Flashback Friday...er, Saturday

I realize that I have neglected my blog for the past nine days...our house has seen colds, catch-up cleaning (from being sick), cold spells followed by hot spells, a skunk that sprayed outside of our apartment building & wafted inside our open screen door (lucky us) and clung to our (apparently) porous son for a day despite multiple baths, as well as John starting his new job this week leaving Johnny & I together without him most of the time.   I just haven't had much time nor inspiration to write a blog post, and I apologize.  I know there are those back home that look forward to reading what we have been up to here in Denver.  Blog posts will hopefully be pretty regular again.

We were going to go to another pumpkin patch for a Pumpkin Festival today but in the end decided we didn't want to drive that far nor spend that much money to go to a pumpkin patch when we already got Johnny a pumpkin a couple of weekends back.  So, we decided to get some things done around the house today and maybe make some autumn/Halloween themed cookies & maybe some caramel apples.  :)  Tomorrow we are hoping to go to a park and take some autumn pictures like last year & maybe visit the Mother Cabrini Shrine which we have read is pretty spectacular.  We will keep you updated if we do anything worth noting. :)

Since I missed the last two Flashback Fridays, I decided to sort of make up for it by posting a Flashback Friday today...Saturday...(try not to get confused).  Since I missed two Flashback Fridays I will post a two-fold flashback.  Happy?!

Flashback #1: 

Since Halloween is in only a couple of weeks, I thought I would do a Halloween costume flashback.

Johnny's first Halloween in '07 came when he was only 3 months old (and one day).  He was a pea pod and quite adorable, if I might add. :) John had to work Halloween night, so it was just Johnny and me.  Since he was so young and it was just going to be me (and it was really cold out), I decided that our "trick or treating" would be to take Johnny in his costume to my mom and great-aunt's work (John ended up working there 7 months later) to see everyone.  The work is a state agency and a lot of the people who work there will decorate their cubicles and bring candy and then family members will bring children and they can "trick or treat" throughout the day.  My grandma (mom's mom) came with us.  We met my cousin's wife and her two little girls there.  Everybody at my mom's work thought Johnny was adorable in his little pea pod costume and for many of her co-workers this was their first time meeting Johnny.  After we went trick or treating at my mom's work, Johnny & I went to John's work to visit him and show him Johnny in his costume.  We also visited the in-laws so they could see Johnny in his costume; we only stayed for a couple of minutes.  We had plans to visit my other grandparents (dad's parents) since they lived near the in-laws but Johnny was getting grumpy having to get in and out of his costume so he could get in and out of his car seat, and I wasn't feeling very well, so we ended up going home.  My mom came over to help me watch Johnny and hand out candy since I wasn't feeling very well.

Johnny was a dinosaur for his 2nd Halloween in '08.  He had just learned how to walk and ended up trying to follow me up some stairs in his costume (I was getting our camera upstairs thought he was downstairs with his daddy) and ended up rolling down the stairs in his costume and smacked his head on some tile at the bottom of the stairs.  It was the scariest moment for me because I was at the top of the stairs and watched him fall in slow-motion down the stairs and smack his head.  It was like I was in slow motion too and couldn't get to him in time.  When I got to the bottom of the stairs I scooped him up and he had a huge knot on his forehead.  He had hit really hard so we took him to the emergency room (we didn't know what else to do).  He ended up being fine--no concussion or anything--and we were able to go home.  Unfortunately Johnny wasn't able to go trick or treating since he fell down the stairs right before we were about to head out.  He was adorable in his dinosaur costume though! :)

ROAR!

 

(The picture above was made by my cousin's wife Misty last year for me)

This year he is going to be a lion, which is his favorite animal.  We are hoping that this year's Halloween will be a lot safer and more fun for him.  It will be his first time actually trick or treating. :)  My dad will be flying to Denver from WA to spend the weekend with us so it will be fun to have him with us when we go trick or treating with Johnny.  Especially since my dad ("papa") & Johnny are VERY close--best buds, in fact. :) We are planning on using Johnny's red wagon to transport him from house to house. 

