Kendall, Ava and Kayla, bowling with their daddy

He’s always thoughtful and kind.

He works his tail off — dropping kids off, picking them up, hauling them to activities, dragging their gear around.

And he gives the girls all the love and attention he’s got to give — I don’t think he’s eaten a full meal in the past two years without a child on his lap, horning in to steal the tastiest bites.

I’m so thankful for all that we have, and above all, for each other. Our daddy rocks!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of yogurt (I used Yoplait Strawberry yogurt)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 banana
• 1 cup other fruit
• 1 teaspoon of peanut butter

Blend above ingredients until desired consistency.

YUMMY!

Ready to blend

Our kids are a bit too young (and rowdy) for me to feel comfortable heading up the mountain with them, but the half-mile Kingfisher Trail is perfect.

Technically, there’s no bikes allowed. But Ava was desperate to ride and it wasn’t crowded, so we sneaked through with it just one time. Despite a few gentle hills, she pedaled through with little trouble. And Kayla and Kendall were happy to check out everything that could be seen — even a snake we saw slithering though the creek. (Eek!)

After the first go-round, we headed off to the playground and caught a neat demonstration by one of the park interpreters about reptiles (our snake friend included). Then I headed back to the trail while everyone else played. I’ve always felt happy exercising there — good for motivation, right? There’s just so much natural beauty that you can kinda put yourself in another world for awhile.

I also managed some bench pushups and stretching, although I wished I’d have looked up some playground workouts before heading out there. This one from Parents.com looks good for beginners/new moms, although there’s no swings at Pinnacle to tackle the first exercise. (It could probably be done on the ground our on a bench, too.) Next time, I’m on it!

Summer has finally reached Arkansas. If you’re not hanging out at the pool, it’s almost too hot to do any other activity outside right now. Why not pack up the kids and head to Chenal 9 in Little Rock for their Free Summer Vacation Movie Series? A different movie is offered every Tuesday thorough Thursday at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. through August 1.

Racing Stripes kicks off the season June 11-13 – This PG movie is about an abandoned  Zebra who is convinced he is a racing horse. The film premiered in 2005 and is one of my daughter’s favorite movies — and yes, we own the DVD.

Need a list of the other movies? No problem, I just happen to have it.

• June 18-20: Sesame Street’s Follow That Bird 
• June 25-27: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. This PG film is one of my favorite family movies. Dwayne Johnson (aka Eye Candy) is hilarious.
• July 2-4: Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax. Yet another G rated movie, perfect for the young and the old.
• July 9-11: Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted.  Can’t go wrong with Madagascar.
• July 16-18: Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. I would love to see this movie again.
• July 23-25: Hotel Transylvania. This is another family favorite. My daughter received this movie in her Easter Basket. Every time we watch it, my daughter talks  like Dracula for the rest of the day.
• July 30-August 1: Lassie Come Home. Another movie I am eager to see again.

But wait, there’s more! I have always wanted to say that.

Don’t forget the drink, popcorn and candy combos for only $4.50.

Chenal 9 is located in the Promenade at Chenal, 17711 Chenal Pkwy. in Little Rock.

*Note, while this is a compensated post, all opinions expressed belong to me. 

Multitasking = coupon clipping at the McDonald’s play place during breakfast. (The new egg white McMuffin is pretty good!)

Thursday night, Matt and I took Alaina to see Ringling Bros. and Barnham & Bailey’s Fully Charged show. It was her first time at the circus and Matt and my first trip to the circus since we were kids. We all had a blast!

Many thanks to the Angela Rogers Group, which provided me and my family with tickets to see the show!

We did go a little early for the pre-show. Unfortunately, we didn’t get there early enough to get a front-row seat for it, so Alaina wasn’t all that impressed. She did like getting a backstage look at the animals though — my kid digs camels and elephants.

Now on to the show…

First up, I have to compliment the band that provided the music (and sound effects) for the show. Alaina really dug the music — there were times I think she was rocking out to it too much to watch the acts! At one point, Alaina told her daddy that the band was her favorite part, although she later decided she liked the elephants the best.

