Cinco de Mayo Fiesta

A few weeks ago I looked up the history behind Cinco de Mayo, and came to the conclusion that it is an American holiday to eat Mexican food. Good enough. I invited some family over and we ate glorified taco salads, listened to mariachi music, and burst open a piñata. This may be the start of a fantastic family tradition.

decorations inspired by oh happy day

delicious salad fixings - i had elk for the first time and it was amazing

best cupcakes I've ever eaten - red velvet piñata/flowers and Mexican hot chocolate

piñata inspired by refinery29

the piñata was too heavy for the string, so I told the boys they could throw it at the wall to bust it open. they were more than happy with that plan.

the boys were satisfied with the payoff.

Tempe Light Parade

Saturday night, the boy, his friend and I, plus my parents, headed to downtown Tempe for the annual Light Parade. It was great. The boys loved the big trucks, bus, and race car. The parents and I loved that Cookies from Home gave me a whole box of cookies!

And so begins the Christmas festivities. The past few years I've been a bit of a grinch over the holidays, but this year I'm really excited about all the activities we can do as a family. I think the free cookies had a lot to do with this change of heart. That and the fact that Thanksgiving was so wonderful and chill. Bring on the Christmas cheer!

Flap Those Wings

Last week, the Boy and I went on another adventure with Jen and baby. This time we headed to the Desert Botanical Garden. They currently have a butterfly exhibit that will end this weekend. We went to check it out. We saw the exhibit last year, but this year the Boy was more verbal about how he felt about the butterflies. His body language made it pretty clear, as well.

He was afraid of them because they flapped their wings too quickly. I can understand that. They sure were incredible to see all lined on the netting. The Boy enjoyed them most when they went down to get a drink from the flowers.

The garden has another exhibit right now that included large wooden sculptures of various bugs. I didn't take any pictures of them, but Jen basically has them all covered over on her blog.

Tempe Veterans Parade

Last Friday, the Boy and I, along with my parents, went to the Veterans Day parade in Downtown Tempe. As always, we enjoyed ourselves. How could we not with the marching bands, thrown candy, and old cars? Thank you Veterans for protecting our freedom!

airplanes were "in the parade" too, or so says the boy.

all my favorite cars from the parade

The weather was lovely and produced fantastic lighting for pictures. Thank you clouds!

Arizona Wing of the CAF Museum

Last week's adventures with Adam's Dad took us to an airplane museum in Mesa. The Boy was in airplane heaven. There were lots to look at - large airplanes from wars past, miniatures of many military planes, war memorabilia, and a child sized toy plane.





Also, the museum is right next to/on Falcon Field, so there were planes taking off and landing in very close proximity to us. Every few minutes "Look! A airpain!" or "Uhr airpain!" could be heard from our party.


The icing on the cake was when we (me and the Boy) got to go inside one of the large planes. Adam's Dad opted out due the the eerie-ness of being in a plane that many young men died while flying. The Boy was oblivious to this and I loved visiting Alcatraz, so eerie-ness in history doesn't affect me in the same manner. It was incredible to see the size of the compartments where gunners sat. Talk about being claustrophobic. I am grateful for the men that serve and have served in the armed forces for sure.

Musical Instrument Museum

On our adventures last week, the Boy, Husband's Dad, and I went to the new fancy museum out in North East Phoenix. There were musical instruments galore. There were rooms dedicated to instruments from every region of the world. Every five minutes the Boy said "Look! Another guitar!" Husband's Dad was in music heaven. And I couldn't wait to find a room where I could play an instrument - Any instrument. Thankfully we found one and had a jam session.

It had me reflecting on the fact that I have played 5 instruments throughout my life, and yet I currently play none. That needs to be rectified. Anyone want to buy me a marimba? Or a crocodile?

Botanical Gardens

Last week The Boy, Husband's Dad, and I went to the Botanical Gardens. The weather was spectacular. I saw parts of the garden I had never ventured to before. We found...

a wooden star creature,

a new home,

and the perfect canvas for creating dirt art.

The Boy may or may not have yelled when a women walked through one of his pictures. It was a good day.

Garden Tour

Last Saturday, the Boy and I went with my parents to visit a few gardens in their neighborhood. It was fun to see the different techniques used in different living arrangements and the Boy loved the time spent with his Papa and Grandma. Within the next month I may or may not show you the garden Husband and I are helping to tend at my parents' house. The plan is to get it started on President's Day weekend, but we will see how it all pans out. I would love to eat fresh homegrown produce and it will be a great experience for the Boy. We are grateful that my parents are willing to share their yard with us.

On the tour I learned about:

soil,

compost/fertilizer,

photo from either side of the compost container - it is amazing what a difference 2 months makes

6" of leaves will last for 6 months as a good fertilizer

worms,

sprouting seeds in a homemade green house,

watering techniques,

effects of a frost,

proper care

improper care

ways to protect plants from ever so strong AZ sun,

garden construction using different materials,

harvesting,

these snow peas are as beautiful as they are delicious

and having fun.

The boy even got to legitimately wear his new green boots. Not that he needed one, because he has been wearing them since he picked them out last week.