Happenings from our week

Here's a peek into a portion of Parker's little world this last week...

Playtime at the gym...we can't go for a workout without stopping by the courts to play basketball with Parker!!! He'll jump right into any game that's going on! ha ha!

For Parker's birthday, Clay & I signed him up for Tornado Toddlers at Lifetime. It's a fun, 7 week class for parents & their 1-3 year olds...anyway, each week they have all the exciting toddler gym equipment out with neat balls & toys for the children to play with. Each Tuesday morning, Parker runs straight past the kid stuff & takes off for the closest basketball & basketball goal! At the beginning of each class, chasing him down & getting him interested in the "program" is a little bit of a challenge! He's rather be playing ball with the big boys! :)

Building his first fort...his dad threw in a little assistance here...Parker has been loving it!
Learning and enjoying new adventures at the Minnesota Children's Museum... for Christmas, one of Parker's great-grandparents gifted our family a year's pass to the Children's Museum. We are sooo excited about this gift!!! Currently, the main rotating exhibit is Dinosaurs: Fire & Ice...we spent the majority of our time in this room the other day. Parker liked digging through the "rocks & rubble" & finding fossils. One of the other tasks that was a favorite for him in this room, was moving the trees & creatures around the U.S. Map table (see pic below).

Experience the Best of Both Prehistoric Worlds
The steamy "Land of Fire" connects visitors with prehistoric home of the Triceratops and T-Rex. Children can circle the land in insect costumes and buzz through a volcano with oozing lava. Work through a swampy bog and climb into a Troodon's nest and play with dinosaur eggs.
No coats are needed for a trip across the "Land of Ice" where visitors meet two dinosaurs, a Pachycephalosaurus and Edmontosaurus, who made their homes in the cold climate of Alaska. Climb rocky steps, breeze down an icy slide, and hop across stepping stones in an icy river. text taken from mcm.org

The other neat rotating exhibit that is currently being featured is Out on a Limb. Parker also had fun exploring in this room.

Climb into a treehouse, build a fort, play with light! Have fun exploring the natural world in this original, interactive exhibition. This is your chance to go out on a limb! This imaginative environment is designed to inspire children and their caregivers to learn to explore nature by using their senses. More than simply seeing the beauty of a tree, the exhibit encourages visitors to hear the sounds of the forest, use leaves to make beautiful art, and build big and little structures from bark and limbs.
The whimsical atmosphere of Out on a Limb is created in part by children’s nature-themed artwork that makes up the faux bark and leaf canopy of the centerpiece tree. The individual exhibits, Whirlwind, Light Play, Forest Jam and Gnome Home, further enhance the magical scenery and are tools to enhance exploration. For example, individual activities encourage children to experiment with light and shadow, patterns of leaves, music of the forest, and the effects of the changing seasons. The exhibits also provide practice with the physical skills of climbing and balancing, which helps children to develop self confidence in outdoor play. text taken from mcm.org

At the start of each new year, I like to get re-organized...you know, go through all of your Christmas receipts, throw out & file...that is what I've been up to these past several days. I've had a compilation of "paper stuff" that got on my nerves for the last time! ha ha! In between activities...I tackled some of the piles. I have to say, it felt really good! Still a little more to go, but the bulk of it is behind me! My mind is still currently on the organizing & "action" mode so I apologize for the lack of creative posting today. I am in major "tackling projects" mode right now. :)

It is still VERY cold out, so 99% of our play is indoor. We are so excited to have Nana flying in today for a week long visit...are we so spoiled or what?! All right, we're about to head to the gym for a quick workout..I just wanted to post a few fun pictures of our little man so you would know what we've been up to! It has been a fun week so far!!! :) Hope ya'll are staying warm! (My sis in law called me this morning to tell me that is was 70 degrees down in Texas at 6am today...man, am I jealous!) :)