Flashback #2

This flashback is of our autumn pictures from 2008.  Last year we went to the Finch Arboretum in October (it was down the hill from our house) for some autumn pictures of Johnny.  It was very beautiful with all of the autumn-colored leaves.  We got some really incredible pictures of Johnny and we're hoping to do the same this year in Denver (hopefully tomorrow).  Here are the pictures we took last year. :) Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HAPPY AUTUMN!

One Cold Day

It snowed all day. Yuck. Johnny & I spent the day indoors cuddling under blankets and trying to stay warm. I love autumn, but an autumn that does NOT involve snow.

Free Day/Polarpalooza @ the Denver Zoo!

Today the Denver Zoo was holding a free day and a celebration called Polarpalooza which celebrates the 20th anniversary of the SCFD (Scientific & Cultural Facilities District) which is responsible for organizing and funding all of the "Free days" at Denver museums and attractions.  Because of the celebration there were lots of activity booths and arts/crafts for children.

We didn't get to the zoo until around 1pm because we wanted to make sure Johnny had a nap before we went.  It would've been better had we gone when it first opened, because it was crazy crowded.  There were cars everywhere trying to find parking and the usual dumb people who endanger other people's lives because they don't pay attention behind the wheel.  We ended up parking on the very bottom basement level of the parking garage, but we were just happy to find a parking spot after 20 minutes of driving around.  Part of the problem was that we had to maneuver around all of the foot traffic and people with strollers.  Also, all parking at the zoo is free, which is nice.

Once inside we got very overwhelmed by the hoards of people EVERYWHERE & the vast amount of animals and attractions to see inside the zoo.  There were booths everywhere and the park itself is huge with tons of buildings and paths that go every which way.  The map was confusing and there were lots of places we didn't end up seeing because we'd go down one side of a path and end up never circling to the other side.  We got lost easily.  We were at the zoo for two hours and by the end of it we were tired from walking & putting up with all the people, sweaty from the hot weather (the weather here fluctuates from extreme to extreme; you never know what tomorrow will be like), and overwhelmed from everything we saw, the people, & the labyrinth of trails and paths.  We did have fun but I felt like I was going to pass out by the end of it; probably from low-blood sugar since I hadn't eaten much today.

Johnny had a lot of fun looking at the animals.  He was in his stroller for the first ten minutes or so and then started throwing a tantrum because he wanted out of the stroller.  He walked holding onto daddy's hand for the next ten minutes until he started trying to climb into the animal enclosures.  That was the end of Johnny walking.  For the next hour or so he sat on his daddy's shoulders and looked at all of the animals.  Then he got really tired and was fine with being in his stroller again, and remained like that for the rest of the visit.

(Johnny & daddy)

(Enjoying the zoo)

(Johnny walking with a purpose. :))

The animals that Johnny had the most fun looking at were: the lions, the giraffes, the elephants, and the ducks.  Yes, the ducks.  They weren't even really part of the zoo animals--they were the ducks and geese who lived in random ponds throughout the park.  And my son loved them.  He probably could have sat there and watched them all day if we were inclined to bore ourselves to death.  He probably would have really liked seeing the gorilla and monkeys too but the gorilla wasn't in his enclosure when we visited it and we couldn't get to the monkeys easily (we did see a few).  We all enjoyed seeing the polar bear too but we weren't able to get really close to the glass to see him because there were a lot of people who pretty much stood right near the glass and never moved away so other people could get pictures.  People annoy me sometimes. The polar bear was cooling off underneath a rock overhang in the water and you could see her in the underwater window--she put her big paw up against the glass and it was huge.  Some kids got their picture with their hands up against the paw and I really wanted to do that with Johnny too but the kids and their parents were the jerks that thought they were the only ones who wanted to see the polar bear.  Next time we go we hope to get pictures of Johnny next to the polar bear; hopefully she will do the paw thing again.

(John & Johnny in front of the lion enclosure...the male lion was lounging and sleeping as male lions--and males--do while the female lion circled and watched all the children with a look that could kill--literally.  That is the female lion behind the glass.)

