Ice Skating at Triangle Park

The day Grandma Terry was to leave (sniffle), we all packed into the car, drove her the 15 minutes to the Lexington Airport, and then drove back into downtown Lexington to go ice skating in Triangle Park.

This was our first time at the rink, and we were impressed by what a nice setting it was. The rink is small and very imperfect, but the location is great amidst the historic shopping and high rise buildings that characterize Lexington's downtown.  

Not to mention that even though it was a chilly 30 degress, the sun was out, which made for a lovely afternoon.

Thanks to ice skating lessons last winter (and some natural talent), both of the kids are pretty good at ice skating . . . at least enough to play a rousing game of tag on the ice without knocking over any other patrons.

Lucky Lutece has her very own ice skates since we found a nearly brand new pair at a garage sale last summer. At least they'll fit her this year. Hmm, we may have to go ice skating a time or two more before this winter ends.

 

All said, it was a fun family activity. At the end of our time on the rink, just as the kids were starting to complain about cold toes, Grandma texted me from the airport to tell me that her flight had been cancelled (mechanical problems with the plane). So we drove the 10 minutes back to the airport, picked her up, and took her back home with us.

It worked out perfectly . . . well, except for the 2 hours Grandma Terry had to sit at the airport. Her new flight left the next day at noon, and we got to have her around for another day!

Christmas Morning 2014

I had hoped to post about Christmas 2014 before the end of January 2015, but alas, the weekend came too quickly and my attention was diverted to the needs of children.

This was a good, calm Christmas. I was worried when I looked at the seemingly long lists of gifts I'd bought for the kids and saw all the presents under the tree that it would be an incredibly materialistic holiday with a glut of toys. However, when all the presents were unwrapped, I was relieved to find that it wasn't so very much after all. Go figure. 

This may have been due in part to the fact that many of the presents were simple and useful items, such as clothing. Everything Lutece is wearing in this picture was new for Christmas (Did I not mention in a previous post Lutece's current love of skinny jeans, long-sleeved t-shirts, and cardigan sweaters?) The hat (and sweater) was a present from Grandma DuBravac. Since it was the only present under the tree with no name tag on it, and the kids love it equally (after all, it has a penguin on it), they share it.

As I stated, there were lots of useful items (clothing, jammies, a few art supplies), and then some toys to make it fun. Phoenix received three toys that he has loved: the Snap Circuits Rover (see top picture), the Zoob Challenge (see above picture), and Kapla building blocks (see below). All of them are STEM toys (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). Phoenix definitely has a niche.
 

I had read great reviews about these blocks and wasn't sure how they would be received, but I needn't have worried. They have been a huge hit . . . with EVERYONE.

I told Stayc that I'll get him an extension pack for his next birthday :).

And even though Lutece loves the Kapla blocks too, this year was definitely the year of the Lego for her. She LOVES, LOVES, LOVES her legos. We spent the remaining week of Christmas vacation rebuilding every Lego kit we've ever gotten over the last several years. The kids have an entire city set up on Phoenix's large "train" table upstairs. (I think I may love the Legos even more than Lutece though . . . that's what I want for my next birthday :).

I finally convinced Grandma Terry to play Legos with me (yes, me) the day before she left. Despite her lukewarm love of blocks and toys, it was wonderful having her play spend time with us at Christmas. (She does love her computer games though . . . something she and Phoenix share :).