A Weekend With Our Niece

This weekend Kristin and Dan took a trip to Nashville. While they were away Skylee stayed at our house. We love spending time with Skylee and I think she likes staying with us too. She even calls our guest room “her room”.

On Friday night Alison picked up Skylee from Dancing Moose and we picked up some takeout from Riced. We went over to Blake and Debbie’s and spent the evening visiting with Blake. We talked about politics, sports, and work. We also played with the pups. Skylee built a volcano out of salt dough and made it erupt using vinegar. She has been really interested in volcanos ever since Alison showed her the poster for the ride, Journey to the Center of the Earth, in the Disney Posters book.

After a while, Skylee was ready to go to our house so we got her home and unpacked her bag. We got her ready for bed. When she was all ready for bed she got in bed with us and we started to watch the movie Born in China. This was a little selfish on my part since this movie is on my list to watch. It is about various animals: pandas, leopards, monkeys, cranes, and other animals, that all live in China. Skylee and I quite enjoyed the film. Alison enjoyed it until she fell asleep.

The next morning Skylee woke us up bright and early. She comes in and tells us that she looked out her window and saw that it was light outside so we should all get up. We talked Skylee into jumping back into bed and she finished Born In China with us.

After we got up and made some breakfast for Skylee (eggs and strawberries) Alison wanted to work out so I took Skylee and Tex on a walk. It was a beautiful day. We walked over to the “fun” park. As soon as we arrived Skylee informed me she needed to go to the bathroom. We looked around, but the only bathrooms in the area were closed for the winter. I told Skylee we could go home, but she insisted that we stay. Skylee played on all the jungle gym equipment while I threw a frisbee for Tex in the field near the park. This was perfect, I could watch Skylee play and keep Tex entertained. She played for about half an hour before she decided she was ready to run home. To keep her motivated to walk quickly I let her hold Tex’s leash. She loved it and was so cute. Anytime he would stray from the path she would pat her leg and say, “Texy, Texy”. We made better time going home than when we walked to the park and we were just in time to avoid an accident.

After our adventure at the park, we headed downtown. We parked at City Creek and ate lunch at Blue Lemon. They have great kids' meals and it is one of Skylee’s favorite places. We got on Trax to head toward the gateway. When we got to the station we had just missed the train and we thought about just walking, but Skylee really wanted to ride on the train. When we gave her the choice between waiting 12 minutes or leaving right away she happily waited. Itas a good we waited because she thought the Trax train was so fun. We got off the train and headed into the Planetarium.

Thanks to the company I work for, Sorenson Media, which has a pass for the planetarium, we were able to get into all of the shows free of charge. We immediately got tickets for a dome show and an IMax show. While we waited for our first show Skylee ran from station to station learning about the solar system and playing games.

We went to the dome show first. Skylee was very confused when we sat down because the chairs leaned way back and the screen was on the ceiling. It was an amazing show. It was called explore and it talked about the history of mathematics that allows us to explore space. It wasn’t really geared toward kids, but Skylee sat there in awe watching the images and commenting on everything she saw. It held her attention for 40 minutes. I also loved it and learned a ton. Alison got a nice nap in (which kind of worried Skylee a bit until I told her it was okay).

We continued to play with the various exhibits until Skylee saw the gift shop. Then she wanted to find something to buy. First, she found an ugly stuffed dolphin. Try my best I could not talk her into buying something more planetarium related. Finally, she found a purple slinky that she really liked, but she wanted both the dolphin and the slinky. Then I hit a home run. In the back corner of the store, I found glow-in-the-dark nail polish. She thought that was so cool and quickly lost interest in the dolphin.

We went to the IMAX show. This one was about finding life on other moons or planets in the solar system. It was super interesting. It also wasn’t really geared toward kids, but it kept Skylee’s interest with the beautiful scenes and 3-D effects. She was also pretty interested because a large part of the show took place in Hawaii, which is where she is going to celebrate her next birthday.

