Urban Safari Rescue Society

Ummmmmm…

I have to admit that I have been putting off any sort of documentation for the past couple of weeks, due to my inadequate and out of focus pictures!! 

Grrrrrr

So, I may have dropped my camera once.

Or twice.

Or maybe 3 times…

What did I learn? 

To not put any valuables in your stroller canopy, because your child will inevitably pull on it causing all the contents which were nestled safely

 to catapult into the air, not once, or twice, but THREE times.

Not only is my camera not feeling it's best self, but let's be honest, I have zero knowledge of how to use my camera to it's fullest potential to begin with. 

Next goal: How to take better pictures! 

I often find myself in-doors while on these adventures with my boys and feeling frustrated that I can't capture in a picture, what I am seeing with my eyes.

Forgive these amateur photos

So, on to the Urban Safari Rescue Society. 

What possessed us to happen upon this place you might ask?

It was actually this sign that peeked our curiosity.

 We walked into this place and got hit in the face with thee mooost heinous fumes! I'm talking air so thick and foul, you doubt you will hardly be able to come out alive!

This was more than just bugs my friends, this was toads, spiders, turtles, lizards, cockroaches, a pig, a skunk, salamanders, tarantulas, a parrot, and all creepy crawly things.

So naturally, the boys loved it!

 This here cockroach species, not only can survive forest fires by escaping under ground waiting for the fire to pass, but scientists have found that it can survive even 

high exposure to radiation!!! 

I have gained an entire new perspective towards this terrifying creature that I once had crawling on me in bed in Hawaii!! 

Yes that is 100% true and I have the hebejebes just typing out that memory… sheesh!!     

I think the amount of knowledge and experience gained in this short hour left these boys plain out pooped! 

But don't let their faces fool you, they gained a second wind immediately upon entering the car and filled in all the questions from the booklet they were given after the tour. 

The genuine snake skin souvenir that was included was also a nice touch :) 

Fire Station

This summer the boys and I came up with a "Wish List" for homeschool adventures. Naturally visiting a fire station was at the top Preston's list. What little boy doesn't want to meet a real firefighter and see all the fascinating gear they have? Lucky for us a gentlemen from our church happens to be a Fire Chief here in the Lower Mainland of Vancouver and he offered to show the boys around at his station. We happily took him up on his offer and checked that one off our list.

I'm certain that it was a day the boys will not soon forget. The firemen went above and beyond, explaining the purpose behind each piece of equipment and letting them experience as much hands on action as they wanted 

{hello Jaws of Life, YIKES!}

If you are looking for an exciting, educational, and free experience for your boys {or girls} I highly recommend paying a visit to your local fire station and maybe showing those firemen a little love by bringing a treat wouldn't hurt either :)

Ladies and gentlemen you are witnessing a dream coming true right here for this boy. I no longer have to explain to him why he can not have his own ax or hatchet, once he realized just how big and heavy they are, not mention dangerous! This thing was basically pulling him around {imagine everyone backing up in unison, as he tried taking steps while holding it}

And this was Grady's dream come true… 

sliding down an authentic firemen's pole! His face, so precious!

Please note the anticipation for the most ginormous water hose. 

Ty is plotting his attack at this moment...

Until he realizes it actually takes at least 2 people to hold it.

Grady tried to pretend he was really nervous about the whole thing, but get a load of these facial expressions, 

obviously he got over his fears pretty quickly.

Is Ty about to sneeze?

Is Preston trying to run?

There we go, all of you staring awkwardly into the sun…

I think I just accidentally made up a rap

Big thank you to Bob and the guys at the station!

 Axe, water hose, Jaws of Life, heat sensor, face mask, authentic fire pole, and headsets, what more could a boy want?

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Snack time made easy, thanks to Preston's kindy teacher who shared this activity with us for our "Homeschool" days in Canada.

We had our own take on the ingredients:

Marshmallows for Coconuts

Trader Joe's Alphabet Cookies

Apples

Graham Crackers

Easy Peasy Watercolor Leaves

Conference weekend can be a challenge when you have 3 active boys and no Hubs at home. It seems football life has always made this the case. Just keeping them safe from injuries, while you try to squeeze in a listen here and there is tempting enough to make you want to throw in the towel and vow that you will listen to all of those amazing talks, after kiddos go to sleep.

Of course you are just making it through the last of those talks by the time the next conference rolls around 6 months later… yikes!

We kept ourselves busy this weekend with painting ANYTHING we could get our hands on: sticks, rocks, paper and… leaves! 

I found these water color pencils at the dollar store, which were perfect for this project with the boys, but the possibilities are endless when you consider all the other colors you could use outside this basic box. 

Simply dip the very tip of your pencil in the water like so, and you are ready to paint. Be prepared to dip after each application, and I found it helpful to have a pencil sharpener handy as the tips can run out of life quickly. 

Start with gathering some leaves

And away you and your littles can go!

We found that painting on the back side gave us the best results, the fronts have that nice waxy feel that give them a fabulous shine, but not so fabulous for absorbing paint. 

I loved all the imperfections!

 Some we highlighted and others were best left 

just the way they were

This is the start of something good :)