 

(The guys looking at the giraffes)

 

(The VERY tall giraffes)

(The polar bear paw)

(Seal)

 

(zebra)

(John & Johnny next to an elephant!.....Just kidding: that is a huge picture of an elephant on plywood you can take pictures in front of.  Cool, huh?)

(The REAL elephants)

(The hippo hiding from the people)

 

(The rhino--there was NOBODY at his enclosure...poor, rhino)

 (Flamingos--which are as ridiculous in person as they are in cartoons)

(The baboons--where John & Johnny fit in. :) Excuse the glare of the glass & random kids reflected there)

(Yes, that is a mountain sheep.  On a FAKE rock cliff.)

 

We saw a lot of different animals and it was a blast!  I didn't get very many pictures (a lot of animals I didn't get any pictures of) because we were hot and it was so crowded that concentration was spent on trying to maneuver around rather than taking pictures.  We are looking forward to the next free day at the zoo, which I think is at the end of the month.  The Denver Zoo is one of those places that you either need to take the whole day to check out or check out different parts on different days.  I haven't been to a zoo that big since I was a small child and my family lived on the west-side of WA State.  It was great to take advantage of the warm weather today & to see another attraction of Denver. :)

Cherry Creek Trail Bike Ride

We just got back from our bike ride on the Cherry Creek Trail!  It was a lot of fun! We were exhausted right afterward, but now we feel great as only exercise can provide.  :)  It was surprisingly difficult to find the bike trail, but once we did, we went on a bike ride for about forty-five minutes.  Not a really long bike ride but long enough to give us a workout.  Johnny rode in his toddler seat on the back of John's bike again and I followed behind on my bike.  It was a REALLY pretty bike trail!  It winds parallel to the creek, which goes through Denver (apparently this trail goes way outside of Denver too).  The creek had mini waterfalls and there were lots of trees.  This trail--like the trail in Boulder--went under bridges and things.  It was pretty chilly today (definitely autumn!) so Johnny was bundled up in a coat & I also wore a sweatshirt for the bike ride.  Since I was wearing shorts and so was John we didn't get too overheated though.  We hope we'll be able to go on some more bike rides before winter hits us.  Sadly, we are having a lot of problems with our bike rack and so we might just ride our bikes in our own neighborhood and wait until the spring to buy a new bike rack before we go back to the Cherry Creek Trail or one of the other many bike trails in and around Denver.  :)  There were loads of bikers on the trail with professional gear training for a marathon most likely.  They were in great shape and flying by us.  One of the bikers was really nice and when he passed me he told me that my bike seat was a tad too low and showed me how my form should be on the bike if it is the correct height.  It was very nice of him to slow down enough to let me know--hopefully it will make my bike rides easier in the future, especially since my bike has had some difficulties lately.  

My camera's batteries were dead and not charged from all the many pictures I took at the museum this morning, so I wasn't able to get any pictures of the pretty bike trail.  Next time we go on a bike ride on that trail I will take pictures & post them so you all can see how pretty it is. :)

We are off to mass at the Cathedral in a few minutes--wish us luck in finding parking this time! :)

Also: Denver may be getting snow this week...please pray or wish or whatever it is that you have faith in that this does not happen. We hate snow. Thanks. :)

Update: We DID find parking at the Cathedral because we got there 1/2 hr before mass started. The Cathedral is HUGE and beautiful inside. Johnny was well-behaved and all the people sitting around us thought he was adorable because every time there was music & singing he would put his head back, look up at the ceiling, & wave his hands and sing in his own language. It really was adorable. :)

Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Today the Denver Museum of Nature & Science is having a free day open to the public. Since we had the day open and had never been to the museum we decided to pack Johnny up in his stroller and go to the museum. The museum opened at 9am and we go there around 9:05am since we never seem to get where we want to go on time when we have to get Johnny ready and in the car. We thought since it was a free day we wouldn't be able to find good parking and it would be very crowded, but we were pleasantly wrong. When we got there we got a parking space right out front and for the first hour and a half that we were there it was relatively sparse with visitors (it is a big museum). The last half hour though was VERY crowded, and a lot of the people thought it was acceptable to just stop in the middle of the walkway and not move so that NOBODY could get by. We only stayed two hours because it was too crowded for us and Johnny was getting a little grumpy being confined to his stroller (he runs & gets into everything and goes limp when you try to get him to behave so we keep him in his stroller at places like this).

