Flying to dinner with Daddy again

It was another nice day, so Daddy and I headed up to the other airport again for the Wednesday night BBQ fly-in.  I was great on the ride up and mentioned a few times how I hoped I could drive the golf cart again.  Well, what was the first thing Daddy's friend said when we arrived?  "Piper, would you like to drive the golf cart?"  I ran right over!  Daddy helped me steer again, and we went super fast.  This time, since we arrived early, we were the only airplane on the parking ramp, so as long as I didn't hit it we would be fine.  I made lots of tight turns and circles and showed Daddy I can really drive well.  Then I told him I wanted to drive all by myself!  Not quite yet, he said.

Since we were there early, I was even put to work loading soda cans into the cooler.  I was excited to help, and did a great job.  When the other planes arrived I made sure to get a good look at all of them, including crawling under the ones with retractable landing gear to find out where the wheels went!

Too soon we had to leave because it was getting late, but I know we'll be back again soon.  On the way back we flew right over our house and made a big circle.  Mommy came out back and got a picture!

When we got home and told Mommy all about the flight, she asked me what my favorite part was.  Without any hesitation, I answered back "Being with Daddy!"

Kite flying!

It was pretty windy today, so Daddy and I went outside to fly a new kite I had - a gecko!  It's a silly kite but I like it.  Daddy told me I had to run really fast when he said go, and I did!

After a few tries, I really got the kite up high.  And it stayed!  Daddy eventually let out all the kite string so the kite was super high up.  It flew for a long time, and I held on tight.

Stay up there, kite!

Too soon, the wind died down and we were done with the kites.  But Mommy had bought a little plastic bat and ball and I was eager to try playing baseball.  I even hit the ball a few times!

Zoe and Mia came over to play!

Today was Zoe and Mia's parents anniversary, so we invited just Zoe and Mia over to our house to play while their parents went on a date.  We had a super time, between running around outside, playing in the basement and in my room, dressing up, having snacks, and just being three happy girls.

Daddy even turned on the sprinklers for us!

When we were tired of the sprinklers, we looked over at the birdbath and decided it really needed cleaning.  Daddy and Mommy thought we were really weird, but we were pretty dedicated to cleaning the birdbath, and thought it was great fun as we got even more wet.  When we showed no signs of stopping, Mommy went ahead and brought us a brush too.  They couldn't figure out why we were so interested in the birdbath, but weren't about to stop us.  We now have a super clean birdbath!

Then we all sat and swang together while we dried off.

We had a great day!

I lost another tooth!

I've had another wiggly tooth for a long time now.  The bottom one right next to the one that already fell out has been super loose for almost two weeks!  Every day I've let Daddy check it to see if it's ready to come out, but it kept hanging on.  Until tonight!  We were out eating Mexican food when I said to Mommy and Daddy, "there's something crunchy in my burrito".  There sure was, my tooth!  I was super excited and made sure to show our waitress the tooth!

Huffman Prairie "Aero Carnival"

On the air force base is an area called "Huffman Prairie".  It's where the Wright Brothers did all their practice flying after they flew at Kitty Hawk, and where they taught others to fly.  Today there was an "Aero Carnival" run by the National Park Service.  We didn't know what to expect, but the advertisement said they'd have "bouncy houses" so we figured it couldn't be too bad!

First we had to stop by Daddy's office so he could do something for a few minutes.  I got to see all my drawings he has put up!  I also got to wear his hardhat and safety glasses!

Then we headed to the Aero Carnival and met Zoe and Mia there!  We had a lot of fun for a long time on the bouncy houses. 

They even had a replica 1911 Wright B Flyer for us to look at.  Of course I wanted to touch the propeller, so Daddy held me up.  We asked if it was okay first!

They also had some antique cars and some games for the kids to play, so I had a good time.  But mostly I just wanted to go back to the bouncy houses!

Mommy's work party

Mommy's office had a picnic lunch today, so Daddy picked me up early from school and took me over.  He couldn't stay the whole time since he had to get back to work, but he stayed a little while and then it was just me and Mommy.

They had a bouncy house, so I was set!  I also had some lunch.  But then I found out a lady was doing face paintings, and I ran right over!  I wanted to be a kitten!

Too soon it was time for Daddy to go, so I gave him a big hug goodbye.  Then I realized I could see my reflection in his glasses!

Ewww!  Mommy got a third eye.  Silly Mommy!

I practiced playing a local favorite game called "cornhole".  I discovered it was much easier if I pushed the two boards together first!

We were there for the rest of the day, and I wore myself out!  I even got to play in the sprinkler, which was a lot of fun but naturally washed my kitten whiskers off!

