Gateway Arch & Gus' Pretzels

Based upon the forecast I heard last night, I called Miss Jhansi and mentioned possibly taking the girls to the Zoo today. Little did we know we'd experience major storms, complete with plenty of rain, lightning, thunder and hail from 5a.m. until a bit after 8a.m. Needless to say we were not daring enough to risk further rain showers by spending a few hours at the Zoo....but we were willing to drive East and go up in the Arch :-) It was a "first" for everyone but me and I was honored to accompany the 4 "rookies" to the top!

The girls had no clue what was in store for them as we drove downtown. . .

. . .here is what greeting us at the Riverfront - - - VERY high waters. Normally there is "Riverfront parking" along the rivers edge, but today the river waters met the roadside curb:

I had Tubbles and her Mommy pose under the Arch:

Miss Jhansi was ready to board the North Tram, Capsule #1. . .

Tubbles enjoyed the tram ride:

. . .so did my girls:

Peyton kept looking out the windows trying to figure out where we were heading. This was a far cry from a Disney World ride!

Once we reached the TOP, we enjoyed the views while Miss Jhansi was enthralled with how much this massive structure was swaying. At 630 feet, it freaked her out a bit :-)

Here is the new Busch Stadium and the Old Cathedral:

The Old Courthouse:

. . .and some video footage of the tram ride back down:

Peyton & Tubbles enjoyed the sculpted tribute to the "Builders of the Arch". . .


To celebrate our survival in the "swaying Arch" we went to Gus' Pretzels:

Taylor devoured her giant pretzel stick!

Taylor update

I apologize but I completely forgot to bring a camera yesterday to capture the many fun moments of our Mother's Day celebration. After Mass and a brief gift presentation at Gung Gung & Papa's house. . .Potsou and I took custody of the Schnowz and took her to lunch and did some child-free shopping. I must say the greatest feeling on earth is hearing a crying fussy kid and knowing that yours are safe at home with their Daddy :- ) My sincere thanks go out to Uncle Charlie and Daddy Kia for their paternal skills which enabled us to go out on the prowl for a few hours.

Now for the Taylor update. This morning while Peyton was at school Taylor went to the doctor for her 18 month check-up. She is 33 inches tall (80th%ile) & tipped the scales at 23 pounds 6.5 ounces (40th %ile). Basically she is a lean mean muscle machine :-) Her two shots....she took them in stride with minimal tears.

Fredbird / Thumbelina / Mother's Day Eve

This morning we attended the Annual Fredbird / Thumbelina event at "Coldwell Banker Gundaker Real Estate & Mortgage". . .

Fredbird hopped in to Thumbelina's play yard. . .

Taylor was very intrigued by Thumbelina (the world's smallest horse) and kept trying to call her over. . .

Mr. Goessling urged Thumbelina to go see Taylor:

Taylor enjoyed eating AND sharing her bag of Cracker Jack:

Jack was adorable as usual:

After nap time, we celebrated Mother's Day Eve and the girls thoroughly enjoyed playing with their cousins. Peyton was enthralled with Uncle Jeff's version of a "goodbye hug"-

She tried to do what Uncle Jeff did but could not quite lift Luke up, let alone upside down!

Taylor's favorite place after dinner seemed to be on Kaitlyn's lap.

Peyton's oldest cousins felt pretty cool that I was allowing them to help with her bath tonight. Just for kicks they dyed the bathwater PURPLE!

Hail Mary

This morning was the May Crowning & Mother's Tea at Peyton's school. Since Mary's favorite color is blue, Peyton wore her BLUE and green sailor dress. After dropping T-Burn at Gung Gung's we stopped at Schnucks to purchase a couple carnations (Peyton hand picked them) for Mary. She was so proud of her selections. . .

. . .they smelled great, too:


Upon arriving at school, Peyton greeted McKinley and they discussed their flower selections:


Peyton placed her flowers in the vase. . .

. . .and then planted herself right next to it, blocking other kids from access:

Once the 2 & 3 year olds were all assembled around Mary, they sand her a song. Peyton appears to be the only 2 year old half interested in singing and doing the gestures. . .


After a couple songs, we went inside for our reception. The teachers had the Moms sit in regular chairs and the kids "served" us from their side of the classroom (a.k.a. the little chairs and the kitchenette). This in-action clip of Peyton bringing me my plate reminds me so much of Boland (when she served us coffee at the Macaroni Grill years ago).


