san diego zoo 3

We covered nearly the entire zoo thanks to mapkeeper Aiden keeping us going. He surprisingly isn't a huge fan of aviaries or insect houses so I think there were a few of those that we skipped.We all loved the Africa Rocks exhibits and especially the shark tank.

san diego zoo 2

We loved the pandas and the koalas especially. The cheetah with the Labrador friend is unique to the San Diego zoo.

san diego zoo 1

So many fun photos from the San Diego Zoo... more coming soon. Otis the hippo was a big favorite standing on his tippy toes completely asleep.

del mar

The Del Mar area was a treat especially because we met up with our bonk buddies. So fun to find a playground along the beach.  Plenty of treats at the yummy ice cream shop with cookie monster ice cream.

road dinos

Near Yuma on our way to San Diego at a pit stop with giant metal dinosaurs ;)

childrens 1

The Children's Museum was open for After Hours and wasn't very crowded... so these boys really enjoyed wandering around. The favorite is the Bodyology area and the pretty high tech vet's office.

childrens 2

Showing P&G all around the fun museum and remembering the times we visited with baby Aiden and baby Keaton ;) - who brought these big kids?

kaleidoscope

Testing out all the lens options on my camera with the kaleidoscope at the Children's Museum... every time I see one of these giant telescopes I want one at my house ;)

good list

My first official miniature creation - It's a tiny box theatre set that was advertised to me online and I eventually purchased through Amazon. This little happy corner make me happy - even if the light switch broke :( We can rig it to get it to work and at least see the effect when the rooms are lit up (although it is really hard to get macro photos with the lights on).

miniatures

Back to my favorite spot for the kid's make and take day. This time they were making tiny cooking sets. My friend joked with me that I would volunteer/work at the museum if I lived in Tucson and that is for sure!

bisbee mine

I can still remember visiting this mine and Bisbee with J on our 1st wedding anniversary in 2005. That visit we stayed in an airstream at the Shady Dell ;) This time we made it a fun day trip with the grandparents. Bisbee claims to have the best year round climate on earth and they have plenty of rock shops to keep these guys and especially Gran happy ;)  Aiden was a little nervous going into the mine tour since they give you your own personal light since it's pretty dark and a tag to identify you in case of emergency - "What sorta safety measure is that mom?!" But I assured him it was safe, and he was nice and relaxed by the time the tour guide showed us the mine potty cart.

naturalist

We were all giggling as Aiden started asking to film his segments of the Naturalist - Thanks for the cameos G&P!
The Naturalist from Bren on Vimeo.

views

These views from the Catalinas are some of our favorites:

mt lemmon

Cruised up Mt Lemmon to visit Summerhaven, which still has the familiar (yet rebuilt after the fires in early 00s) Cookie Cabin and Rainbow gift shop.  The views from Inspiration Rock were neat and looking down at the ground with all the shiny minerals is another cool view.

biosphere 1

The Biosphere north of us here in Tucson is a really interesting place. It was full of experiments this time and felt like it had been rejuvenated.

biosphere 2

So much to see under the glass at the Biosphere. They call is a Wonder of the World and the boys were probably most in awe in the giant lung room. It's especially exciting when the air pressure drops as the door opens and you see it lower a bit. Seeing the under the ocean viewing was new to us and the exhibits are well done.

school project

Keaton was very excited that his teacher asked if he'd like to send in a video for their class animal project presentation. Such a giddy guy that he was allowed to pick the red panda:
Red P anda shared with class from Bren on Vimeo.

one sec 3rd month

A third month in Tucson in one sec clips:
Month 3 in Tucson from Bren on Vimeo.

pool time

These guys were pumped that we had some nice hot days that made the freezing cool pool tolerable. So April 9 was the official break out the Tucson pool day ;)  Lenny the ring toss guy with a sorta English accent was really loving the game from Nana and Grampa - thx! The penguin and polar bear floats are wearing snow hats because those are actually inflatable snow sleds I brought from VA ;)

seussical

Photos taken by Keaton during Aiden’s Seussical!  It was so fun to see a new take on the show and hear Aiden sing as Horton this time! We discovered that the vest Aiden wore as Horton was the exact vest Keaton wore a few weeks ago as Tad the Dad in the Boy Who Cried Wolf!  So excited that G&P were able to come to the show and enjoy the front row with us -thx! ;)

dinos

We exited through the south entrance which had dino bones and fossils to explore. The artist in residence had created ed this cool four part kaleidoscope table where you could move different objects around to create different effects on the spinning table. We added a lot of cool stamps to our park passport.

petroglyphs

Towards the center of the trek through the Petrified National Forest is a series of stops with amazing petroglyphs. Newspaper Rock was nearly covered and Keaton ran away from it saying he never thought he’d see something like it!

petrified

The sheer number of logs covered in rich colors and textures throughout the park is amazing! The way they spilt like chalk is surprising.

blue mesa

We ended up hiking the whole loop at the Blue Mesa. It was really a feast for the camera! You can get an idea of how amazing those badlands are, but being surrounded by them is really something.

painted desert

The first area after the northern entrance of the Petrified National Park highlights the Painted Desert. The photos do not do justice to all the color! The old restored hotel and cafe highlight concessions of the past. The petroglyph animal was giant and they just turned over a rock and discovered it.

la posada

This visit to this restored hotel along the western train route was an unexpected treat. They have really done a great job of restoring it and making it interesting to look around. The owners have art everywhere and that huge chess set was a treat for the boys. Those metal bunny stands (bottom right) were an original design of the architect Mary Colter and were so surprisingly modern! The petrified fountain (bottom left) is really beautiful.

winslow

Here we are standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona, such a fine sight to see.... sing it!