around town Archives - Page 37 of 38

Our Trip to The St. Louis Zoo 2015

May 30, 2015May 30, 2015 Richie Leave a comment

This summer I have Friday’s off work. So yesterday we decided it would be a great day to spend a few hours at the zoo. We got up extra early and got the kids ready to get there right when the zoo opens. The first hour the zoo is open everything that usually costs money is free, such as the children’s petting zoo, the carousel, sting rays, and I believe a few other areas. The train isn’t free but we knew that going there. Our first stop was the petting zoo to see some goats. After that I can’t name all of the animals we seen, except I wanted to see a black mamba and I totally got to see one.

There were a few areas where the animals weren’t out, such as the many of the apes, monkeys, and gorillas. That’s okay, we still seen plenty of animals for one trip. Since the St. Louis Zoo is free to get in and does not cost to see the majority of the animals, it is a perfect place to visit many times during the year. Abby and Alex had a great time as usual. Although this year Abby was a little more vocal about the 30 degree temperature in the puffin and penguin house.

I took the GoPro with us during our visit and put together a little video of our trip to the zoo. The music is by Coldplay – Sky Full Of Stars (Geek Boy’s Jersey Bootleg). Just a cool mix I thought went well with the footage.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shdqDSdPx4E

My Little Gym Superstar

May 28, 2015May 28, 2015 Richie Leave a comment

Abby had her final Little Gym class the other day. This class was a special one in where parents can come in and see all of the amazing things that the little gymnasts have learned. Things didn’t start out smoothly though. We pulled into the parking lot and not even 5 seconds after getting out of the car Abby tripped over her own two little feet and went face first into the curb. She received a nice scrape near her eye and one on her leg. She was in tears and I wasn’t sure if Abby would be up for class after the incident. We got her cleaned up and her teacher was right there encouraging Abby to join the rest of the class and show everyone what she can do.

It was awesome. Abby got a big introduction along with all of the other little gymnasts. Then they started with their performance. Abby is only four years old so it wasn’t anything like the Olympics or very advanced. She showed off her skills on the high bar, dancing, balance beam, flips, and more. Parents rotated around the room so we could follow our own kids around snapping pictures and taking video.

After all was said and done the kids were awarded a medal for their great work. The medal was a great way for Abby to forget all about her injury. She was so excited to get a medal that right after she got it and left the podium she ran over to show me. The smile on her face was priceless and I’m positive she will treasure that medal for years to come.

Watching my little girl receive her medal was a very proud moment for this dad. She had only missed one class because she was sick. So she really committed to going to her gym and has listened to her teacher attentively. It makes me feel like she is another step closer to starting school, which is a thing in of itself. My wife and I haven’t discussed what’s next for Abby in regards to activities such as the Little Gym. We had discussed possibly signing her up for something a little more advanced in regards to gymnastics, but we just are not sure yet. We want to see if there is anything else that Abby might want to try out first. Maybe it’s time for soccer or tee ball… Who knows… I’m sure we will be figuring that out soon.

Happy Birthday to My Wife!

March 14, 2015March 14, 2015 Richie 1 Comment

Today is my beautiful wife Destiny’s birthday. In honor of her special day the city of Cottleville, Missouri threw a parade in her honor. Thousands of people were there and they all were wearing Destiny’s favorite color green. The parade was great, there was horses, some floats, and a lot more. Check out the pictures below and also see the little video below of today’s festivities set to the tune of Aquadrop & The Golden Toyz.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuM8szSribQ

Free Comic Book Day 2015

February 26, 2015February 26, 2015 Richie 1 Comment

Free Comic Book Day is an event my family participates in every year. For the last few years we have made an attempt to hit as many local comic shops as possible to pick up freebies. Of course we also like to make some purchases at each store as well since most offer great deals during the FCBD event. Such as The Fantasy Shop in St. Charles. They usually have a huge back issue sale. So not only can you pick up the free comics, you can also pick up a ton of back issues to keep your kids reading for days.

Last year we did not take Alex with us since he was still so little, but this year we plan on getting him out there to see the world of comics, costumes, games, and more! These are my favorite pictures from 2012, 2013, and 2014 Free Comic Book Day!

Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is the first Saturday in May and what happens is many comic shops around the country (and the world) offer free comic books. This is a great event that 1) get’s kids into comic books, and 2) more importantly, get’s kids reading. Now this event is all about the kids, there are over 50 comics that will be offered up for free. These include titles like Pokemon, Spongebob, The Simpsons, and my personal favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Adults are not left out either. There will be some more mature comics offered as well. Click here for the full list.