Flying with Daddy to dinner

A friend of Daddy's hosts a fly-in BBQ dinner every Wednesday night at an airport about 25 minutes away.  We haven't been able to make it yet (and it has been really hot this summer) but finally today we went!  I was a great girl on the ride up and mostly just played with my dolls.  Occassionally Daddy would tell me "20 more minutes" and I'd respond excitedly, "I can count to 20!" and of course then show him how good I could count.

When we got there, Daddy's friend had a golf cart parked near the hangar.  Daddy said it was okay if I sat on it, but he wisely took the key out and went and talked to the other people there.  A minute later, he heard "Daddy, it's moving!!!" I had released the parking brake and was rolling down the slight hill it was parked on!  Daddy came to my rescue, though, and his friend asked if I wanted to drive it.  Of course I said yes!  So with Daddy sitting next to me, we drove around the airplane parking area (fortunately it is big and had only a few planes on it).  Daddy helped with the steering, but I worked the pedals by myself!

We had a great time eating, playing and looking at airplanes.  When we flew back home, I told Mommy that I wanted to go back every day!  Daddy liked the sound of that!

What do you mean I'm not speaking in church?

This morning before Mommy and I left for church I was practicing the Scripture I'd presented last week in Primary.  I mixed up the verses a little bit, but still had the overall idea memorized.  I told Mommy I would be ready to speak again to my Primary class and that I wouldn't need her help at all.  Then she told me I wouldn't be speaking in front of everyone today.  I was really sad because I like getting up and talking in front of everyone.  Mommy assured me I'd have plenty more opportunities.  I can't wait!

Toy helicopters!

Today at Sam's Club there was a "special sale" on tiny remote control helicopters.  An employee was demonstrating them as Daddy and I watched, and Mommy saw the look in our eyes!  How could we pass this up?  It was a two-pack!  We took them home and Daddy taught me how to fly.  There were only two controls, so he operated the throttle and I operated the steering.

Whee!

I really wanted to try to catch it if Daddy could land it in my hand.  And I did!

Unfortunately, one of the helicopters broke after just a few minutes.  But we still had the other one, and will return the first one.  I told Daddy I'd lay out a landing pad to see if he could land the helicopter on it.  I then laid out a whole blanket on the floor.  I wanted to give him a big enough target!  He thought this was pretty funny, and he was able to land on it no problem!

Toenail painting with Mommy

Mommy had stopped by the store looking for some toe-spreaders to use when she's doing my toenails.  She couldn't find any that were quite my size, but found some we tried anyway.  I thought it was pretty fun.  I keep telling Mommy I can't wait until I'm older and can do her nails too!

I got flowers from Daddy!

Last night Mommy and I stopped by to get some flowers for a friend of Mommy's who is in the hospital.  I picked out a super pretty assortment, and really wanted to keep them. But when we went to give them to the friend's husband to take to the hospital, I didn't fuss at all, handing them right over because I knew she needed them more than me.  Daddy and Mommy thought this was very grown-up of me and told me how proud they were.

Well, Mommy picked me up from school today and when we got home, Daddy had a big surprise for me - he bought ME flowers!  And not one, but two bunches so I could keep one on the dinner table and one in my room.  I was super excited!

I Gave My First Scripture Reading at Church

Last week I was asked to present the Scripture for today's Junior Primary lesson at church.  The Primary theme for the month of August is:  "My body is a temple of God."
So even though Mommy and I practiced 1 Corinthians 3: 16-17 for several days, she knew I probably would need some help during the presentation.  So she whispered a few words to help keep me on track, but I had the whole thing memorized!  (Note:  Mommy did a little editing due to the age group in the Junior Primary.)  Here's what I said:
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? ...for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." 
I want to speak every week in church!

Shobhana came over

Today after school my friend Shobhana and her mommy came over for dinner.  We had pizza and then wanted to run around outside and play in the sprinkler!  Daddy set it up and we spent a long time just running and jumping over it and having a great time.  He even surprised us by sneaking inside and turning on the in-ground sprinklers while we were playing!  We got really wet!

Flight to Columbus

Today since Mommy is still out of town, Daddy asked me if I wanted to fly somewhere with him.  I said yes!  I love to fly with him any chance I get (and I keep reminding him that when I'm bigger I'll get to sit up front).

We flew up to Bolton Field near Columbus, where Daddy knew they have a restaurant on the field and a small, free miniature golf course.  I had "chicken dinosaurs" for lunch!  They were just normal chicken nuggets but cut in the shape of dinosaurs.  I thought this was pretty funny, especially when I showed Daddy how I ate the dinosaur's head and tail!