This is Johnny before we headed out the door to go to the museum...can't you tell he is from the northwest in his flannel?? :) I think he is quite adorable in his "Save the Planet" tee, flannel shirt, jeans, & converse sneakers.  (I'm biased though)

This is Johnny getting ready to drive the car to the museum. ;) (John was switching the car seat to the Landcruiser from our other car)

The first section of the museum that we explored was the "Space Odyssey" exhibits, which was one of our favorites of the whole museum.

 (This is the guys in front of a giant globe--John's favorite thing in the whole museum...he now is requesting one for our apartment)

 

(This is John playing an interactive game where you try and dock the space shuttle onto a specific spot in the same gravity conditions as in space--it was surprisingly VERY difficult--he never ended up getting it to land properly)

(A space suit that was hanging from the ceiling)

I took more pictures of the Space Odyssey exhibits but didn't want to inundate the blog with tons of pictures of just one thing, so I limited to the best of each exhibit.  I have pictures of the Mars exhibit which was a big room glassed in that held rocks and dirt that looked like Mars.  There were telescopes, a planetarium, tons of moving pictures of the planets and space, and many other interactive games revolving around space exploration.

The exhibits we went to next were on the second floor.  These exhibits included various animal species of the world, Native American cultures, the Kid Discovery Zone, and the Expedition Health.  We went to all of the animal exhibits (divided up by regions and continents) and the Native American exhibits.  We were planning on going to the Kid Discovery Zone but when we got there you had to leave your stroller outside and the room was PACKED with people--like a can of sardines.  Everything to do was hands on activities and most of the toys were already occupied so we decided to try out this portion of the museum the next time we go.  We also didn't go to the Expedition Health because you couldn't take strollers into it and Johnny was too grumpy to walk calmly through the exhibit.  

We LOVED the Native American exhibits but we weren't so fond of the animal exhibits.  It was neat looking at all of the animals but all of the animals in the exhibits were stuffed dead animals.  :(  They had signs saying that the museum had sent out people in the early-to-mid twentieth century to other continents to "collect the specimens" (which I think means capture & kill).  It was really upsetting, especially because a large majority of the animals in the exhibits were endangered or extinct animals...and they would have like twenty of each species sometimes, including baby animals.  There were hundreds and hundreds of dead animals in these exhibits.  We really weren't impressed with that at all...

(here are the guys in front of the display that held stuffed koala bears) 

(Sadly this is the closest we'll get to Australia for a while)

(some artifacts of the Amazon)

 

(some stuffed Grizzly bears--including a cub--the sign underneath it says that the last Grizzly Bear in Colorado died in 1979)

 

(some polar bears stuffed--apparently it doesn't matter that they are endangered)

 

(some totem poles in the Native American exhibit--they were very tall)

(one of the many exhibits of Native American artifacts)

(some of the styles of the Northern Plains Indians--including the Blackfeet, which are my ancestors)

(I can't imagine that it would be too comfortable to be stuck in a confining space attached to a board while your mom was off doing other chores...I kept telling Johnny that if he didn't behave that I was going to make him sit in one of these and then he'd learn to appreciate his stroller--he knew they were empty threats)

 

(the lighting was poor in this particular area so the picture isn't that great, but we're standing in front of a log cabin like what the Northeastern Indians lived in)

There was a random exhibit of Russian Folk Gem-carvings.  They had some really bizarre carvings--a lot of them were of naked men doing random things or naked men who weighed a ton and were eating a whole bunch.  This is one of the gem carvings that we saw.  We're not actually sure what is happening here...

(a naked massage...Russian-style??)

