First Flight

 

Last weekend Scott checked something off his "must do before I die" list. He flew a plane! For Christmas in 2008 the boys and I got Scott a 'Discovery Flight', which is basically an introductory flying lesson.

Little did we know that Scott was going to do nearly all the flying -- Scott sat in the captains seat and did the take-off, flew for about an hour, and then lined us up with the runway and got us within feet of landing on the ground before the instructor took over.

 

We were amazed that after a few minutes of explaining the instruments to Scott, the instructor told Scott to fire up the engine and taxi the plane on over to the run-way. By himself. And then Scott made the plane take off! While I have full confidence in Scott, this is about when I started freaking out. In that small aircraft it felt like we were being bounced on the end of a string. I just gripped the seat and stared straight ahead for the first 10 minutes. But then I saw our neighborhood below us, and this great view of Lake Conroe:

Once we were in the air the instructor pointed out the sites below us and gave maneuvering challenges for Scott to try, such as changing our altitude, turning, or selecting a site visible in the distance and then flying us to it. I can only think of two times the instructor intervened and piloted the plane-- once after we were already up in the air to just level us off or something, and then just before the wheels touched down on the runway again. Thankfully, Scott was a natural. Doesn't he look the part?

In fact, Scott asked questions about some more advanced piloting stuff, which lead to my my favorite quote by the instructor which began with: "Now that I know you are not totally bad at this" I will let you do something that I don't usually do on first flights. He then proceeded to teach Scott some fine tuning on how to use the rudders for even smoother turns. It was really amazing how good Scott was at maneuvering that plane from the moment he sat in it. Much to my relief, we all survived the flight.

I loved watching familiar landmarks from above. We could not have asked for a more beautiful, clear day to fly. From The Woodlands we could even see downtown Houston! See the 'tiny' buildings along the horizon?

I fretted over this flight for weeks, feeling certain that we would crash in a fiery ball of death and in one fell swoop leave our boys orphans. And it didn't help that when I mentioned our upcoming flight to my sister, her first response was "Don't wear synthetics; they will melt to your skin if you crash. Leather is a better option. That sounds fun though!" Thanks, sis. 

When we signed a waiver before the flight, I included the phone number of the friend who was watching our boys, and instructed the receptionist that "this person has our children. You'll need to call her if we die." The receptionist laughed. But I was serious. 

But evidently I had no need to be so worried. We had a great time and I would jump at the chance to do it again. But only if Scott was captain.

Joseph's Room

Joseph's bedroom is finally really his. I started decorating it last fall in preparation for his first birthday and just finally finished all of the major parts. I definately learned some new skills with this endeavor as most of what you see are DIY projects. 

 

Joseph's room has a window covering nearly an entire wall and it gets afternoon sun. I made the giraffe curtains with blackout backing that cover the entire window when closed. The curtain rod is a spray-painted 9' closet pole with finials on the end.

The name letters are plastic "canvases" from Target that I spray-painted and covered with scrapbook paper.
 

   It was tough to find a shaggy rug in the right size in color. After ordering a few online that just weren't right, I found two large bathroom rugs that Scott and I attached to industrial carpeting with carpet tape, with this as the result. The shag hides the seam entirely. It is exactly what I wanted and feels so good under bare feet!

I love paper lanterns and I was really happy to find them in the right colors for his room. Every morning he points to them and exclaims "baaaawaaaahs!" (balls) and points to one cluster of lanterns and then the other, back and forth.
 

Ikea frames with scrapbook paper backing and an animal cut out of... you guessed it, more scrapbook paper. There is an elephant, a giraffe and a bear. Joseph insists the giraffe one is a "goggie" (dog)
 

Scott got that cute little elephant for Joseph for Christmas. Joseph does an adorable impression of an elephant -- he lifts one arm out in front of him (like a trunk) while blowing a raspberry.
 

It is fun to have another room finished and I love that it turned out well under budget.

Houston Aquarium

 (I didn't take this picture. But I should have gotten a picture of Ian with it. While we were waiting to go in, every time Ian disappeared this is what I found him standing in front of.)

Several preschools got together at the Houston Aquarium this morning for a fun outing. My best friend was able to join us too, even though it was in the middle of a work day. We felt really spoiled and it was so much fun!

 With Daddy there we were able to ditch the double stroller. The boys had a blast roaming free and looking at all the incredible fish. Fake rocks adorned the fish tanks, and Joseph loved to find a perch as high as he could climb, where he would then press his nose to the glass and watch the fish intentl, saying "Wishy! Wishy!"

Outside of the aquarium is a ferris wheel, a carousel, and a miniature train. I am sure you can guess which Ian was most enthused about.... From the time he saw the train from afar, until we rode it into the first tunnel, Ian laughed hysterically. The first tunnel is enclosed by a giant shark tank. Joseph thought it was too loud. Ian just wished the train would keep on moving. Scott and I thought it was awesome how all the sharks were right next to us.

 The carousel was also a huge hit. Ian selected a "shark" to ride.

Joseph rode an alligator and hopped up and down on it until it actually started moving. He wasn't so sure that he liked that.

 When the carousel stopped, Ian slid right off his "shark" and hung there by his waist belt until a ride worker noticed and brought it to our attention. Oops!

It felt like a holiday to have Daddy there with us. What a fun memory!

Can you guess what Ian told me he was doing here?

Apparently he is sitting on the toilet, complete with sanitary paper on the seat, at a public restroom. Eating a "potty treat" tiger.

I guess it takes some practice and visualization to master this potty training thing. 

Whenever we leave the house he tells me: "I am so excited to sit on the toilet at HEB/a friends house/the museum!"