July 4th Celebration at the Zoo....

For the 4th of July, we went to the Phoenix Zoo party. They had a picnic dinner, bouncy house, face painting and games for the kids, as well as the regular Safari things to do. The event was limited to 450 people. It was so nice to have the entire place with only 450 people! Not crowded at all. They bussed us to the back of the zoo on a hill to see the Tempe Town Lake fireworks which are supposedly the best in the Southwest. They lasted over an hour. Every time I thought it was the big finale, they just went on and on. The fireworks were a little far away, across the lake, etc, and not very high in the sky.. but still very good. Jasmine was more interested in the laser light stick toys that I bought for extra needed entertainment at the Dollar Store. It was a really fun night until we tried to leave and got caught in the firework traffic from the Town Lake. Every street and highway was at a standstill. It took 15 minutes to drive from our house to the Zoo, and over an hour to get home. We didn't get home until 11:30. Still alot of fun though.

On the Safari ride
Enjoying the picnic
Dancing to the music
Looking a little apprehensive on the cheetah
Bouncy house

Ready for a night out on the town....

Soccer Camp almost over....

Tonight is the last night of soccer camp. Last night we had the game between kids and parents. Jazzy spent the entire time crying and holding onto my leg. One other little girl did also. It was a rather aggressive game with a bunch of the little bratty boys body slamming the other kids when the instructor was not watching. Of course, the parent(s) did nothing. Tonight, it's back to the regular fun stuff.

Here is a picture of Jazzy when she and I kicked the ball back and forth.

Soccer Camp

Tonight was Jasmine's first night of Soccer Camp with the Chandler Parks and Recreation. The coaches are from a company called Sportball. They have camps for all age kids and all types of sports. Each of the camps are called "Sportball", but each has a specialty, for example... Sportball-Soccer, Sportball-Baseball, Sportball-Golf. At each camp, they work with all kinds of balls, but focus on one type of ball over the week's time. Tonight they used tennis balls, slightly larger balls, a tether ball to practice running and jumping over and around it, and of course most of the time was spent on playing soccer. They learned to properly kick the ball, stop it with their foot, and dribble.... and they were never allowed to touch it with their hands:).

There are 5 boys and 4 girls in the class. The soccer class apparently is the most popular thanks to Dora the Explorer, who apparently plays soccer. I am sure if Dora starts playing golf or some other sport, those camps will be more crowded too!

Parents were not invited:(, which I hadn't anticipated, so I didn't bring anything to read or do. I *was* able to peek thru the windows and take a couple of photos which turned out very dark. At the end of the camp, there will be a soccer game between parents and kids. Ha.....

Swimming and Gymnastics.....

We switched our swimming lessons to a new location called USA Swim Kids in Mesa. It is a smaller facility geared more towards kids 5 and under. They also do "brain development" at the same time as the physical development. For example, in swimming lessons, they practice counting with floating blocks while they are swimming. They also have a big play area for when we are waiting in between classes. The other facility will be better for gymnastics as Jasmine gets older. We also changed it to a Friday night so that Saturday mornings can be more free to do other things. Last night after swimming, we went to Wildflower Bread Company for dinner, then Changing Hands bookstore right next door. They have all kinds of toys for kids. I told Jazzy that we were looking for a birthday present for Justin and Jade... which is true... but we are also looking for her birthday present too. She went crazy in there and didn't want to leave!!

Today, I got to go to a Pilates/Dance class taught by an extremely funny instructor. An "older" lady, maybe 60 or so who is a dance instructor somewhere in Scottsdale. The whole class was done to Michael Jackson music and his dance steps. I am definitely going to be sore tomorrow!

It's been 110-112 degrees this entire week!!!


Swimming
Waiting for gymnastics
Gymnastics

Our new house....

Here are Jazzy and Jessie in front of our new house. The inside of the house is not fit to be photographed since there are still boxes everywhere and no pictures on the walls yet.

Yesterday, our little dog Jessie had a bad day. She is very elderly and fragile. Jazzy always wants to hug her and play, so about once or twice a day I hear a little yelp when Jasmine bumps into her or is a little too rough. I have told Jazzy over and over to be gentle with her because she is so old. Yesterday morning I heard a yelp which was louder than normal, but didn't really think anything of it. Later in the afternoon, I found Jessie laying on her side crying and paddling her feet. I did a quick physical exam and found that every muscle in her little body felt rock hard. I thought initially that she might be having a petit mal seizure because of the idiots that sprayed pesticide in our back yard and all over our belongings after I had asked them not to. I went outside right after they left and sprayed everything down thoroughly with the hose, but I am sure it is still out there. I thought that maybe Jessie ingested insecticide because she licks her paws quite often.

I rushed her up to the bathtub and gave her a bath... which is the first thing to do if topical insecticide poisoning is suspected. For the next couple of hours she did not/would not sit down or lay down and just kept walking and walking for hours all over the house. There are certain types of pain that are better with motion. I did finally remember the louder than usual yelp that morning and determined that she hurt her back. Poor little dog had to endure a bath with the intense back pain.... and she didn't even cry. After a homeopathic remedy and 1/4 aspirin in our first aid kit unopened since 1997, she is now able to lay down and rest. It just goes to show that drugs don't expire right at the expiration date! We will see what the future brings with Jessie's back. She needs lots of rest and maybe an occasional anti-inflammatory for the next few weeks. I hope nothing happens to Jasmine's best little friend for quite some time.

playdate with Gadiel....

Today, Gadiel and his Mom Jenny came over for a playdate/Memorial Day party. It will be the last time we see them for awhile since they are travelling all summer and we are moving back to Tempe. We made pizza and chocolate chip cookies. Jazzy and Gadiel played non-stop.