The third floor of the museum had exhibits of the animals and cultures of Africa and South America. We looked at those, but mainly they were exhibits of more dead animals, with some human cultural artifacts mixed in.  This floor also had the Egyptian Mummies exhibit and the Prehistoric Exhibit (included the dinosaurs).  

(Johnny next to a lion--one of his favorite animals)

(a view of one of the many hanging skeletons we saw as we walked through the museum...this is a prehistoric whale)

(one of the mummies we saw in the Egyptian exhibit...this was a "poor woman" who was mummified, so she doesn't have a fancy casket--I felt like giving her some love since EVERYBODY was more interested in the "rich woman" mummy they had there)

(this was randomly in display in the Prehistoric exhibits...I guess they felt they MUST include a Denver Broncos logo somewhere in the museum so the "Prehistoric" section would be the right place for it??? we were actually looking forward to escaping from all the football on TV by going to the museum & alas! it found us there too...how sad)

 

(John & Johnny in front of a T-Rex skull--this was by far Johnny's favorite exhibit--he kept trying to get out of his stroller to play with all of the dinosaur skeletons)

(I think Johnny & I are in front of the bronchiosauraus (sp?) skeleton, but I can't remember precisely)

The very top floor of the museum was a Sky Terrace where you went outside (it was a little chilly) and can see Denver's skyline--it was very pretty.  You could see all of the downtown skyline with the Rocky Mountains in the background.  And you can see the city itself which is basically a huge forest of trees with the occasional building peeking up through them.  I seriously don't exaggerate when I say that Denver is made of trees! :)

(look @ that gorgeous view of the city! and my two handsome guys--I LOVE this picture of them)

(not that great of a picture of me--I was talking when John took the picture--but look at that view of Denver!)

 

(the tree skyline--basically all of Denver)

 

(Johnny started getting tired at the end of the tour)

After the Sky Terrace we went back down to the first floor of the museum to check out the one exhibit that we had missed unintentionally--the Gems & Minerals exhibit.  It was pretty cool, but we only saw one part of the exhibit because it was SO crowded.  Some person thought it was a bright idea to take his children to the museum in a large outdoor wagon rather than a stroller and he kept blocking the very narrow pathways so you'd end up standing in a bunch for several minutes before you could even get through.  Plus every time I tried to take a picture of Johnny & John in front of something people would walk right up and get in the way as if they didn't care.  Once all of the people started showing up it made it really unpleasant and I was getting frustrated so we called it a day and left.  We did get to see the part of the exhibit with all of the gems, minerals, and rocks (including amethyst--John & my birthstone!), but not up close since there were so many people blocking the way.  We ended up leaving before we got to see the Mining section of the exhibit.  This exhibit was probably really crowded because the pathways were really narrow--it was built for you to feel like you were inside of a mining shaft inside of a cave, so it made the feeling even more claustrophobic for me.

(John & Johnny in front of some stalagmites and stalactites) 

(John & Johnny in front of a T-Rex exhibit before we left the museum)

Even though it got really crowded at the museum at the very end, we had a really great time looking around at all of the exhibits at the museum!  Plus, who can't enjoy something that was FREE. :)  I am glad we got there when the museum first opened because we got an hour and a half to look around before all of the crowds showed up.  Our favorite exhibits were the Space Odyssey and the Native American ones.  I'm sure if we had been able to see the Expedition Health, that would have been my favorite & if we had been able to see the Gems and Minerals exhibit more in-depth that would have been John's favorite.  Johnny's would have been the Kid Discovery Zone for sure if we had been able to really enjoy it without all of the crowds.  Next time we'll make sure we get to see the exhibits we didn't get to see this time.  The animal exhibits weren't all bad--they were very educational and it was fun looking at animals, but it was our least favorite because of the fact that they were stuffed dead animals.  It would have been a lot better had they only been models of animals.  We are excited to go back to the museum again sometime in the future though! :)  If you are ever in the Denver area I recommend you check out the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.  

We are getting ready to go on a bike ride at the Cherry Creek Trail this afternoon before we go to mass at the Cathedral (hopefully this attempt will be successful), so hopefully I'll post more pictures from the bike ride later on tonight. :)