Nashville Weekend

Thursday afternoon we drove over to Nashville with Doreen's patient for her Clinical exam Friday morning. This is the last step she has to pass before she can get a license to become a Dental Hygienist. She's so close!

Anyway, we got checked into our motel, which was right across the street from the Stadium where the Tennessee Titans play. Very cool!



After relaxing a bit, we took the route Doreen would have to take to go to the school, just to make sure nothing funky was up, then headed to the Spaghetti Factory for supper! Yum Yum!








We were so stuffed from supper, we walked along the river a bit. Got to take a peek inside Fort Nashborough and got Joelle & Natalie to pose with these characters for a pic. Then back to the room and beddy bye for everyone!













Doreen and her patient were up 5ish for breakfast and off to Orientation at the testing site. The girls and I rolled over and went back to sleep for a bit. Then up and breakfast and then swimming in the Guitar pool. Very cool!














Then we changed and grabbed a Taxi, a first for the girls, for the Adventure Science Museum, which had EVERYTHING in it. They had a ball climbing, rolling, crawling and learning about all sorts of stuff.










Here the two of them learned they can use a lever and a combined 110 pounds can pick up a car! They loved that.











We spent some time being 'space cadets!' Here they are in front of Saturn. They even got to do some simulated moon walking.















After testing was all done, Doreen came and picked us up and we went back to the motel to chill a bit and share about each other's day. Doreen did well, but thinks that she could have done more, and is now waiting for Monday to find out if she passed or not. Anticipation! Then we headed to eat dinner at El Ray's mexican restaurant. We walked around the capital a bit just to walk off some of what we ate!



On Saturday, after sleeping in, we went to the Nashville Zoo!

Here's Doreen and the girls with a very cool elephant in the background...













...and me and the girls with a giraffe trying to get some leaves just out of reach!










A Meerkat doing some people watching! Too cute!

















The girls and I bounced across this bridge in the jungle gym...














...and Doreen and the girls played spider girls crawling all over these multi-level, very cool, nets they have available to play on!
















Finished for the day. After seeing all we could see, doing all we could do, we were bushed. We headed out of the zoo, had dinner with some friends and got home about 11:20 at night - thankful to have had some time to have some family fun!

Water Day

The last day of school for the girls was 'a-wash' literally. It was a water day. They brought in stuff like this big inflatable slide that Joelle's going down here or...

















...the inflatable slip-n-slide Natalie's zoomin' down to have a party to end a good year and kick off a fun summer break for the kiddos and teachers.














They had bags of popcorn...














...and cotton candy - yup, sugar 'em up before sending them back to the folks! **GRIN**

It was a fun time, had by all! :)

Critter Complex

We needed to build a home for our dog and chickens outside to stay dry. So we decded to build a critter complex, dog house, chicken coop, chicken roost.




So this is the process for the beast we built. (Um, how do I attach this to that?)











Support posts, coop back and roost side wall.











Other side to the roost wall, with a cute little entrance.












Roost Ramp! Ain't it CUTE? :)

















Dog house sides, coop sides and roost door.











Dog house roof, coop roof, coop door. (The girls did a very good job at helping us sand this thing down to get all the splinters out.)













Paint - barn red - appropriate, don't you think? (The girls really kicked in to help paint. Natalie did all three sides of the dog house and Joelle did the entire inside of the roost. Of course she used a LOT of paint repainting places she'd done before - but oh well. They worked hard!)






Super girl #1 - Joelle - Holding the complex up all by herself.

















Super girl #2 - Natalie - Holding the complex up by herself.

















The Critter Complex Transport company moving this beast to the backyard.











The 1st critter complex interior visitor.















Our critter's new home!

To Minnesota & Back OR Master Shelly

Doreen, Joelle and Natalie are waiting for Larry & Sandra to pick 'em up to head 22 hours north of where they're sitting to visit Shelly (Doreen's Sister) and family in Minnesota for a few days and to attend Shelly's Mastters Graduation!













While up there, they went to an indoor water-slide park. Here's Randy with Colby and Natalie.












Carlie and Joelle just enjoyed a FUN ride down a slide.












Calvin takin the time to feed a few gulls!












Four little rope monkeys, Calvin, Carlie, Joelle & Colby.











Papa Otto and his 3 Granddaughters.












The clan practicing for special music at church Sabbath.










The Ottos.












The Masters Graduate, Shelly. Congratulations Sis-in-law! Proud of ya!

They all had a fun trip. Wish I could'a joined them, but wasn't able. Glad they could go and enjoy it!

Splitting Up

Doreen and I went separate ways today. She went with Natalie and her Kindergarten class to a pool party and I went went Joelle on a field trip to the Discovery Museum and a Pumpkin Patch Playground. We all had a ball and just as much fun telling each other about it after we got back together.


Here's Joelle and the magically floating ball at the Discovery Museum.

















Joelle shaking hands with a skeleton in a closet!

















Our own personal monkey! :)



















Natalie ready to dive into some fun!













New extreme sport, swimsuit scootering!














There is NOTHING better than a piece of cold watermelon a warm day before getting back in the swimming pool! :)

Kindergarten Graduation

My little girl is growing up - that's good and that's baaad! :) She's getting to be no longer my little girl. (She'll always be my baby though, no matter how much she say's she's not a baby!!! **GRIN**)

Here's Natalie all dressed up just waiting for graduation.



















Getting her diploma, and very proud to have done so! :)













The graduate and her family!



















The proud parents and the graduate












Everyone enjoying good reception food afterwards!

It was very special!!!