Out Like a Lamb, Or Maybe Like a Lion?

In Camarillo, March is going out pretty much the same way it came in: Mild, mild, mild. So much for lions and lambs in this part of the world. We were reminded, though, that the weather does get somewhat more extreme as we move inland and away from the breeze wafting in from the Pacific when we took a trip to the LA Zoo to kick off Spring Break.

All Dad wanted to do last Sunday was read his funny papers in peace. Eliza thought he should add a little flourish.

The front yard continues to offer its own flourishes.

Earlier in the week, Mike had gone to Cost Plus World Market and found all sorts of unique Easter-themed treats. We all went together later on and window shopped.

Between that and the 99 Cents Store, there’s always something fun and random to try on.

Everyone kept busy with school and work activities leading into the weekend. On Thursday night, Landon accompanied Hallie to her last foster care class. A young woman who had emancipated herself after living in 10 different foster homes told her story. Landon asked if we could adopt her. He has a tender heart.

On Friday, we celebrated Easter in Landon’s class by building graham cracker houses for Peeps chicks. Lots of other parents brought in treats and helped the kids put the houses together. Royal icing makes great cement but can be a bit difficult for first graders to use. Thanks very much to all those who helped!

Thanks, Grandma, for the read aloud book! 

Landon's finished product

The warming trend from last week gave way to cooler weather where we live, but inland weather remained toasty. We braved the heat on Saturday, going to the LA Zoo with Alie, Emily, Mike, and his niece Sasha. Trails to the various animal exhibits wind up and down the hills. It’s hard to compare the LA Zoo to the Detroit Zoo. Both have their appeal and strengths. Detroit is straight forward (literally) and can be done in a day. LA takes a bit longer, and with little ones in tow, we didn’t see it all. We were glad for the Safari Shuttle that took us to the top of the hill so we could (mostly) walk downhill, but we missed some of the exhibits instead of going back up the hill. Detroit’s arctic exhibit and polar bears are hard to beat, although we found LA’s elephants to be pretty entertaining. The dry heat finally took its toll on the group, and we headed back to Grandma and Grandpa’s to take Alie home.

Jelly Belly art

Several hours later as we were leaving

On Sunday, our own little lion brought home some new prey when he walked right into the house with another alligator lizard. Unlike his last victim, this lizard still had quite a bit of fight in him. Mike was able to catch the lizard and release him outside before he either got eaten or under a piece of furniture (or both).