting to show his vibrant green color, and also because he's quite the grouch.  :)  He still doesn't care for me to hold him, so I don't do it very often at all, but once in awhile, I get him out for an adventure... which means he just gets to climb around on my hands. 

Just for grins, here's what he looked like the day I got him:

A Visit with Leo

For our Thursday field trip today, we went to see an exhibit on Leonardo DaVinci.  It was the perfect timing, as Mason is finishing up his school year by writing a research paper on DaVinci.

You'll have to pardon the quality of these photos - all I had with me was my iPhone.  Unlike what you'd expect, this exhibit didn't focus so much on DaVinci's paintings... instead, they had large scale models that were based on his experimental drawings, along with a placard that showed and explained how it was supposed to work.

A lot of the exhibits were hands off, but we could mess around with some others - our favorite was our attempt at building this bridge!

Success!

Overall, we really liked the museum... I had no idea that Leonardo DaVinci was instrumental in the development of many modern things we use today - such as the helicopter, the armored tank (his looked more like a turtle), parachutes, ball bearings... the list goes on and on!

Cool stuff!

Motorcycle Riding

Michael has been working with the boys for over a year now on riding motorcycles.  They enjoy periodic outings such as this to hone in on their skills... and to enjoy the views.  Isn't this absolutely STUNNING?! 

A Day at the Aquarium

Our Thursday field trips have taken on a new twist these days... a 5-year old bundle of energy, to be more specific!  Maddox's school is done for the year, so he has been accompanying us.  This week, we went to the Denver Aquarium.

 Maddox was fascinated by the stingrays... and he is showing proper touching technique here - using only 2 fingers.  (shame on you, Mason!)

But I'd have to say our favorite exhibit was the octopus!

So cool!!

Memorial Day

Even though it's the end of May, I must preface this post by telling you that, here in the mountains, it is nowhere near the temperature necessary to comfortably partake in the festivities that we did.  Temperatures aside, the day was simply gorgeous, so Mason and Morgan drug out our old inflatable slide.

As if it weren't cold enough, the boys had Michael spraying them with the hose as they came down the slide.

Ahhh, it's not that bad!

...but ahhhhhhhh, THIS is better!!

The Big Reveal!

May 16, 2012 was a big day for Mason!  Check it out:

The next pictures are what Mason looked like the morning of September 28, 2010, only moments before he got his braces on, and then what he looked like after. 

So, essentially, here's the difference that 20 months and a few thousand dollars can make in a young man's life:

Pretty amazing, huh?!

Hot Water, Anyone?

Well, it is finally time for us to update our boiler system.  We have lived with this original system for 3 years, and we've all grown tired of the high pitched squeal we sometimes hear coming from the boiler.  Even worse than that, we've all grown tired of having to ration the measly 20 gallons of hot water.

Before:

After:

Notice the large grey tank on the left?  Yeah, baby!  That's 60 gallons of piping hot water.  Never again will I have to check if the dishwasher or washing machine is running before I take my shower.  :)