Weekend At Aunt Jessica's

We returned home tonight after a wonderful, fun-packed weekend! The girls had a blast, but I also think the adults did, too!

On Saturday we went with Aunt Jessica and "Mr. Ken" (Jessica's friend) to the Dallas World Aquarium. Getting to the aquarium was the fun part because we rode the train!!! The girls were excited to ride a real train that went through tunnels--just like a real Dora and Diego adventure! The sad part is that we left the camera in the car, and we didn't notice until after we had boarded the train.

The aquarium was indescribable--it was just awesome! The aquarium was built in 3 layers, and the path spiraled down to the lowest level. It was awesome to observe all the hundreds of animals at different angles. The shark tank had an underwater observation tunnel that was really cool. The sharks actually swam all around and above you! It truly was amazing--an absolutely wonderful treat!

When we arrived back at the train depot, we got the camera out of the car and took a few pictures. Aunt Jessica spoiled each of the girls with a souvenir from their adventures--Kiahna had a baby jaguar, Aliya had a mermaid doll, and Niah had a dolphin key chain.

We had a great time, and the girls didn't want to leave. Aliya finally agreed to come back home once we told her that we would come back again in just a few weeks.

A Nature Walk

TJ, the girls, and I participated in a fall foliage tour at the Will Roger's Nature Park in Oklahoma City. There were a few other families with children, but everybody else seemed to be in a much older generation.

A large variety of plants and trees were showcased on this 2 hour tour. We attended this event as a homeschool field trip to expose ourselves to the botanical side of life! We learn many interesting facts. For one, I did not know that many species of trees (like hollies) have both male and females. Sometimes a person won't know until the tree is older whether or not it is a boy or a girl--apparently, it is not as simple as lifting up a branch to find out!

We also learned about when and where to plant certain variates, how to pick trees for good fall coloring, and which plants survive best in our Oklahoma climate. We did take a few detours along the way so that the girls could feed the ducks in the pond. Aliya also enjoyed rolling down a hill or two. Kiahna loved the pond and the bridge the most--she called them "Diegos".

The tour ended at the edge of the pond. There was a lookout area right by the water. The girls and I sat on the bench and watched the geese and ducks swim in the pond. The next thing I heard was a crack, a thud, and then Kiahna screaming! She had fallen backwards onto the stony ground, head first! TJ (who was 15 feet away) arrived in less than 1 second--he had heard it, too! She wasn't bleeding, but we couldn't find a bump. We decided to take her to the ER just to make sure she didn't have a skull fracture or any internal bleeding.

We went back to the ER again--Kiahna's second time in less than a month. It took less than an hour to get checked in, see the doctor, get a CT scan, the report, and to check out. Kiahna was fine--no bleeding or fractures. We are very blessed! We are now home, packing for our weekend trip to see Auntie Jessica. The girls are VERY excited! Hopefully we will come back home with some good pictures to post.

Meet Alex

Today we went to Petsmart and picked out "Alex" to bring him home. Niah wanted to change the rock and decoration so that Alex would have a different home than Martin. Even though having Alex is exciting, the girls still miss Martin. I know that Alex doesn't replace Martin, but it is nice to have the tank empty any more (see Harris Insights--Tragic Loss for more details).