New Shoes

Last weekend, we went shopping, first for Win, then for Baby G. Win got a pair of Merrell minimalist running shoes. They are like similar to the toe shoes -- a Vibram sole but shaped like a regular shoe. So he got those, and then we headed in search of shoes for G.

Let me just say I was really hoping she'd pick out some pretty pink Chuck Taylors. (That's what I want for myself!) But then the employee brought out a pair of Sketchers Twinkle Toes. She put them on and would not take them off. I had to hold her up so the guy could pull the tag off the sole. They have Velcro, rhinestones and they light up. And she can rock them.

As Win said, her taste clearly leans towards the flamboyant. She absolutely loves the Peruvian sweater my dad got her for Christmas -- it's multi-colored and has animals and flowers embroidered on it. She has flair, and it fits her personality. (Although, she is still wearing her old Chuck Taylors, so maybe there's hope for me yet. She likes to have options, I think.)

Oh yeah, the verdict on the Merrells is that they have "changed his whole idea of running." Win said he couldn't really explain it, but he felt like he was a kid again while running. The idea is that you are running almost barefoot, and so you use different muscles. He said his calves were so sore the next few days. I actually went and tried some on the other day, but I'm undecided at the moment.

Barefoot running has become a whole movement. If you look around, I'm sure it won't take long for you to see someone wearing the toe shoes. At the moment, the Army doesn't allow them for PT, so these minimalist ones are becoming popular as well. They even have kids' shoes as well. Also if you want to learn more, you can read Christopher McDougall's Born to Run. I have not read it, but practically everyone in my family has, and they all said it was incredibly interesting.

What's a little mud?

Saturday, it was (kind of) warm and very sunny, so we went to Billy Dunlop park. After the kids were played out on the playground, we walked along the river. It had rained this week, and we found a mud bank, and Win decided he could go down the steep bank onto it.

Yeah, he slipped and totally wiped out. It was hilarious.

And then, of course, Bean Dip wanted to go too.

And so did Baby G.

They had a blast sliding down the bank, then slipping and sliding trying to get back up. They were covered in mud and so happy. In order to get home, they had to strip down and ride home pant-less. (Not Win, I had a blanket for him to sit on.)

It reminded me of all the good times my brothers and I had playing in the creek and mud at home. I don't think kids get dirty enough these days.

And everything washed clean easily. Even the kids.

Happy New Year

To celebrate the Chinese New Year, we went out to dinner last night. After searching Google, reading reviews and asking friends for a good restaurant, we ended up at China King Buffet in Clarksville. Win had specifically said he didn't want go to a buffet or a place called China King. However, we were getting desperate, it had good reviews, a military discount and, most importantly, it served beers. So we tried it out. Alex joined us, and we had a lot of fun. The food was pretty good, the service was good, and they had a fish pond inside the restaurant. The buffet style was perfect for two rowdy/exhausted kids. The only thing was they messed up the military discount, but it wasn't that big of a deal.

So we were pleasantly surprised. We love No. 1 Chinese in Clarksville for takeout, but I think we'll be back to China King as well.

Was it the Dragon?

The Chinese New Year (it's the year of the Dragon), kicked off here with some wild weather. I believe I did the same thing about a year ago in 'Bama -- a midnight date with the Weather Channel. The tornado sirens went off, but thankfully, the wildest weather we got was a quick, ferocious thunderstorm. Everyone else slept through it, but I got up and waited through it. It was nice to see on Facebook all my friends here were up too, doing the same thing.

Now the sun is out, and it's windy, but everything looks clean and fresh.

Evenings at the Farm

Our post-Christmas evenings at the farm were much like this:

Win and Bean Dip spent about three days building BD's big present from us -- a giant Star Wars Lego ship. Can you tell he's happy with it? Win had convinced him he was getting a "bag of turds" for Christmas.

"Getting Some Culture"

The Tuesday after Christmas, my mom and I packed up the kids and headed over to the big city for a day of culture. Our goal was the St. Louis Art Museum, specifically the special exhibit they have of Monet's Water Lilies. After a little car trouble and a lot of switching cars and car seats, we made it. Oma had packed a little picnic lunch, which we ate in the car. The sun had disappeared and it was just a little too cold for a December picnic on Art Hill, much to Bean Dip's dismay.

Fueled by hard salami, cheese, crackers, fruit and chocolate, we started our adventure. The Water Lilies exhibit was sold out, so we wandered around. They had a scavenger hunt for kids, so we did that. We saw quite a bit, got a little lost, and had a good time. Bean Dip was quiet at first, pondering different works of art while holding Oma's hand. Baby G got quite comfortable and was tearing around whenever she could.


Here is Bean Dip's favorite painting. I almost stopped reading the description to him, but of course, he likes disaster and "scary things". It was in a large room with couches, so we sat and talked about it. I said I thought it was scary and liked the other large painting in the room "January, December November" better. Bean Dip thought that one looked like a "monster that ate a human and was super scary." While we talked about it, Baby G ran circles around the room and drew on the brochures we had.

 Bean Dip also really liked the mummies, and he stood for a long time in front of a large crucifix.
We had a snack at the museum cafe, got lost finding the bathrooms, and then headed home. I like to think that some of the fine art culture soaked in. If nothing else, now Bean Dip wants to go to Egypt to see the pyramids.