Parents in town

My dear parents came for a week visit.   They say relatives are like fish and stink after 3 days... but my parents never stunk.    And because of my Dad one night we bought fish, gutted them, cooked them, and found out fish really do stink!!!  Mom & Dad flew in Tuesday, March 19th, from my sister's home in California.  So when they go here they were already 5 days into their vacation and not feeling very well.  Therefore our first 2 days were low key.  But everyone managed to feel better and we all had a great week. 

The first day was very low key. Mommy slept most the day.  My Dad & I took the twins to a "Turtle Park" where we feed the turtles and visited the owls.  After the park we all went home for naps.  Since our house isn't very big, Dad went out and slept in the lawn chairs by our pool.  Well, our maintenance man saw him, pocked him and woke him up.  Then asked Dad all these questions as to who he was and why he was sleeping at our pool fully clothed.  He thought Dad was a bum!!!

 

On day two Mommy was feeling a little healthier, so she came out with us for a day filled of parks.  I took them to three of my favorite parks: Boca Cigia Millennium Park, Seminole City Park, Largo Nature Preserve.  Yep, we went to 3.  But each park had a function.   The first park was to let the kids play and hike the bird observation tower.  The second park was where we had a picnic and feed the birds.  The last park was for the purpose of seeing an alligator and throwing rock.  We did get to see our alligator who was basking in the sun.  It was a stunning day.

Park 1

Park 2

Park 3:

Day three was a "Daddy & Daughter" day.  I took my dad on a kayaking adventure through Weeden State Preserve.  We had a lot of fun talking as we glided through the mangroves.   We saw lots of fish skipping across the water and saw lots of crabs spotted on the trees.  Our favorite was seeing the amazing beauty of the mangroves, lakes, and open water.  God created such a beautiful world for us to enjoy.  After our kayaking adventure we visited the Weeden visitor center.  My father enjoys reading EVERY sign, so I  learned a lot of new things. 

I now know that there are  3 species of mangroves. Red mangroves live close to the water or in the water. Black mangroves live inland more.  White mangroves are the furthest inland.  I also learned 2 new words, which I got quizzed on all week.  Pneumatophore is a specialized structure developed from the root of a Black Mangrove that grows in swamps and marshes, serving as a respiratory organ. Midden is mound or deposit containing shells, animal bones, and other refuse that indicates the site of a human settlement. The Indians called their fire pits kitchen midden. It was an delightful day.

And our day didn't end there.  We had Bob and Becki over for a BBQ that evening.  They are a couple that my parents meet on a "Fun for Less" tour in India.  My patents enjoyed their company so much they pressured me into looking up Bob & Becki here in Largo and meeting them.  Well, I can tell you I am so glad they did.  Bob & Becki are the sweetest couple.   The twins love them and look forward to every encounter.  Leif and I love their company and wisdom.  They have become second Grandparents to Micah & Savannah, and spoil them just like grandparents should.  We had a very nice meal with them despite the rain.  

Day four was a Saturday and Leif was off.  We saw advertisements for the Pinellas County Fair, so all 6 of us went. Somehow the advertisement were off because it was more of a carnival and just called a fair.  But the kids had fun seeing the animals and playing some games.  Leif and I even got to play some games.  And since we live in Florida, we saw an alligator show, which ended up being all of our favorites. On the way home we ate at Chick f let and then played Taboo till late.

 

That night we went to an Easter Egg hunt with the twins.  They both found SO SO many eggs but then couldn't take the eggs home.  Well we really didn't need anymore eggs in our house.

Sunday was the fifth day.  We all dressed up for church.  Savannah wear her new dress Grandma got her.  Micah was handsome in his vest.  We took some cute pictures then went to church.  After church we stopped at heritage Village, then came home to cook up salmon, rice, and potatoes. Decorating Easter Eggs also took place with an egg fight taught to the twins by their Grandma.

 

Monday, Leif was shocked to get the day off.  We all worked out in the morning.  Mom & I went for a bike ride while the boys went to the gym.  We then drove to Vonnoy Park where we played tennis, had a picnic, played freebie, watched dolphins, caught fish, played in the beach, and played volley-ball.  Yep, that is right.   This is an amazing park that is right on the water and has so much to do.  We saw a man catching Mullet fish with his net. After talking and watching him for some times.... we took home 4 mullet and had an interesting dinner. 

 

 

 

On our last day we spent it at Busch Gardens.   And we went during the same week as Spring Break for most of Florida.  So instead of riding rides, we spent most of our times at shows and seeing the animals.  It was a colder day and a slower day.  But we had a lot of fun and enjoyed each other.

 

  

    Thanks Mom & Dad for coming to see us.  We really had a nice time.  It went by so fast.  On Wednesday morinng the twins asked, "Where Grandma & Papa go?"  We all miss you already.

St Patricks Day

 Happy St. Patricks Day 2013.  We had a lot of fun eating Lucky Charms in the morning and pinching eachother throughout the day.  The twins looked so cute in their GREEN clothes.  It was a nice quite day with lots of sugar cookies.

Easter Run & Hunt

I raced in an Upgrade2Success run on March 16th.  It was awesome because it was a smaller race, benefited our fundamental schools, was at a beautiful park, had great food, the Easter Bunny was there, an egg hunt happened, crafts were made, and I placed 26th overall while pushing a stroller.   My 5 K time was 24:02 (8 minute miles) which isn't bad for pushing a stroller the whole time.  I felt great during the ran and was really happy about my strong finish.  I really do love to run.  Each race I run makes me want to run more.  

