The Stanalands

We took a trip to the zoo today. First and foremost, I am not fond of animals. It is not because I am an animal hater, mind you. It is simply because I feel that the differences and separations between the different animal species are there for very good reasons. Humans have their place in the world, and rhinos have their place in the world. In no part of my mind can I believe that rhinos and humans belong in the same place in the world. (Outside of situations such as this one today) I prefer animals in the zoo to any others, I suppose.

I would just like to say, before someone tells on me beforehand, that I was a complete sissy from the start of the day to its finish, but I believe that I maintained enough dignity so that I can still show my face in public. I have a healthy respect for and perhaps an unhealthy fear of large animals, and I do not see that changing in the near future.

I really thought that the kids would be hard to deal with in this kind of setting. We have never taken them all out like this before. (Keep in mind please that we have only been a family this large for six months or so!)

I was pleasantly surprised when we had little or no trouble out of any of them. We really do have such well mannered children compared to those that we saw while we were there. (And well mannered by most standards today) I took as many pictures as my digital camera’s batteries would allow, and then I took mental pictures of the events of the day so that I could come here and share a few highlights of our trip. The best pictures that I took with the digital camera will of course be here for your enjoyment. Some will be added to the family photos, and most will be kept for our own private collection of photos. Brian and the kids looked so happy, and so enthralled with the animals and all that there was to see. (That was the best part of it all for me, being that I really just don’t do the “animal lover” thing so much)

As the day continued on, we spent more and more time just being together and exploring the different animals. I learned that I really do not like the sky-lift chairs and that our six year old son is braver than I am.

Me, “Honey, mommy is really scared right now…can she hold your hand for a minute?”

him, “ummm…ok. You know, I didn’t know that a mommy could be scareder than a six year old!”

me, “who knew?”

him, “But this is the most amazing thing that I have ever seen!!! I’m not scared!!”

While I appreciate his bravery, I was still an enormous coward while being dangled by a metal wire forty feet above the Tampa zoo. With the grace of God, we survived the treacherous journey that lasted an epic, eighteen long minutes. I felt like kissing the ground when we were allowed to disembark from the ride and continue safely on our way walking on the solid Earth. (May I add that later in our journey through the zoo, my lovely Brian told me that his favorite part of the day was any point that I had the “heeby jeebies”)

Finally, we made our way through the entire zoo, no worse for the wear. We spent the majority of the day walking, and talking. We took pictures of our adventures and learned a few things about what we should take on outings like this one. (Pride should be put to the side for such an amenity as a fanny pack!!)

When we finally arrived back at our van, we were happy to be together in the experience and we had much to talk about on the way back to Granny & Popcorn’s house. AAAAaaaaaahhhh…this really is the life.

We have taken a vacation to see Brian’s family in Florida. It is a long drive, but not too terribly long. (8 hours) We have a pretty nice mini-van and we had a DVD player installed, so the kids were happy enough. The drive was rough for us because we had not gotten enough sleep the night before, and driving is fatiguing in itself.

We are here now, and that is what counts. We are going to be here all week. This will be our first week long family vacation. It is also the first time that Nathan has been to his grandparent’s house, and the first time that he has ever seen the ocean. That is going to be a lot of fun for all of us. It will not be warm enough here to go swimming, obviously, but I do not think that it will deter us from taking a trip to the beach. (It should be around 70 degrees by Tuesday!)

We are really enjoying being here. I love Brian’s family, and they tolerate me pretty well too. I like having help with the kids (besides just Brian and me). I don’t mind having them without help other than Brian, but it is easier to enjoy them when there are other adults that are taking responsibility for some of their needs.  I took a nap today. The kids took naps today. That was nice to be able to do.

I plan on coming back in a little while and writing more about the joys of having five children at home. It is a little bit harder when we are at someone else’s house and without our normal home routine. I also plan to come back and add a few pictures of the kids to the online family photo album. (*If you have not seen that yet, please check it out, it is wonderful!*)

Never thought it was possible to be so excited about something.

MY RING IS HERE!! YAY!! I am so in love. *sigh*

Feb 7

Only a few more days….

I am soooo excited…I should have it by Valentine’s day!!!

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