We then went outside to play a round of mini golf.  It was nine holes and very run down, but I still had a great time.  And we were the only ones there.  Fore!

Daddy started a running deal with me last time we flew, that if I see another airplane in flight before he does, I get a quarter!  Well, today I saw two!  As we were flying, Daddy asked if I wanted the money right then.  Of course I said yes, and he paid up.  You should have seen the big smile on my face!

When we got back we headed up to the Air Force Base where they were having a two-week long international competition for remote control scale model jet aircraft.  There were some neat planes, there, and they were all small!  We watched some of them flying around, and as you look up into the sky you'd lose the sense of scale, and they could easily have been the real thing.  Since they had real (although tiny) jet engines, they even sounded like the real thing!  I even got to fly a remote control aircraft flight simulator.  My landings need some practice.

On the way back home Daddy asked if I'd like to stop at Ritter's Frozen Custard.  Of course!  But when we pulled into the parking lot, Daddy looked back and I was fast asleep.  It had been a tiring day.  He sat there and let me sleep for a short nap.  He has never seen me wake up so fast as I did when he told me where we were!  After my "Kid's Crunch" sundae we headed home.

But Daddy wasn't done wearing me out quite yet.  We have an in-ground sprinkler system here that we've never used (since it has rained a lot the time we've been here), so he decided to put it on "automatic" and see what happened.  I had a great time finding each "zone" as the sprinklers popped up, and running over and getting all wet.  Daddy got pretty wet too!

I had no problem falling asleep, even knowing that Mommy was coming home late tonight!

Mommy's in Oklahoma this week

This morning Mommy left for Oklahoma.  She'll be there all week as she looks for a house for her and Daddy to purchase as an investment property.  I'm sure going to miss her, but I'm sure Daddy and I will have lots of fun!

The tooth fairy came!

I haven't been real big on the idea of leaving my tooth under the pillow for the tooth fairy.  I had a lot of questions!  Why does the tooth fairy want my tooth?  What does she do with it?  What does she look like?  Daddy, will you help me figure out where the tooth fairy comes in?  Lots of questions!  But after a few days now, I finally decided to put it under my pillow last night and see what happens.

About an hour after bedtime, I came out of my room and found Daddy.  "Daddy, the tooth fairy didn't come yet!" He told me that she doesn't come until you're asleep.  This was a problem for me, because, "But I want to see what she looks like!"

Eventually, of course, I did fall asleep.  This morning when Daddy woke me up, I told him that the tooth fairy didn't take my tooth.  He asked me if I'd checked under my pillow yet this morning.  So I did, and she DID come!  And left a shiny golden dollar coin.  He told me that it's worth four quarters, which I immediately knew meant four servings of goat feed at Young's Dairy!  Maybe this tooth fairy thing isn't so bad after all, but I still ask Daddy what she looks like.

My tooth fell out!

Today at school, my tooth was super wiggly.  I was playing with it a little during nap time.  Then when we woke up and it was snack time, it came out!  It just came out all by itself while I was having a Fig Newton.  I didn't really know what to do with it, so I handed it to my teacher.  She put it in a bag and gave it to Daddy when he picked me up.  He was so proud of his big girl!

Daddy felt some of my other teeth too, and guess what?  The bottom front right tooth looks like it's going to be next!  My top front teeth feel like they might not be too far behind either.  Mommy and Daddy both agree I'm growing up so fast.  It doesn't seem like very long ago that my first tooth came in, and now I'm losing them already!

My tooth is super wiggly!

Daddy wanted to see how my loose tooth was doing, and when he touched it, he was really surprised.  It was very wiggly!  He doesn't think it has more than a few days left until it'll be out!

Urbana Aviation Museum and kids day at the Greene

Daddy really wanted to take me flying somewhere today, and I really wanted to go with him.  So we flew up to Urbana, OH, again, went to the aviation museum there, and had lunch!  This time I walked all the way up to the cockpit of the DC-3 and sat right down in the pilot's seat.  Daddy was my copilot.  Ready for takeoff!

When we got home, we found out there was a "Kid's Day" at a nearby outdoor mall, so we went over to check it out.  They had inflatables, face painting, a balloon guy, music, and fountains for us to splash in.  First I headed to the inflatable slides and moonbounces.  Whee!

I got a butterfly painted on my face, and picked a giraffe for the balloon guy to make for me.  I'm sure Grandma Roslewski is so proud!

We were only there for about an hour before it was over, but I still had a lot of fun.

Dental appointment - I have a loose tooth!