The funny thing about the race was that I accidentally wore Savannah's time chip instead of mine.  Therefore Savannah, at age 2, came in 6th for girls and got 1st in her age group.  She was really cute wearing her finisher & 1st place medal. 

 My good friend, Tiffany, ran with her boys as well.  She is an awesome friend, because she is always up for any adventure.  She doesn't care if 25 people come swim in her pool.  She is always thinking of crazy, active things to do with her 3 boys. And she is the best Nursery Leader ever. 

 The twins LOVED this Easter Bunny.  And I think this Easter Bunny Loved the twins.  I cant count how many hugs were given, but I know it was a hard good-bye. 

 After the race we did another Egg-Hunt at Largo Mall.  There were so many eggs and they split them into agg groups, so the kids got a ton of eggs.  They were so cute to watch. Savannah only picked up orange, pink, or yellow eggs.  Micah had mostly blue eggs with some randoms ones in the middle.  These next 3 weeks before Easter are going to be so much fun!!!

Update on the twins

Micah Maughan Kanooth is now 22 months old and growing every minute.  He is the sweetest little guy, and always makes his parents smile.  He has a smart wit about him, and is always observing what is going on around him. Micah is a peacemaker.  He normally complies with directions.  Micah gives us so much joy.   We love him so much and all the things he does.

Micah new love is Base-ball.  He has a great arm and loves to play catch.  He also loves his bat and will swing at anything, even if it's his sister.

Micah still is in love with cars, trains and trucks.  He has a bin full of automobiles and will line them all up from back to front.   He builds tunnels to put his cars under.  He sleeps with his cars at night.

Micah love to jump.  He will drag pillows from the couch and build a pile under the kitchen table.  He then jumps onto the pillows over-and-over again.

Micah loves brown.  He likes to wear his brown shorts and shirts.  He colors with brown.  When picking out a toy or book, it is most likely brown.

Micah has the best laugh. He is ticklish on his feet, tummy, legs and arms.  And he has the cutest giggle.  I so badly want to put his laugh in a jar and keep it forever.   

Micah gives great hugs.  He likes to cuddle after his naps.  He now ALWAYS come into our room around 2:00 am to cuddle with Mommy in bed.  And he cuddles back, sometimes he even rubs my back or arms.   

Micah is a great brother to Savannah.  He is always asking about her.  He shares his clothes and toys with her.  And he puts up with her.

 

Savannah Jeanne Kanooth is now 22 months old and doesn't stop growing.  She has a very distinct personality, and is so strong willed.  She knows what she wants.  She learns easily and is very smart.  Savannah is sweet, she give lots of hugs throughout the day.  She gives us so much joy.   We love her so much and all the things she does.

Savannah's new love is puzzles.  She can finish most 24 piece puzzles on her own.  She normally has to do ALL the puzzles before she is done (and that's 8 puzzles.)

Savannah is still in love with ponies.  She puts all her ponies in a bag and carries them around with her everywhere.  She doesn't really play with them, just holds them and pets them.  She has pony pajamas and has to wear them every night.  

Savannah love to ride her tricycle.  She calls it her "Pink Bicycle".  She rides it all around our backyard and honks the horn.

Savannah loves the color orange.  She doesn't have many things that are orange, but when asked her favorite color she always says, "orange".

Savannah has just learned how to go potty on the toilet.  She is so proud of herself every time she goes.  If I didn't see her go pee, she will carry her pee around the house until she finds me.  She loves her big girl underwear, and is so cute in them.

Savannah still loves her "bows".  She has recently started putting bows on her animals.  She likes to pick out her bows and rubber-bands.  Savannah likes everything to match. She is constantly pointing out things that are the same color.

Savannah is a great sister to Micah.  She is always worried about him.  She wants to make sure that he is eating his food and staying clean.  She will randomly hug him.  They really have a little connection.

Weekend with Daddy

Leif had a weekend off, so like always, I tried to fill it and maximize our time together.  March the 9th we started off our day with a "Pow-Wow Parade".  The kids had so so much fun as they probably both got 5 pounds of candy AND 10 necklaces apiece.   Leif and I enjoyed seeing the bands and getting flyers.  Leif then took the twins to Costco and a park, while I planned a lesson for church.  We ended the day together watching a movie and eating pop-corn (Micah's favorite).

On Monday we all went to John's Pass together.  I was so excited to show Leif all the dolphins, and of course there weren't any out swimming.  We did have fun walking around at all the shops and then headed over to the beach.  Micah & Savannah both brought their freebiees and we played some intense games.

 

Leif and I also got to go on a DATE.  We went to CVS and bought 5 bags of candy, then headed over to the movies.  We watched OZ in 3-D and both really enjoyed it.

Cute Story # 2

It was nap time.  I have 3 kids to put to bed, and 2 were almost asleep.   Then little Micah decided to throw all his toys on top of a sleeping baby.  I was so mad.  He woke her up.  I was angry.  I didn't think, instead I picked Micah up, spanked him 2 times, and told him to lay down.

Micah then ran up to me.  He spanked me two times on my bottom (with both his hands) and yelled, "Don't spank me Mamma."

I hugged him.  Told him I was sorry and told him to go to bed.  He responded with, "Don't spank me."

Cute Story

I asked Savannah if she wanted to wear her horsey or kitty pajamas.  She thought about it for a while and then said, "I want to wear Micah's dinosaur pajamas."

I told her that she had to ask Micah if she could wear them.

So Savannah goes over to Micah.  She get 6 inches from his face and says, "Micah, can I wear your dinosaur pajamas? Say yes... say yes... say yes."

Micah thinks about it, and then annoyingly replies, "Yes, Sana."