6 Baby Bunnies

Sometimes life gets in the way of getting the day-to-day things done!  Last week, it was getting the lawn mowed.  We just didn't have time!  Yikes!  Unfortunately, that meant the grass was VERY tall and a Mama bunny made a nest in our yard.  The up side is that our dogs had not yet discovered the baby bunnies.  The down side is that I was unaware of said nest and went ahead and mowed the yard to discover a portion of the grass clippings throbbing up and down.  Almost as if they were alive!  As it turns out, there were 6 baby bunnies in there, just trying to keep warm and stay alive.  

We found out there is about a 10% chance of survival if bunnies are taken away from their own nest.  We also researched and read that a nest can only be safely relocated to a few feet away if we want the mother rabbit to find it.  So, we decided to try and raise the bunnies ourselves.  

The kids and I went to the store and got a little cage and some bedding.  We picked up eye droppers at my school to nurse the bunnies.  We purchased kitten's milk replacement to feed the bunnies.

Did you know that you have to rub their bottoms with a wet rag to stimulate them to use the bathroom?  In the wild the mother bunny would lick them to do this.

The bunnies were so tiny and so fun to hold and feed!

The best was when they would realize we had the eye dropper there with milk and they would start sucking on the tip of the eye dropper!  We fed them about 4 times a day and it would take around 30-40 minutes to feed them all!

The kids had fun showing them off to friends that stopped by.  Kylie and Mason were so responsible with helping to feed and hold the bunnies.  

Unfortunately they did not make it very long.  About a week later all of the bunnies were gone.  It was sad to see them go, but it was fun to try to help them survive.  In the week they were with us, a couple of them grew enough to open their eyes!!

What fun things have you been up to recently?

Happy Birthday to YOU!!

I always like to do something cute for birthdays and this year I found the perfect little treat for my students!  Have you ever heard of Lollipics? They have a special site for Teachers and make super cute lollipops that are gluten, dairy, nut free!  They come packaged in cute clear baggies with "To:" cards and raffia to tie them on.  You can choose from designs they've already created or you can send in an image to be printed on the front of the lollipops. So many options!

I even got a free bonus one with my first order and let my daughter try it!  She thought it was pretty tasty and enjoyed it while helping me in my classroom!

Gymnastics Meets

There is one thing in this world that my daughter LOVES doing more than anything else!  Do you know what it is?!  If you guessed GYMNASTICS, you were right!  Kylie has been on a travel soccer team for a couple of seasons, and she's tried hip hop dance.  She has played tennis, and she has enjoyed being on a swim team.  However, nothing brings more joy and excitement to her face than when she gets to do her "gymnastics thing!"  

At the end of the summer, both Kylie and Mason competed in their "in-house" meet at TAGS Gymnastics.  Mason enjoys gymnastics and loves tumbling around the house.  He did well at his meet!

Mason walked away with 2 first place ribbons and 1 second place ribbon.  Overall, he took first place for his level!  He was so excited and we were pretty darn proud of him!!

Kylie did well at her meet, too!  She loved the competition of the meet and worked really hard to perform more difficult skills than others in her level.  As a result, she did not receive the highest accolades, but we know she did her very best!!  She was so proud of her hard work, as she should have been!

At the end of the summer, Kylie was asked to be on the TAGS Junior Olympic Training Team 2!  This is what she's been {dreaming} of since she was a little girl.  Kylie has been a gymnast since she was a tumbling toddler in a Mommy & Me class!  She now is at the gym 2.5 hours a night, 3 nights a week!!  While it is very busy, we know we made the right decision to allow her this opportunity because she is in heaven!!  I've never seen someone work so hard at something, for so many hours, to then come home and continue to practice for hours on end!!

What have your kiddos done lately that makes you so happy to see the joy, excitement and pride on their faces and in their eyes?

Welcome to St. Louis!

What happens when your first hotel room has cock roaches, a broken refrigerator, and a sink that doesn't work?  You quickly check out of that hotel and find a new one!!

