Scientific Excursion of the Little People.

Last week I went on a Scientific Excursion with the Little People, or otherwise known as, a Field Trip with the kindergarten to the Dallas World Aquarium. The things I do for loving this little tyke...

Otherwise known as Remy. His class all wore their orange school shirts. The other kindergarten classes wore their blue, or yellow or green shirts, depending on the teacher.

Our teacher took this obvious labeling of our kids to an even higher level and made up shapes (apples, stars, sailboats, flowers), laminated them, put her cell phone number on them and pinned them to the back of the kids' shirts. Brilliant, I tell you, just brilliant. We have the best teacher. None of the others did this. :o)

So, as a parent volunteer, I was put in charge of four kids (including my own). I had the Apples. And, I had the extremely honored privilege of riding on the school bus, with the children. Oh, the joy...

As I sat on the vinyl bench seat (with NO seat belts!) surrounded by tons of little people yapping away excitedly, I realized that there was no way out... I looked up and saw a tiny little square that claimed to be an emergency exit...like I could reach it or any of the kinders around me.
and there was no way I was going to make it out THIS window...
and there was no air circulating, besides this tiny little fan...
But we made it there safely, despite my hyperventilating. Did you know that Lisa has a new kitty cat? And Billy shared with me every. single. toy. he had, with extreme details about his favorites. Every time we took a turn, the kids yelled like it was a roller coaster ride. Did I mention there were no seat belts?
These were my apples. Aren't they cute Little People? They did a great job of sticking with me and not getting lost, despite my best attempts...
We saw these funky birds and some scary crocs.

weird monkeys and lots of fish.
including sharks
and a huge, massive sea cow (Manatee)...sorry about this picture, the water was super murky as we looked in the tank. It was feeding time. I didn't take as many pictures on this visit (we've been here before many times) because I didn't want to loose any punks, I mean, apples.
Here are my apples again...still haven't lost any...
By the time we got home, I was exhuasted, very appreciative of our kindergarten teacher keeping up with these Little People EVERY DAY, and ready to go home and nap. Whew.

Greeks and the Rainforest

This is a photo from my trip last summer to The Dallas World Aquarium in Dallas, Texas. (http://www.dwazoo.com/)

One of their main exhibits is this Rainforest. It is a four-story tour, starting with the top, the canopy, where you can see exotic birds and monkeys hanging out. As you work your way down, you pass a sloth, see a crocodile cave, view poison dart frogs and vampire bats and eventually end up by the river where there are huge fish, turtles and the star attraction, manatees. There is even a level below the water, where you can see into the river through an entire glass wall. It is just an incredible experience. If you are ever in Dallas, you should visit. I'm not even bringing up the jackass penguins or the aquariums featuring an example from every country. This place is amazing.


So, what does this rainforest have to do with the Greeks? They are both in aquariums. The above rainforest is in the Dallas Aquarium and in my home aquarium reside four fish named after Greek Gods.


Ok, the aquarium belongs to my eleven year old, and the four fish are his. He named them Zeus, Ares, Athena and Goldie (the odd one out). However, Ares has just bit the dust, our first casulty.


Why Greek Gods? Well, every night for about a month, I read Greek myths to my son before bedtime. He ate them up. Loved 'em. And, they make great pet names. When I was in high school we had a mammoth Mastiff named Vesta, guardian god of the hearth. She was a gentle giant.


So, that's the connection between the Greeks and the Rainforest, at least in my mind.