Breaking the long silence and Fun Links

I have a lot of catching up to do. It always seems like I either have a ton going on and no time to blog or nothing going on and nothing to say. I have been to Vancourver and Miami in the past 3 weeks and need to post some pictures. First though, some light hearted thoughts on the financial crisis and, well a really bad movie trailer (yes I think it is for a real move). These links made me laugh.

Jet blue educates CEO's on how to fly like a normal person.

Muppets teach about the Bernie Madoff

Monster Flick Trailer

Like the purposeless "lion headed wall staff" bombay company tried to sell, the 24karate gold rat I saw in Chinatown, and some Zuni sculptures, this trailer made me happy I live in such a wonderful world. I am not sure what is better, the shark bitting the Golden Gate or the octopus swatting the jet. Really they made this into a movie?

Two Trips to the Zoo

We recently made two trips to the Beardsley Zoo. It is a small zoo in Connecticut about a half an hour away from where we live. Alyssa and I went on the first really warm day back in March. The last three pictures are from that trip. We had a really great time. I think the tiger was her favorite animal. One thing she didn't like was the carousel. They have this beautiful carousel that has lots of different animals you can ride, an elephant, zebra, lion, tiger, as well as the expected horses. Alyssa was riding an elephant, but she was a little scared by the whole thing, so I ended up holding her. But overall, it was a great day.

Dan was really sad that he missed going with us. He loves the zoo! So a few weeks later we went again. The first few pictures are of our second trip. Sadly, on our second trip the tigers were sleeping in the back of the cage. Alyssa tried to call them out by yelling, "Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!" Anytime we were remotely close to the tiger cage her little voice rang out. At least she got to see them on the first time around!


The weather was finally warm enough in Connecticut to reopen the Alligator exhibit. There weren't any alligators there on our first trip. Of course, this big guy is there all the time. Alyssa thought it was a dinosaur at first, but we managed to teach her that it was an alligator.

Alyssa loves birds of all kinds. In the rainforest building, there are birds flying freely. She also enjoyed these ducks outside.

The prairie dog exhibit has tunnels you can go up in to experience what it is like for a prairie dog. Dan took Alyssa up in the main tunnel. I think she liked the tunnel more than the prairie dogs. She loves dogs so much, she was a little confused by the name.

Ah, the wolves. She of course called them dogs. That is, until they started to howl. Have you ever been near a wolf when they howl? It can be a little eerie. Dan and I were once five feet away from a howling wolf, with no barrier in between. This wasn't quite as nerve wracking, but it did convince Alyssa that wolves are a little different than her little doggie.



This is my favorite picture of our first visit to the zoo. I have to say that there is something a little creepy about seeing her so close to a tiger.

Washington

The only picture I took is on my cell phone and I don't have the energy to upload it, but last week I spent in D.C. with the PAC for my specialty. The whole experience was kinda fun and depressing at the same time. I think Washington is more fun the more you like big government, so in that way it was kinda a drag in my case. On the upside, I did run into Al Franken pathetically drinking alone at a bar (he was probably waiting for someone, but I like to think he was drinking alone as the courts drag out the election).

While there I got to see my old college roomates, the libertarian lawyer who gets nauseated by the mere presence of government buildings and the newly sworn in State Department G-man.
Its always good to see them, and Phil felt validated that he isn't the only one to want a gun, a second dog, and drink fruit flavored malts.

Now the whole family is sick (except Sophia), so we are just lying around.

Warmer Days Ahead

Last weekend we had a warm day that made us hopeful for the arrival of spring. We took advantage of the weather to take our family to the Farmington Canal Trail near our apartment. It was nearing twilight when we went, which is how we got this great picture of bionic Alyssa, appearing to move at high speed. Not all the snow from our weekly snow storm had melted, so Alyssa and Sophia both had to check it out. This trail is great. We are looking forward to spending more time walking the trail this spring and summer.

Indoor Games

Alyssa has been working on perfecting her block tower. I think she's doing a pretty good job.

Here is the butterfly that I made with clay, and the squished piece that Alyssa made. Notice that the head and part of the wing are missing? Sophia was feeling a little left out and bit them off. Thank goodness the clay was made out of edible components. Of course, she still threw it up a few minutes later.

While I assumed that Alyssa would be really interested in the homemade clay, she preferred to play with the dog's food and water. I'm not quite sure why this is so fascinating, but she tries to do it at least once a day. Sophia is amazingly patient with this intrusion into her territory.

So what did I learn today? Sometimes the activities I plan do more to keep me entertained than Alyssa. But, I think it's good for both of us to try new things, so we will press on in our explorations. Next week, who knows? I haven't planned that far ahead yet.