Durham Museum

Well, Wednesday we finally made it to Durham Museum! It was a ton of fun!! Durham Museum used to be like Grand Central Station. It was the old train station....always hustling and bustling! Here are MaKenna and I posing with a man in uniform! I have always been a sucker for a man in uniform!

MaKenna, sitting on the train bench...waiting for the next train....

Here they are sitting in one of the old train cars. This particular train car was from the 40's!

Check out the size of this engine! Look at Major....standing at the wheel. That wheel could really hurt somebody! Yikes!Though the trains are great, Durham does have more to offer. The museum has things in it that chronicle the history of Omaha. From Teepee's to the great exhibition in the late 1800's....they even have school rooms and houses made to look like they are from different times...the 50's, the 60's, etc.

Durham, ALWAYS has traveling exhibits....this time it was Omaha on Ice...which everyone LOVED....and Moneyville. Now...I wasn't so excited about Moneyville...but honestly, it was SUCH FUN! EVERYONE enjoyed it! I guess I didn't know what to expect...but it exceeded my expectations! Here is Cam playing the stock market...

Here is MaKenna taking after Nana and working in the bank....

MaKenna and Major both loved working in the grocery store...of course, what kid doesn't?

Here are the kids in front of an old Mail Wagon!

Finally, we had to say goodbye to the museum by saying goodbye to a kindly old traveler!

Mormon Trail Center

I am going a little backwards....I first blogged about Tuesday at Mahoney...but on Monday we went somewhere fun too! We tried to go to Durham Museum, but it is apparently closed on Mondays. Who knew? Not I! Well...I had just drove from far west Omaha to far east Omaha and I didn't want to go home after such a drive...it only took 15 minutes...but we are spoiled here in Omaha. I can remember living in Phx, it took an hour to get anywhere, and that didn't bother me...now 15 minutes bothers me! CRAZINESS!!! Anyway...I was trying to think of things to do on that side of town, that would be free....I was on a budget. I thought about the Dino Dig at Fontanelle Forest, but called Jeff and found out it was expensive. So, I remembered that the Mormon Trail Center was up the road aways in Florence, where the mormons had their "Winter Quarters" back in 1846ish when they were crossing to "The Great Salt Lake". I called Jeff...he looked it up and it was free. Now...we are NOT Mormon...but I knew that the trail center was more about Pioneers, than about the Mormon religion, so I wasn't too concered. It was actually REALLY interesting. It was FULLY about Pioneers....no mention, or very little mention about Mormonism...they talked about God...but not about their religion. We had a guided tour (just the five of us!), and it was ALL free! The kids learned a lot...I learned a lot...and they actually enjoyed it! They gave each kid a booklet that they could use to find things in the museum and circle, etc. It kept them busy and attentive. ONLY AT THE END of the tour, did our tour guide ask if we were members of the church. I promptly said, "No." He then asked if he could give me a free book. I knew what book he was talking about and I said, "No thank you." He then said, "It is free...you can pass it on to someone else if you don't want it." I said, "No thank you, but I enjoyed the tour." And we walked on. That was the only mention...but the rest of the tour was worth it. VERY interesting. If you have the chance sometime you should go if you are local!

Mahoney State Park Aquatic Center

Tuesday we went to Mahoney State Park's Aquatic Center. We always have a good time there!

We met my sister and her family there. Jeff couldn't come...work and all ya know. The kids LOVE water parks...and this one is a favorite because it has a wave pool. We have yet to go to an indoor waterpark that has a wave pool, so they really like this one! Here is MaKenna and her cousin Brooke...playing in the tubes on a rest break! MaKenna is wearing her little swim vest...I keep her by me while in the pools...but I still like to be safe! Major has one too! Best cousin friends Jake and Kayla!!! Aren't they cute?

Shawn and Cam...it looks like they really want to hold hands doesn't it? :-)

MaKenna being brave going down head first on the frog!!!!

Major, Aunt Rhonda and MaKenna...doing her pose!

Major having a snack of animal crackers during a rest break!

7 hour trip to the zoo!! WOOHOO!!

