Discovering...

Well, you know when it gets to be winter and everyone starts getting a little stir crazy and a change of scenery would really do you good... well, we are the opposite of that. 

We've been, we've traveled, we've conquered all week long.  And now, we've been recovering at home this weekend... in our white winter wonderland.

This past week we went to the Gateway twice.  And, even more noteworthy, I spent no money at the Gateway.  Which has to be a record of some sort, right?  How did I make this miracle happen?  Well I'll tell you.  The first trek was for Kael's preschool field trip to the Planetarium.  There is basically zero photographic evidence of this trip because I was just trying to keep all boys inside the Planetarium and out of the vapor machine & the swinging pendulum display, oh, and far away from the breakable lightning ball.   And then they discovered the moon and made Buzz Armstrong proud.

The next trip was for a holiday party at the Discovery Gateway Museum... and I have obviously been living under a rock because we've lived on the Wasatch Front for ten years now and I have never ever been there.  What is my problem?  I should be high-fived to the face for that one because this place... we had to bribe our kiddos out the doors as they were turning off the lights they loved it THAT much.

This construction station was basically the highlight of their short lives thus far.  The cranes, the trucks, the big "concrete blocks".  It was pretty much the best forty minutes a pack of little boys could ask for.

The water station just about made Kael hyperventilate from giggling.  He would turn a crank and water would be scooped up in little tins and go up the big Ferris wheel contraption only to come spilling out on the other side.  Giddy is what it made him.  For a full half-hour.  Meanwhile, Ace was a bad-to-the-bone ball collector and no one even dared come near him... they could see his game face from a mile away.

This one didn't even notice the water display because he was driving and subsequently gassing up his car... At least seventy-two times.

Why don't I think the gas station is this fun?

Somewhere amongst all our playing we saw Mr. & Mrs. Claus.  It was a struggle to get the little men to stop for a chat this time... not because of nerves, but because we were requesting that they STOP.  Which is downright rotten of us, apparently.  You can see how well that went.

And then there was a little grocery store, and you know what?  It was probably the second favorite display of the entire day.  Kael was a dedicated shopper who was surprising selective.  And Dax was the checker guy.  He would punch in two dozen numbers and finally arrive at transaction satisfaction and place the produce in the basket.  It was pretty adorable.

I've mentioned Ace's thing for horses, yes?  I think he speaks Mister Ed or something because he and this horse had a good old heart-to-heart.  And then he rode him for what seemed like forever as he shooed other little kids away from his perch.  "No, No... Acey's Toin.  This is Acey's Hoisey".

And I kinda need to post a plethora of these pictures where the misters are all bundled up warm and cozy and hitchin' a ride.  Because some day, I want them to push me around all snug as a bug in my wheelchair or maybe even spring to buy me a Jazzy so we can go see the Christmas lights.

It's only fair.

Acey didn't want to talk to anyone, so he requested that he, "Be hiding"... 

And he stuck to his guns until we reached the car.  Who is this kid?

And now we put our snow things on and remove our snow things several times a day which is basically like marathon training.  I swear, when they all learn to put their own gloves and snow pants on I will be happy, happy, happy!  :)

And then we remove our wet layers and have a mandatory snuggle-in that lasts exactly the length of the Christmas Doc McStuffins or Mickey Mouse Christmas Spectacular at the behest of our Mom who claims we'll get frost bite or something ridiculous... 

She's such a downer.

Obviously.

:)