Daddy took me to the dentist today, and I was a really good girl.  But the dentist had very exciting news - I have my first loose tooth!  He was surprised that I just turned four, but said that although it's certainly very early for me to start losing my baby teeth, it's within the "normal" range.  Of course, at school there are some older (5-year old) kids who are losing teeth too, so I know all about what it means to lose a tooth.  It means I'm getting to be a big girl, and I am very excited!  My appointment was right before lunchtime, so we made a special trip and met Mommy for lunch so I could show her my tooth!

It's my bottom left front one!  The dentist said it will probably be a couple of months until it comes out though.

The mysteries of growing up

Today on the drive home, I told Daddy I was going to pretend I was five years old.  He thought that sounded fun, and asked me what kinds of things 5-year olds do.  I thought about it for a moment, then answered in my most serious voice, "They do lots of things...that I don't really know..." 

I can't wait until I turn five to find out what those things are!

"My Best Fun Day Ever!" - The Columbus Zoo

For the 4th of July weekend, the Columbus Zoo was having a "free for military and families" day. So we headed on over, which makes it our first "fun" trip out of town since we arrived here! It's a great big zoo, and we didn't come close to seeing everything.

I liked the bear exhibit! I made some "bear faces" while we were there.

Hey, this one is just my size!

Two of the bears were sleeping right up against a viewing window, so we were only inches away from them. I thought they had pretty big paws! We also saw elephants, lions, tigers, penguins, and lots of other animals. They even had an aquarium there. This fish was bigger than my hand!

After a few hours of looking at all the animals, I found out that this zoo has a lot of rides too! They had a big carousel that I was very excited to go on. And the best part was there was no line, so I got to stay on it for about 4 times in a row!

The other rides all had similarly short (or no) lines too, so we ended up spending the rest of the day on those. And I met the minimum height for almost all of them. We had a great time! They had one water ride, and I really wanted to go on it. We all got soaked!

Mommy was sensible and only went on it once. But Daddy and I went on it two more times. We were really wet by the end, but it was a hot day and felt good. I gave a big scream each time the raft went down the hills!

Since most of the other rides were geared toward kids my age, Mommy and Daddy let me go on most of them all by myself. I felt like a pretty big girl! I loved the swing.

In fact, I got to go on it again, and I was the only one on the ride. I had the whole thing to myself!

The wooden roller coaster was a blast. I went on it four times, sometimes not even getting off between runs, since there was no line. I had lots of fun screaming and raising my hands the entire time, even on the uphill parts!

Mommy was brave enough to try the "Leap Frog" which was a bouncy ride that took us up about 15 feet and dropped us, bouncing up and down (22 times according to another girl on the ride). I did it twice!

I sure liked going to the zoo. In fact, right before we left, I told Mommy and Daddy that today was "my best fun day ever!" Maybe next time we'll look at more of the animals!

Since this was our first highway drive in the new car, Daddy wanted to see what kind of gas mileage we'd get on the way back. So he filled up right after leaving the zoo, and we got 40.7 mpg when we stopped in our garage!

Young's Jersey Dairy special!

For the 4th of July weekend, Young's Jersey Dairy was having a special, "unlimited" deal for one price.  So we went and tried to do everything they have there!  We played miniature golf, went to the "real" golf driving range, the batting cages (I didn't get to go in there), the big slide, the petting zoo, the "train" ride, and lots more!

We even were able to have someone take a rare picture of the three of us, as we went down the big slide.  Wheee!

I LOVED the slide.  I just wanted to go back up and do it again and again.  And I did!  I made friends with a lot of other girls who liked the slide too, and we had fun racing each other.  There was usually no line either, so I'd slide down and run right back up to the top.  It was great!  Daddy took a video of me too:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7UKRD0G8ds

I got to go on the "train" ride a few times too.  Mommy and Daddy even went on it the first time with me.  Daddy doesn't really fit, but he sure had fun watching me have fun.

"Hey, that cow has lipstick!!  Can I ride it?"

Daddy and I still always like to scare Mommy.

I saw Daddy at the driving range and then really wanted to try it too.  They even had clubs that were my size!  He tried to show me how to hold the club and swing, and I had so much fun we had to get more balls.

Look at that form!

We all hope they do this kind of special deal again soon!

Slip and slide with Daddy

Daddy and I set up the slip-and-slide this afternoon!  Mommy even went on it a few times before deciding that was enough.  But Daddy kept sliding down it with me, never mind that the warning label says "maximum 5 feet tall and 110 pounds".  Daddy exceeds those by a little bit

I'd slide first, and then tell him he couldn't catch me!  Of course he would try, and usually did catch me, at which point I'd start squealing and giggling up a storm.  I wasn't fast enough!

After while, Daddy quit too.  But not soon enough, silly Daddy, he sure was sore the next day!  It was worth it, we had so much fun.