After we finished our snack, we posed for a Mother/Daughter pic:


. . .and then Peyton posed with her wonderful teachers:

M A C Y K O = Y M C A

We are new YMCA members and anytime we go to the YMCA, Peyton says "I like the M.A.C.Y.K.O. Mommy". I am thinking she knows it is a bunch of letters and at least the first 4 are the correct letters....she simply has them jumbled and added the "KO" for the heck of it :-) It is a great setup because the girls have a blast playing with other kids while Mommy gets to workout and swim laps. Last night when Auntie Al was with us, we took the girls for an evening swim and Peyton tried to teach Taylor what she has learned about swimming. Here is Peyton in the Child Watch room:

Pardon the terrible hair but Taylor loves to rip her bows right off her head. . .her favorite thing to do at the "Peyton's M.A.C.Y.K.O." is carry the baby dolls around the playroom:

Their second favorite activity is to sit in the golf cart which is currently housed in the Lobby to promote an upcoming golf outing. Taylor grabbed the wheel in a flash:

See this innocent looking couple? This was just after they put the cart in reverse which made the buzzing sound until Mommy (veteran golf cart expert) discovered what the sound was. The people at the front desk assumed that since the cart was off and the key was hidden that Peyton & Taylor's "accomplishment" (of making it buzz) was impossible.

Tonight there was a dance recital in the Theatre so prior to departing we popped in and watched a few numbers. Here is Peyton just after "Girls Just Want To Have Fun". . .

Tea Time

Thanks to the generosity of Miss Louise, Peyton & Gung Gung got to accompany Peyton to a Tea Party benefiting Lydia's House. Initially I think Peyton was overwhelmed by the size of the rooms and the number of people but after about 20 minutes of acclimating herself, she felt right at home. Here she is with Miss Louise:

. . .and here she is decorating her very own cookie:

After she finished making her cookie and boxing it up, I asked one of the bakers if she could make one for her sister and with permission I said, "okay Peyton, let's make one for Taylor". . .and here she is making one for Taylor:

SHE ATE IT!!!! This delicious yellow iced cookie was Taylor's! Rest assured after she devoured this sweet appetizer, she did make Taylor a "T" cookie :-) Towards the end of the event, a SPECIAL guest entered. Although Peyton was by far once of the youngest attendees, she sure hopped right in line with the big girls to follow CINDERELLA:


I even got to take a picture of Peyton and her favorite Disney Princess:


We smuggled plenty of extra goodies home for Daddy, Mr. Frank & Taylor. Her is Taylor enjoying some chips:

Peyton tries to see Auntie Al through her binoculars:

Monkey Joe's & The Moolah Shrine Circus

What a fun filled day we had . . .taking Daddy to Monkey Joe's AND the Circus (thanks Johnny B for the last minute freebies).



After 5 o'clock Mass, we squeezed in a quick bite to eat at DQ. Here is a picture of me and the girls entitled "CHEERS". . .

We arrived at the Circus at 7:29p.m. (with 1 minute to spare). During the first act, a clown sat in the aisle next to Daddy and made balloon characters for kids. Peyton got a black doggie which she calls "Bella" and Taylor received a yellow doggie which Peyton calls "Sandy".....not really creative with names is she?

During the Circus, Daddy was most impressed with the Bears who rode tricycles. Peyton liked the tigers. Taylor liked the crazy canines. I was intrigued with this lady who hung BY HER HAIR and spun around and around and around. . .

ANOTHER FUN DAY

Last night as I was returning from a jog, look what I saw. Was Daddy trying to corral his girls?

Our afternoon crowd did not go out for an ordinary lunch. We opted for a bowling luncheon. Peyton enjoyed renting her pair of size 10 shoes just so she could look like the other kids and run all around the bowling center. She, at most, bowled two frames. . .but hey - in the famous words of J. Kim Tucci "It's not how you play the game, it's how you look that matters"

Is it just me or have the bowling balls become more exciting since the 1970s and 1980s when 95% of them were black?

Tonight after attempting to fly a kite (I guess Kappas can't fly them as well as Thetas), we took the girls to dinner and let them play in the kids zone. . .

Here is proof that Taylor loved it:

Pre-Party

As we backed out of our garage, Peyton exclaimed "Mommy, look- Taylor is my best friend!" so of course I stopped the minivan and took a quick photo:

Since Sork will be in California with Dr. Phil on Peyton's actual birthday, she attended a "pre-party" today at Chuck E. Cheese and presented Peyton with one of her "dream gifts". . . a FROG RAINCOAT. As soon as Peyton opened it she smiled and said "Oh wow, now I can get the boots and the umbrella". Dillard's has all the accessories for a well-coordinated kid :-)

Unlike most kids who need lots of tokens for games and rides, Peyton spent 75% of her time on stage singing and dancing:

CHEEEEEESE:

Taylor dined with the ladies:

Ironically, big girl Peyton was scared of Chuck E. Cheese when he approached her. Colleen and Taylor gave him high fives. . .

Here is a pic of Peyton in her new rain gear: