Katie Mei's first trip to the zoo

We visited the Chehaw Park Zoo last week and had one of the most lovely fall days ever. The day was sunny and the park was shady. The temperature was just right with the slight hint of fall smell in the air (well, in between the whiffs of Bison poo and reptile aroma).

We started our visit with a look at the black rhino and the flamingos. Katie Mei thought those pink birds were pretty interesting since they were standing there on one leg.


Then the path led into the main part of the park, with the cheetahs to the right and the meerkats to the left. We went right. It was not what I expected.


The cheetah area was a fairly good sized grassy space with a few rocks and trees, and I initially saw one cheetah pretty far off lying in the grass. Typical, I thought. The animals at the zoo are usually asleep and couldn't care less if we stared at them or not. Just about the time the thought was completely formed in my head, this larger, sinewy, "real-looking" cheetah came out of nowhere staring me right in the eye and heading right towards me. I have to admit, this is the first time I ever felt threatened in a zoo.



The place where I was standing was only about eight to ten feet off the ground and there was a fence around the cheetah's area about four feet out in front and below me. You can see from the photo that the fence really didn't even separate me from that cat. And though I don't have any photos of him heading straight for me (I was trying to get my camera out and hanging on to the stroller ready to run all at the same time), his look was sinister and I would swear he was eyeballin' Katie Mei like she was lunch. I could envision one swift leap and he'd be over that fence to grab his sweet snack.

Finally, as Katie Mei and I stayed in the background, the creepy cat walked away and jumped up on the rock to stare down the meerkats. I was left with that shivery feeling of what it must be like for people who live in areas of the world where wild cats are a real threat. Those animals are absolutely gorgeous, but they are still beasts of prey and are not to be taken lightly. I think the reason this one really bothered me is because it really did look right at me as if it was sizing me up. You don't usually have zoo animals look at you as if they care.



I was ready to high-tail it out of there. I've always wanted to go on a safari. Now I'm wondering if that's such a good idea....

So we moved on, passing some monkeys with whom Katie Mei seemed to find a common bond. She really enjoyed them. After we left the park we asked her if she remembered seeing the monkeys, to which she replied "Yes! Jacob mukmuk!" (her word for monkey). Hmmmm. I wonder if she thinks Jacob and monkeys are one in the same. Takes one to know one.

Then we got to the black bears. Miss KM knew exactly what the huge black animal was through the fence, which surprised me. She has seen lots of drawings of bears in books, but as in most kids' books they are the Teddy Bear-looking cartoon bears. I don't know where she might have seen a real bear photo. But in any case, she knew it was a bear. And a BIG bear it was. However, if cheetahs are the fastest land animals in the world, how come there was more fencing for the bear than the cheetah? This lead me to wonder how high a cheetah can actually jump, and this is what I found: http://hownow.brownpau.com/archives/2005/11/deer-and-cheetah/ . Makes me feel better about the cheetah not eating my baby.

We then took a meandering path to see an eagle and a couple bobcats. Neither was very interesting. I'll skip on those photos to save you the trouble of trying to find the animals among the trees.

The trail then brought us to the American Bison. This is a beautiful, powerful, amazing animal. I was really surprised by how large he was. I know I've seen bison in zoos before, but maybe it was our proximity to him that made me realize how truly awe-inspiring they are. I then started thinking about how scary and wonderful it must have been to witness a stampede of these things thundering across an open prarie early in American history. It is so sad that these beasts' numbers have dwindled. As powerful as they are, it's a wonder they aren't more of a national symbol like the bald eagle.

Katie Mei was very much taken with the bison and didn't want to leave. We had to stand there for at least 15 minutes while she watched him lick his own nostrils and tried to imitate him. Blech.

When we could finally convince her to leave the bison, we passed by a few more displays and made it to the zebras. Ahhhh, real zoo animals, right? Seems we always think the three main ingredients for a zoo are elephants, zebras, and giraffes. Why is that? This little zoo was beautiful and had not a single elephant of giraffe. Maybe it's just because they're so exotic that we always think of them as being in a zoo.

Anyway, the zebras were delightful, and like most of the animals in this zoo, they were active and close enough to see and enjoy. Katie Mei had no problem identifying the "zee-bahs".

We rounded out our trip with a kiddo photo on the cement turtle. I couldn't resist, since we also have a photo of M & J on a cement bear from our first visit to a zoo with the kids back in 2006.

(now)

(then)

And we eventually came full circle and found the meerkats. They had to be the cutest little boogers I ever saw! And I think they thought the same of my kids!

This little guy found Jacob rather interesting. Maybe he thought Jacob looked a little like a monkey in sunglasses.

Katie Mei found some fast friends in the meerkats.

Our visit to the zoo ended with a trip to the reptile house, which was essentially a bunch of snakes, toads, and lizards behind glass so that flash photography results in pictures of reflections of flashes of light. No lizard pics. Sorry folks.

We did get a photo of the gopher tortoises digging and flinging dirt, though. So here is the final photo of Katie Mei watching the "too-too" dig it's hole.

Hope you enjoyed our visit to the zoo as much as we did. And despite the fact that I was originally going to title this post as "The cheetah wanted to eat my baby", it was a wonderful visit and we're looking forward to doing it again soon.

Love,

Petrie

The Week in Photos

This was the weather ten days ago. Merrilee was flinging herself off the diving board to cool off, I was sitting on the porch with my Diet Coke cracking pecans, and Jacob was off playing with neighborhood kids (and wondering why they disappeared everytime he came in the house for a drink of ice water....why do boys do that? Girls usually wait for their friends.). Anyway, it was about 91 degrees here that day.

Today is a different story. We went to bed feeling chilly, since it was chilly yesterday in the 60s. But I'll do all I can to hold off turning on the heat. Using the heat pump officialy marks the end of summer for me (yeah, I know summer ended in September, but you know what I'm talking about!), and I just can't bear the thought of saying goodbye. But last night it got down to 64 degrees...in the house! I gave in and turned on the heat upstairs so the kids wouldn't turn into popsicles. It wasn't until this morning after I got up at 7 am that I turned on the heat downstairs. I crumbled. It was just too cold. Our digital outdoor thermometer said it was 39 degrees out there. UGH!!!!!

So this is what the kids look like today:

Fall is officially here and I will finally concede to the change of seasons. And as you can see, Jacob has apparently grown a bit since last winter. His jacket sleeves didn't keep up with him. Time to pull out the size larger hand-me-downs.


Aside from the weather, we finally got around to making our first pecan pies from our own nuts. I shelled about 1.5 quarts in a little over an hour. I'm now able to shell them without breaking the nut meat inside. I just need to work on my speed.

On Tuesday I took the kids to the Flint RiverQuarium. Albany amazes me with it's small town atmosphere, but it's big-town amenities. There is an aquarium, a zoo, and a planetarium (which I haven't found yet). It's really easy to find my way around here, and I seem to take to driving around on my own much more comfortably than anywhere else we've lived. I really do like it here.

The aquarium has a lot of fun things to do, including homeschool days, discovery days, and toddler activities. We went ahead and got a family membership, so for those of you who might like to visit, we can take you to the aquarium as our guests! You're already looking at your calendars to see how soon you can get here, aren't you? http://www.flintriverquarium.com/



After her initial fears, Katie Mei was rather interested in the American Alligator.

On Thursday evening, Jay got dressed up in his blues and took us to the Civic Center to see the USMC Silent Drill Team from 8th & I in Washington DC. The program wasn't very long, but it was perfect for the kids and all three of them seemed to enjoy it.

I don't know what we'll be doing this coming week, but I heard that Wednesday is supposed to be a bit warmer. I'm thinking about heading out to the zoo. They also have educational programs and a fantastic playground. http://www.parksatchehaw.org/education.htm . That's the fun thing about homeschooling...it doesn't always have to been book learnin' or scheduled activities. We can get up and go on field trips whenever the weather bids. Here's to a lovely Indian Summer...which can't get here soon enough.

Hope you are all keeping warm and enjoying the autumn.

Love,

Petrie

Mark's Melon Patch!

Saturday was the day the kids had long been waiting for...a trip to Mark's Melon Patch to pick out their pumpkins and take a hay ride. It was a bit hot and sweaty, and the gangs of gnats have been relentless around here, but it was fun.






The day was sunny and bright, and we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful sky. It was gorgeous blue and really made the sunflowers and pumpkins shine.

Katie Mei had her first hay ride. She wasn't thrilled about being awakened from her short nap in the car, so she played Ms. Grumpy for the first ten minutes or so. She also wasn't really sure about sitting in all that pokey stuff. Dad's lap was the place to be for starters.

But once she got the hang of things, and had a little straw-throwing fight with Jacob (courtesy of Daddy starting things), she warmed right up.

After the hayride, we sat down to drink some juice and sodas. Then Merrilee and Jacob checked out the not-so-scary "Spooky Trail". After listening to their bravado of how it wasn't very scary, I told them to pretend they were scared for the photo. I have to admit, they did a pretty darned good job of making like they were scared--if you click on the photo and look at Merrilee's face up close, you'll see she's pretty convincing. Maybe acting careers are in both their futures. Just what I need...kids who star in horror flicks.

We spent the next twenty minutes trying to get good photos of the kids with the pumpkins. It was a hard-fought battle, as the gnats were so obnoxious that the kids kept swatting and slapping. I got very few photos with a picture of all three kids with all six hands down.

Katie Mei and Daddy found some fun in the wheelbarrows used for hauling pumpkins. After a few rounds, Merrilee had to join in the action.

Before we left with our pumpkins, we found a pile of discarded green plants. Upon closer inspection we saw that they were peanuts. It was nice to be able to give the kids an up-close view of peanut plants with the peanuts still attached. I think they thought peanuts grew on trees like other nuts.

We're going to wait a couple more weeks before we cut into our pumpkins. With the weather still in the upper 80s and the over-friendly gnats, I don't think it would be wise to gut our orange friends just yet.

Later ya'll,

Petrie

Still Digging Out

Seems folks yearn for a new home, a new beginning, a time to start afresh. I've had someone ask to see pictures of the house. Yeah....it's not really a good time for pictures. I've been holding back on showing off my new home or inviting friends over. Here's why:

There are still a few boxes in the living room, some of which are blocking the front door entrance.

There are still some boxes and junk cluttering the bedroom.

And I haven't really gotten around to unpacking the thousands of books in the office.

I also have a friend (and you know who you are) who has pool envy. My dear friend, I want to help you overcome the sin of covetousness. These photos might help.

Even on days which are too cool for us to use the pool, there are always swimmers.

Look closely. They are good swimmers, but they cannot overcome the power of a strong filtration system. From what I've come to learn, snakes also enjoy a good swim and end up in the skimmers now and then.

And this little guy is lucky. I can pull him out and throw him into the lawn and he hops away. It's the other ones, bloated and lifeless, that I've had to pull out and toss in the burn pile that gross me out. It's really not the corpse that bothers me, it's the...well, never mind. If I tell you, you won't come to our house and swim in our pool.

Hope todays blog satisfies everyone's itch to move to a new home and get a fresh start. ;-)

Hugs,

Petrie

Moved and getting settled

It was a long trip, and the trip report is long overdue. But we're finally settled in and getting a feel for the lay of the land.

We got here 12 days ago and arrived at night time. We stopped by the house and dropped off our poor cat (who had me sneezing for the 14.5 hour drive!) and briefly checked out our new home. I noticed a few differences from what I expected...pine wood floors instead of oak, and formica that appears to be granite rather than real granite counter tops. None of these were the fault of the seller...I guess I had just thought that's what they were from the photos and never thought to ask.

