Overly Academic

We took our last trip to the Brookfield Zoo last weekend.  I’m sure we’ll go back and visit when we’re in the area, but it was the last chance to go as members.  We have used the heck out of that membership, and really love the facilities there.

This weekend, we painted four rooms in the new house.  If you are interested in those pictures, you can find them at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=234978&id=558733848&l=e6820cd773.

The peacock was on full display and shaking his feathers at a white female.  It was pretty impressive.

Here’s the female as well.

Daddy and Ilyana working on a craft project (more Daddy than Ilyana )

Ilyana’s interpretation of a tiger.

I just finished this year’s Halloween costume.  This year, it was Ponyo (from the recent movie) by request.  For those of you who don’t know who Ponyo is, you can see a picture here:

And here are a few pics of my version:

It’s been a busy couple of weeks!  We had a great barbeque in August to celebrate my graduation and our new grill, which was a heck of a lot of fun.  Good food, good people, and kids for Ilyana to play with.  We did have a very dramatic accident that sent our little friend Harrison to the ER, but he’s fine.  Just a little scalp wound that bled like crazy!

Ilyana also tried out finger painting.  It’s not her favorite…she would only touch the paint with one finger, and then rinsed it off with each dip.  She far prefers painting with her color wonder paints from Crayola, as they are clear on her fingers and don’t feel as slimy as the fingerpaint.

The biggest news is, of course, Ilyana going to school.  She walked in the first day and hasn’t looked back.  In fact, her biggest challenge is leaving – she throws a little fit each day when I come pick her up.  I’m not taking it personally, and am reveling in her independence.

Enjoy the pictures from Flickr below – be sure to click through to see the whole set.