Last week we took a 7 hour trip to the zoo! As zoo members, that is a record! Usually we go, see a few exhibits, and are out of there in plenty of time for naps....3 hours max. With a zoo pass, we can go back as often as we want...so why stay longer right? Well...this day was meant to be short, but it turned into SO much longer...and SO much more. It was Member Appreciation Day, so they had goodies at every turn. For example, they had thes big bouncies....the kids loved them, and in years past this day has been hot, miserable and busy. This particular Member Day had magnificent weather, it was fun, and it really wasn't busy at all...the MOST we had to stand in ANY line was 5 minutes....and that was for these bouncies! The first picture is Cam coming down...then Jake...the Kenna.

Anyway, I told the kids that this day would be a day that we would do different things. We always seem to do the same things...the same exhibits everytime we go. So this time, we would do things we don't normally do...or I don't normally LET them do...like the petting zoo, the train...and the carasoul (however you spell that).

So, we started in the petting zoo....then headed to the train (which was free for members...hence why we did it). Then to the Carasoul...which wasn't free...but it was something we don't normally do...so viola! After the Carasoul, we went to the Aviary...we don't normally do this because Cam doesn't like birds...and they aren't my favorite...but if you have read any of my blogs in the past, they are Major's ABSOLUTE favorite...so we went in for Major, and because we don't normally do it. He LOVED it. He kept pointing and grunting and saying, "WHOA", "OOOHHH", etc. He was so sweet!Then we did something we normally do...but only as a bypass to the next area that we don't normally do. We went through the gorillas, but we went quickly!
This Orangatang was hanging upside down...I thought it was amusing and had to take a picture!Then we went to the Aquarium...no pics sorry. We DO normally go to the Aquarium...but this day we got to go ABOVE the Aquarium to see how everything up there works....so we were looking DOWN on the sharks and other sea life instead of at them. It was interesting! Then we went to the Animal Hospital, open only on Member Appreciation day to the public. That was interesting! When Cam saw a picture on the wall in the reproductive area...of two camels...um...."doing it"....he said, "Mom...are they breeding"? I said, "Yes, they are.", and moved right along. Jake said, "What's breeding mom?" Cam put his hand on his shoulder and said, "Don't worry about it Jake, you'll find out someday." I was floored! They don't need to know this stuff....NOT YET!!! :-) Then in a different area...the Madagascar area of the hospital a scientist noticed Cam looking at a picture of a Madagascar Lemur....the ones with the great big eyes! She said, "Do you know WHY they have such big eyes young man?" He said matter of factly, "Yeah...so they can see at night." She kinda disappointedly said, "Oh.....well, do you know why they need to see at night?" Again, matter of factlly he said, "Yeah because they are nocturnal." She goes, "Oh...well do you know what Nocturnal means?" Sounding a bit irritated he goes, "Yeah, it means they sleep during the day and are awake at night." Now...it was her turn to sound irritated, she goes, "Well...why do they need to be noctural then?" Kinda in a "DUH" voice, Cam says, "So they don't get eaten by predators." She goes, "Well...aren't you the little smarty pants!" And walked away!! I couldn't stand it any longer, I about fell over with laughter! Well...he DOES want to be a zookeeper he says. He has said that since he was 2 years old and knew what a zookeeper was! Anyway, after viewing the Radiology department and the surgery department we ventured over to the giraffe's where we got to have a birds eye view of them and how they are fed as they opened up the zookeeper only area for us to go through.

Next we went over to the Garden of the Senses. Major LOVED the Parrots over there that talked to him!!

Then we did the Butterflies...actually, we did that BEFORE the giraffes...I really don't like that exhibit...but I do it for my children! Then we went on the Skyfari. Now...let me just say, I LOVE scary rides...the scarier, the higher, the wilder, the better. But...if you read one of my previous posts, you know that I DON'T like slow, in the air rides, like ferris wheels...or ski lifts. The Skyfari is essentially a ski lift. It was me and my 4 children...how was this going to work? They let Cam and Jake go alone...even though Cam was 2 years younger than the age they have to be to ride with someone other than an adult. No...I didn't lie about his age...the woman showed me some grace and realized I didn't want to go on this darn thing more than once. So, she let Cam and Jake ride behind me.
I had MaKenna and Major. Now...Major at this point is tired and whiney and very squirrly...if you know what I mean. He was on my lap and I was holding ALMOST everybody's sandales because you couldn't wear flip flops on the ride. So...I was holding a 19 month old who may or may not cooperate, 3 pairs of flip flops, my purse and my daughter hanging onto one of my arms. I began envisioning worse case scenaries as we ventured over the Cheetahs. Major did just fine...but in my mind....he wasn't....then I started getting light headed and sick to my stomach, I thought I might hurl....then I saw the headline the next morning, "Woman throws up and passes out on Skyfari, dropping 19 month old into Cheetah exhibit in the process." Seeing that headline in my mind's eye made me sicker. I honestly wasn't sure if I would make it!!!! But I did! Whew...and Major did fine until the last 20 feet....he was ready to be done....but I could deal with 20 feet!