And that is how we happened to be guests at the beautiful Cheshire Inn!  The kids thought the hotel looked like a castle and each room was named after a British play-write, author, or poet.  We had the Robert Browning Room.

We had fun exploring the beautiful city of St. Louis!  It was so much fun to take my kids back up into the same Arch that I had gone up in as a child, many years before!  The kids were a bit scared of the tram "thing" that took us up.  But once we made it safely to the top they realized it was more of a "car" and less of a "roller-coaster!"

Here we are - at the top of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri!

Dolphins, Destin, & Sun...Oh My!!

 

 One of the BEST things about being a teacher is "having the summers off."

One of the WORST things about being a teacher is the idea that others have that "teachers have the summers off."

This summer I was in my classroom at least 1-2 times per week, with the exception of a 12 day period that I took my kiddos on a road trip:  Minnesota ~ Tennessee ~ Alabama ~ Florida ~ Missouri ~ Minnesota

Keep in mind, like many teachers, I LOVE my job and I really don't mind being in my classroom!  What gets under my skin is when people make comments such as, "You've got the best job - you're paid all year and you get 4 months off a year with all of the breaks you have!"  That really bugs me!  

My brother recently moved to Florida with his wife and I told him from the moment I knew he was moving that the kids and I would definitely be coming to visit!  Having the time in the summer allowed me an amazing opportunity to road trip, visit many new and fun places, and spend some quality time with my brother and his wife!

While we were in Destin we went to the beach every day!  The kids loved the white, smooth sand and the clear ocean water!

Well, I should really back up for a minute - do you remember reading that this was a road trip with 2 adults and 4 kids?!  My husband had to travel and couldn't afford to take the time off for a 12 day road trip {nor did he want to spend that much time crunched in a car!} so my girlfriend and I packed up the kids and headed south for a 2 week adventure!  Above you see what one room in an apartment looks like when you unload everything for 6 people!!

While we arrived pretty late in the evening to my brother's place, we were all very hungry!  We went to a yummy Mexican Restaurant and enjoyed dinner, family and great stories of our adventures thus far!

Throughout our time in Florida we visited the Gulfarium, the beach, Shakes {best milkshakes ever!!}, Air Force Armament Museum, a dolphin-watching cruise, and time in the sun!

The Gulfarium was such a cool experience!  We were up close and personal to dolphins, alligators, sea lions, seals, sea turtles, birds, sharks, tortoises, and more!

I can't wait until we get to go back to Florida for another visit!  The kids can't wait to show off all of these cool places to their dad when he can join us!  Hopefully we can fly down next time!!

The Beginning of An Adventure!!

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to pack up 2 adults and 4 kids for a 12 day adventure on the road?  This summer we decided to try it out - my girlfriend and her 2 kids joined my 2 kids and myself for an adventure to Florida.  We started out a couple days ago and the car-top carrier was SO loud we could hardly hear one another talk, much less think!  The kids were so well behaved and got along great!  

We stopped for lunch at a SONIC along the way to Nashville, TN.  I must have deprived my children of so much - they'd never been to a Sonic before this!!!  They ended up falling in love with the slushies, root beer floats and corn dogs!  I have a feeling we'll be stopping at a few more Sonics on our way to Florida and back!

We stopped for a few days in Nashville, Tennessee and boy was it HOT!  One of the coolest places that we stopped was the Parthenon.  It's a real-life replica of the Parthenon.  The kids thought it was pretty cool, too!

We enjoyed a night out on the town in downtown Nashville and went to the Wildhorse Saloon for dinner and line-dancing.

Being that I'm a teacher, we had to work in a little bit of history!  We stopped for an afternoon at the Tennessee State Museum.  Which reminds me, I should take the kids to the Minnesota State Museum sometime, too!

On our last day in Nashville we headed back to the main streets and visited a yummy candy store and a fantastic ice cream shop.  

We all picked out some fudge, chocolates and a tin of yummy candies!

I loved Nashville and would love to come back and explore...maybe an adult-only trip?  

Until next time, Nashville!!

Check back soon to see how our trip is going!