After the show, we were done with the planetarium. We bought the slinky and nail polish and then we walked to temple square. We explored Temple Square and ended up by a fountain. Skylee wanted to make a wish so I dug into my wallet and found a 5-shekel coin. I obtained this coin in Jerusalem and it ended up in a fountain in Salt Lake City. Funny how things like that work. Skylee made a wish and threw it in. We enjoyed the beauty of the temple grounds.

We headed to City Creek and stopped by the Disney store. Skylee was going to give us some ideas of things we could get her next time we are in Disneyland. She basically wanted everything in the store, except maybe a Jesse hat.

We headed home. On our way, Skylee fell asleep. We stopped by Blake and Debbie’s to get Tex and she stayed asleep. Even when we got home I transferred her to the coach and she slept for over an hour. She must have been very tired after our busy day.

Sunday with Skylee was a nice day. We spent a lot of time at our house and she got to come to church with us. We asked her if she wanted to come to our primary class. At first, she wondered if she would have to pretend to be 6 to attend our class. We laughed it off and assured her she would not need to pretend to be six if she wanted to come to our class. She decided to join our class. She did so well. Our class was in charge of opening exercises and they have everything filled, except for the article of faith. The presidency went down our row asking each child if they would be willing to help with the article of faith everyone said no until it came to Skylee she was totally willing to help. She did a great job and was not at all shy. In our class, she fit right in and participated in the lesson. She often gave better answers than the rest of the kids. We were talking about prayer and one of the topics we discussed was things our heavenly father has given us. Skylee had thoughtful answers like combs so we can brush our hair. It was super cute. 

After church, we fired up the instant pot and went for a walk while our dinner was cooking. We walked around the lake, fortunately, we had picked up a stroller for Skylee so that she didn't have to walk. She was still a little bored and kept asking why the lake was so long. After our walk, we ate dinner. This was a rare instance where Skylee ate the same thing as Alison and I. We had taco chicken, rice, and strawberries. Skylee loves chicken and rice and ate most of her dinner. When we finished dinner Skylee wanted to try out her glow-in-the-dark nail polish. We bought it at the planetarium and Skylee was very excited about it. Alison helped her apply the nail polish and we went into a dark room. Nothing happened. It was a total flop. We tried exposing the polish to bright light and it did not help. It was a little disappointing. 

Before we knew it bedtime was here and we called it a night. On Monday morning Alison and I got up and worked out. I was all ready to go to work and made breakfast when Skylee got up. She joined me for breakfast and wanted two fried eggs since that is what I was eating. Alison helped her get ready for the day and dropped her off at school. 

After we were done with work and Skylee was done with school we headed home. Our friends, Kyle and Sarah, dropped their three boys off. Kyle and Sarah were going out with Kyle's family and we volunteered to watch their kids. Skylee has hung out with their boys a few times and enjoys playing with them. Since Skype is an only child she organizes other kids' play. After we ate dinner we walked over to the "fun" park. Skylee designated herself as the safety officer. She would walk at the front of the group and whenever we came to a street crossing she would hold her hands out wide so no one could pass until the all-clear was given. It was pretty cute. We played at the park and everyone had a great time. Kyle and Sarah got back earlier than we expected so we were still at the park. They met us part way and drove all of the kids home. We had ice cream sandwiches at home for the kids to enjoy and then they played while we chatted with Kyle and Sarah. In some ways, more kids are easier than just having one. They can entertain each other. Debbie came by and picked up Skylee so that they could go to the airport to get Kristin and Dan.

As Skylee was leaving disaster struck. We could not find her slinky. She had to go get her parents so we promised we would keep looking. Alison and I looked high and low and we could not find the slinky. We began to wonder if Skylee took it to the park and dropped it somewhere along the way. The next day as Alison and I were getting into bed I felt something lumpy at the bottom of the bed. I reached down and found the slinky hidden under the covers. I called Skylee and she was so excited she had to come to get it right away.