To wrap up the day, we ate dinner in the Treetops restaurant which is above the Tropcial Rain forest. You can watch the rainforest through glass walls while you ate. It was tons of fun and something we have never done. What I never knew was they sell the SAME exact thing as the rest of the zoo....at the same price...but with bigger selection...and it is in an air conditioned room, overlooking the rain forest! I will go back there more often!! I always figured it would cost more or something! So, I was excited!!

We had a great day!!! It was a long day...but a beautiful day...and we all had a great time! We were sure tired though when we got home!!!!

Blue Like Play Dough WINNER!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ROBYN ROBERTS WHO WON THE COPY OF BLUE LIKE PLAYDOUGH!!!!



Robyn, I will e-mail you to find out how you want to receive it!!!



Yay for you!!!!

DCI (Drum Corp International)

DCI (Drum Corp International)...I am a HUGE fan! Always have been, ALWAYS will be! For those of you who don't know...I used to be a drummer. I started in 5th grade. Yes, I have played piano since I was 5...but I started drumming when I was 10. I LOVED it. I played set through middle school, then once in high school, I went on to be in the drum line in Marching Band. Yes, Drum Line IS one of my favorite movies...I know you were asking yourself...and if you've never seen it...I have a copy I can loan you! :-) I started marching with 20 inch cymbals...I have a story about that for later. The following year, I moved to the bass drum line. That's right...little Tonya with a drum twice her size. It was only because that drum hung on my shoulders for the next three years that my back did so well during pregnancy! :-) Not only did I play bass drum, but they gave me the second largest drum. The tall 17 year old boy had the itty bitty one. Go figure. But I was a beast, and I was going to show those boys that I could hang with the best...and I did. One summer I spent time with The Blue Devils...that was an awesome time!

So, I was driving to Super Saver one Saturday and I saw signs that said, "DCI Parking". After I picked my jaw up off the street, I came home and looked up Millard South because that is the school that I saw the sign at....I live right behind the school. Sure enough, they were hosting one of the B team DCI tours! WHOA!!!! I IMMEDIATELY said to Jeff..."You know all those hockey games I go to because you love hockey? Well...now you can go to something that I love after 13 years of knowing me." I thought I would have to fight a bit...but he said okay and even found a sitter. It was close enough that we just walked to the school. It was AWESOME to say the least. It reminded me HOW MUCH I loved drumming! Here is a picture of Santa Clara Vanguard. The rest are pictures of The Blue Devil B corp because they hold a special place in my heart!

It was actually really fun to have the questions from Jeff directed to me. Usually he is the smarty pants and knows everything, but he didn't understand this drum corp thing at all. It was nice for once to be the one with the knowledge! :-)

I know you are all dying to hear my cymbals story. Okay...here it goes...I had the 20 inch cymbals. They were the BIGGEST cymbals, and of course...the freshman got them...even though she was the smallest one. When I crashed them, I had to hold my arms out completely straight to clear my body. Well...at one of the football games early on in the season I was marching with them, so we were going pretty fast. I got really tired and my arms limped a bit...I had a BIG crash coming up...it was a Drum Break, meaning the drum line was up front and we were showing the crowd what we had. Well...I know what you are thinking...you already know what happened in your mind. That is right...I crashed my little boobie in the big cymbals...and I crashed HARD. SO MUCH SO.....my white tuxedo shirt was soon coated with blood. Yes...that's right, I crashed SO HARD that I cut my boobie and it was pouring out blood. Needless to say, I finished the marching, ran to the bathroom with a "band mom", and she took me home and explained to my mom why I was holding ice on my boobie. I am sure my mom had a hard time containing her laughter...but she did. I was VERY embarressed...thankfully the drum line was very nice about it and didn't tease the freshman too much. I do still have the scar though. Yes...there IS a scar! Okay...enough said.

Book Review, The Hope of Refuge

Another book review. As usual, you will see what the Publishers gave me to print, and under that you will see "MY TAKE".