We spent the first couple nights at a hotel while we waited for the movers to get everything in (It took two days of unloading two big trucks! Packing it up alone took three days and one extra morning. Waaaaay too much stuff!) We were surprised on our first morning in GA to find that the mall parking lot across from the hotel had been turned into a Cole Brother's Circus. It was kind of weird sleeping with camels and elephants right across the road! We didn't go to the circus, but we enjoyed seeing the behind-the-scenes action that took place during the show. Finally, on the third day, when the movers were gone and our beds were set up, we stayed the night at the house.

The house is beautiful and spacious; wonderful for the size of our family. It has taken some getting used to with the kids upstairs and us down. When Katie Mei wakes up in the middle of the night (often to the tune of four or five times!) it's a long trip to get to her and return to bed. She's learning that Mom doesn't dig waking up that often to adjust her blankets, so she's getting a little better about trying to fix her own blankets at night.

We are still neck-deep in boxes and packing paper. I managed to get the kitchen cleared of boxes after four days, and the kids' rooms and toy room/homeschool room are about done. But the living room, office, dining room and master bedroom are a disaster. I am really going to be glad when we are at the end of unpacking.

The kids and I have enjoyed our pool quite a bit already. The first week here was hot, in the 90s, and we were so glad to have a pool. This week has been cooler, in the 70s and low 80s, so we haven't used it as often. I'm hoping the weekend warms up so the kids can swim. The "pool guy" and the pool store told me that around here people swim until the end of October and sometimes into November. We'll see if we're thick-skinned enough for that!

We live in a quiet neighborhood, but that's mostly because everyone works during the day and the kids go to the public school. There are quiet a few children here, and fortunately they are our own children's ages. Merrilee has a few friends who live across the street already, and I met the father of the five or six kids who live next door. They have three boys and two or three girls, one of whom is Katie Mei's age. It will be so nice to have someone for all our kids to play with. Jacob didn't have many male friends in Maryland, and now he's got several. Hopefully he'll learn to play more sports, because the kids next door are very sports oriented.

We've been out and about, getting our Sam's Club membership, getting library cards, checking out the local shopping scene, and trying to figure out the streets and where everything is located. It's pretty easy to get around here and I have no problem going out by myself. We have a Publix grocery store, which is wonderful, and a Wal-Mart which is not so wonderful. I don't think I'll be crossing the doorway of that store too often.

The library here has "Crafternoons" on Tuesdays at 3 pm, and we stopped by for the first time this week. The kids made things with fabric fall leaves. Merrilee made a scarecrow and Jacob made a dog. Katie Mei and I just enjoyed being in a library again after our dry spell with no library books. We are now well-stocked again and the kids are enjoying sitting on the couch reading books again. Next week I'm hoping to get Katie Mei to the Laptime story time for the little kids.

Today we went out and gathered some pecans from the yard. It's still not quite time for them to be harvested, but many have fallen from the trees. We have at least ten trees in our yard...the entire property used to be a pecan orchard. The kids have been bringing me handsful of nuts and asking me if it was enough for me to make a pie. Today I gave them a baket and told them to fill it up. They happily obliged. Luckily, the previous owners left us a pecan picker. Those things really do work. You just pop it down on the nut on the ground, and the nut slips between the spring-like wires into the picker. (Okay, I confess, I did have to look it up online to figure out what to do with a picker.) When you have gathered a good many, you dump them into your basket. Katie Mei loved collecting them herself. And the really great thing is...the kids don't have to ask me for snacks anymore; I just send them out into the yard to find their own snacks. The pecans here taste awsome! Better than any I've ever bought from a store!

I have so much more to tell about this place, but I'm tired of sitting on this box of books with the computer at chin level. I've got to get us a new computer desk chair. Anyway, I'll fill you all in on more details later. You've got enough to enjoy as it is.

Hugs and much love to all our friends,

Petrie and the gang