Dental Appointments

It was time for the boys to go to their six month dental check-ups on Tuesday, July 23. The night before we were talking about going to the dentist at dinner and how they would need to open up their mouth really wide so the dentist can check all their teeth. So, Garytt was practicing opening up really wide. It was a little intense.

  The next morning, we went to the dentist. I really like using a pediatric dentist because the staff is so good with the little kids. Each time we come in they try to add something new to the procedure, but if the child resists, they back off to their comfort level. Garytt was first up in the chair.


Time to lay back!


Miss Karla was exceptionally good, especially considering this is the first time Garytt would get to experience the actually polisher. Previously, they techs would just brush his teeth with a regular toothbrush, so this was a big step! She did a great job showing him all the tools first. She did brush with a regular brush first, just in case the polisher didn't go well.


Next, it was time to try the polisher and see how Garytt handled it.


They also used the rinse tool and the suction straw.


Let me just say that Garytt rocked it! Miss Karla was even super impressed. He did so well, that she recommended that he graduate from the individual room and move out to the bay with the big kids!

After that, it was Westyn's turn. His exam was a lot shorter and much harder for me to get pictures because he still does the lap exams where I have to hold him. But he did a great job, too!


After the glowing report from the dentist, both boys earned tokens for the toy towers. They were pretty excited!


Another successful trip to the dentist!

Glimpse of Vegas

While the boys and I kept a busy schedule in Topeka and Wichita, Justin was enjoying a conference in Vegas. They stayed in the Aria hotel, which is apparently very new and very nice. So nice that they offer nuts in the room...nuts that could literally kill Justin.
 
  Shortly after Justin posted that on Facebook, he posted a picture of their dinner buffet where they also had pistachios.
 

So, at that point, I was really hoping he would make it out of Vegas alive! (For anyone who doesn't know, Justin is off the charts allergic to cashews and pistachios.) I called to be sure that he did, in fact, bring his EpiPen. Thankfully, he did have it with him. And even better than that, he didn't actually have to use it! Whew!

I will say that most of the pictures Justin took from Vegas were of the fabulous food options.


It looks like they did have a pretty good view of the strip from their hotel room as well.


Of course, a trip to Vegas isn't complete without seeing a bride.


I understand that the conference went well. Justin was actually a presenter. He was asked to talk about how to use Twitter in the Financial Aid office.
 

He actually had two co-presenters for this talk. So, he wanted to get them a little gift. I found these wooden @ symbols at Hobby Lobby. He spray painted them and we added red vinyl to spell out #NASFAA2013.
 

It sounds like the conference was a success. Justin arrived back in Columbia the night before the boys and I got home. The boys were pretty excited to see him when he got home from work, especially since he brought back some gifts from the conference! Who doesn't love squishy balls and footballs?


It's nice to have everyone back in Columbia again!

Sprinkler!

Although we have been to several splash pads, we have never actually just set up a sprinkler and let the kids play in the yard. So, Grandpa did that for the boys!


Then, Grandpa showed the boys how to grab the rotator and control the water. Westyn didn't love being directly splashed.


But Garytt thought catching the rotator was a pretty fun game!


Here are a couple of videos of the boys playing in the sprinkler.


After the water fun and some dinner, Grandma surprised the boys with a cold treat.
 

Garytt stayed pretty clean but, clearly, Westyn had to go directly to the bath!

Garytt's First Movie

My mom and dad offered to watch Westyn while I took Garytt to see his first movie on the big screen. Monsters University seem like a perfect choice! And, I decided to take him to see the 3-D version...go big or don't go, right? (Actually, it was the only showing that worked in our schedule...so bonus for him!)

We were both pretty excited for the show!


Ok, so, we arrived about 10 minutes before the show was scheduled to start, then there were quite a few previews, so it seemed to take forever for the show to actually start. That sort of thing isn't normally a problem, except with a room full of toddlers. The kids, including Garytt, actually did really well until about 20 minutes before the end of the movie. Then all the young kids seemed a little restless...of course, the main action was over in the movie, too. Next time, I will remember to come about 5 minutes after the scheduled start time.

Anyhow, we had a good time! And Garytt loved getting those 3-D glasses!

Kids Art Lab

We decided that we should do something fun for the boys on Tuesday since they had so much time in the car and hospital over the past few days. So, Grandma and I took them to The Mulvane Art Institute on the Washburn University campus. They have a kids Art Lab in the basement. We had heard about this art lab but never been there. It's a free art lab and I really didn't expect much out of it. Boy was I wrong! They have quite a few different stations and they seem to be able to entertain kids of all ages!

The boys started at the light table where they could explore color.
 

Then they moved to the magnetic mosaic wall.


Next they wanted to work at the main art table. Westyn colored while Grandma helped Garytt learn to use scissors (check out his concentration face).


Lego room!


Garytt was excited to learn how to do the texture rubbing.


By then, it was time to go meet Grandpa for lunch. Garytt had to bring his rubbings to show Grandpa!


We actually had so much fun at the art lab that we invited Garytt's friend, Hannah to join us there the next day! Westyn stayed home with Grandma as he was feeling a bit grumpy.
 

Our time at the art lab with Hannah was fairly short as Hannah seemed overwhelmed by the number of kids there. There was a preschool there at the same time that we went. Ironically, our friend, Olivia, was one of the kids in that preschool! We said "hi" to her but I didn't take a picture because I didn't want to make the preschool teacher uncomfortable about a stranger taking a picture of one of their students.

Anyhow, we went back to my parents' house to have some lunch and play a little more. It was great to see Hannah and Stacy!  (And Olivia, too!)