First off...please click the link below with Cindy Woodsmalls interview with ABC, it was great!!

Cindy's interview on ABC

The link below will get you to the catalog to find out how you can order this book.

The Hope of Refuge

Book: The Hope of Refuge
Author: Cindy Woodsmall

Summary:
Raised in foster care and now the widowed mother of a little girl, Cara Moore struggles against poverty, fear, and a relentless stalker. When a trail of memories leads Cara and Lori out of New York City toward an Amish community, she follows every lead, eager for answers and a fresh start. She discovers that long-held secrets about her family history ripple beneath the surface of Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, and it’s no place for an outsider. But one Amish man, Ephraim Mast, dares to fulfill the command he believes that he received from God–“Be me to her”– despite how it threatens his way of life. Completely opposite of the hard, untrusting Cara, Ephraim’s sister Deborah also finds her dreams crumbling when the man she has pledged to build a life with begins withdrawing from Deborah and his community, including his mother, Ada Stoltzfus. Can the run-down house that Ada envisions transforming unite them toward a common purpose–or push Mahlon away forever? While Ephraim is trying to do what he believes is right, will he be shunned and lose everything–including the guarded single mother who simply longs for a better life?

Author Bio:
Cindy Woodsmall is the author of When the Heart Cries, When the Morning Comes, and The New York Times Best-Seller When the Soul Mends. Her ability to authentically capture the heart of her characters comes from her real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families. A mother of three sons and two daughters-in-law, Cindy lives in Georgia with her husband of thirty-one years.

MY TAKE:

As someone who really enjoys reading Beverly Lewis Amish books, I had a hard time knowing if I would like this one as well. The truth is, YES! I LOVED IT! I honestly didn't think I could like someones Amish writing as well as I liked Beverly Lewis, but Cindy Woodsmall has done it for me! I plan on going out and buying her first Amish series. The Amish life fascinates me. Maybe because my dad was raised Mennonite which is a simple stones throw away from the Amish life. My grandma was very strict in her way of life, and the Amish are even stricter. I often wondered what it would be like to go back to the Amish life for awhile. Once while reading a Beverly Lewis book I ran across my maiden name, Stutzman, and was hooked ever since on Amish novels. Anyway...this book has everything, romance, culture, mystery, heart tugging, a bit of fear, everything! I couldn't put the book down! I was up past 12:30 am everynight while reading it...and even then, thoroughly exhausted, I had a hard time putting it down. Definitely best seller material. I would HIGHLY suggest going out and getting this one!!

AND....if you comment about this book in my blog by the 8th of August, you will have a chance to win a copy of your own!!!!!!

New York Times bestselling author Cindy Woodsmall is on tour, and she may be coming to a city near you!

Don’t miss your opportunity to meet Cindy and have her sign her newest title The Hope of Refuge at one of the following events.

Tuesday, August 11 7 – 8:30pm
Barnes & Noble
5141 Peachtree Parkway, The Forum Norcross, Georgia 30092(770) 209-4244

Wednesday, August 12 7 – 8pm
Barnes & Noble Opry Mills
515 Opry Mills Drive Nashville, Tennessee 37214(615) 514-5000

Thursday, August 13 6 – 8pm
Barnes & Noble
2540 Futura Pkwy. #135 Plainfield, Indiana 46168(317) 838-7941

Friday, August 14 6 – 8pm
Barnes & Noble
1550 West 75thDowners Grove, Illinois 60516(630) 663-0181

Saturday, August 15 1 – 3pm
Baker Books
2768 East Paris Ave SE Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546-6139(616) 957-3110

Sunday, August 16 2 – 4pm
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
3700 Rivertown Parkway Ste. 2058 Grandville, Michigan 49418(616) 531-1825

Monday, August 17 7 – 8:00pm
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
1739 Olentangy River Road Columbus, Ohio 43212(614) 298-9516

Tuesday, August 18 7– 8:30pm
Joseph Beth Booksellers
2705 E. Carson Street Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15203(412) 381-3600

Wednesday, August 19 6 – 8pm
Hackman’s Bible Book Store
1341 Mickley Road Whitehall, Pennsylvania 18052-4610(610) 264-8600

Thursday, August 20 1 – 3pm
Rachel’s Country Store (Amish dry goods store)
6352 McClays Mill Road Newburg, Pennsylvania 17240(717) 530-9452

Can’t make the tour? You can still follow Cindy’s adventures on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter. See you there!