My kid aside, the band did a great job of keeping the tempo of the show up. One thought — the volume may have been a touch too loud because it seemed to drown out the crowd’s cheering. It did seem to be a fairly quiet crowd; however, I think that may have been because people were too in awe of the performers’ feats to remember to cheer.

Alaina and Matt having a blast at the circus

There are certain elements that I expect to see at the circus — let’s see if Fully Charged met those expectations.

Ringmaster — Check — David Shipman was not the ringmaster of my childhood — this guy was a singing ringmaster — a definite plus in holding the attention of my musically-inclined child!

Animals — Check — Exotic animal trainers Brett & Cathy Carden did three animal acts during the show. First up were the horses and camels. I don’t want to give too much away, but the moonwalking miniature horse is worth the price of admission! Next were the dancing dogs. And of course, what would a circus be without the very talented elephants?

Elephants

Very talented elephants

Acrobats — Check — First up were the Vavilov Troupe. Their powerful flips reminded me of watching a supercharged gymnastic event — if the gymnasts were doing backflips off a platform 30 feet in the air — and still sticking the landing. Yeah, it was that cool. There were also the Production men and their awesome trampoline act. I loved it — but I must admit that as a mom, the first thought that went through my head was I hope Alaina doesn’t get any ideas for her trampoline!

Oh and I can’t forget to mention Sergey Novikov and his aerial straps act. Amazing body control doesn’t even begin to describe how Sergey was able to spin and climb the aerial straps and then drop 30 feet onto a mat below. It really was one of the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen — and I think it was my favorite part of the circus. (Oh and Sergay had to be the most ripped small guy I’ve ever seen in my life. Not surprisingly, he used to be a gymnast.)

The Vavilov Troupe shows off some incredible acrobatic feats

The Production Men’s incredible trampoline act. High-flying doesn’t begin to describe it.

This picture doesn’t do Sergay’s act justice, but it does show the very cool mat — and the guy’s muscles!

Strongman — Check — Mr. Power fits the bill as the necessary circus strongman. He juggled bowling balls during the pre-show, then during the show balanced logs the size of telephone polls on his shoulders and spun them around — with two women sitting in swings — in an act called the human helicopter.

If that wasn’t cool enough, he also had an act with a strongwoman, named Ms. Lightning, where the two of them took turns supporting the other’s weight. It was graceful and powerful at the same time — very impressive.

Ever the overachiever, Mr. Power swings a log and two Ringling Ringettes around on his shoulders in an act called the human helicopter!

Mr Power and Miss Lightning — a beautiful balance of strength and grace

High-wire act — Check — The Lopez Troupe took care of the high-wire act, the knife-throwing act and the motorcycle globe. Yeah, they are a very talented family!

One of the Lopez Troupe’s acts was the motorcycle globe. I would not have wanted to be the woman standing in there with the two cyclists. Eeep!

Jugglers — Check — The Smaha Troupe (twins Petr and Lenka, along with their older sister Zuzana Vinicka) were fantastic jugglers. My favorite part of this act was when the two sisters were hurling rings at their brother who put them around his neck. The speed was so impressive! I found myself holding my breath to see if he would manage to catch all of the rings being thrown at him at a rapid clip and get them around his neck. He did — on the second attempt — but I think the only reason he missed the first time was to build anticipation, which it did.

Clowns — Check — Well, there was one clown. He hosted the pre-show and then made periodic appearances during the various acts. And while Anton and Viktor Franke weren’t clowns, their comedic act definitely provided the laughs that I associate with clown acts at the circus.

In fact, Matt’s favorite part of the circus was Anton. He made appearances in several acts, including the trampoline one where he jumped with the acrobats, and then closed things out with his laser light show.

Anton’s laser show

Fully Charged gets thumbs up from all three members of our family. It entertained and amazed us — I highly recommend this show. Fully Charged will be in North Little Rock at Verizon Arena through Sunday. Ticket prices vary, from $20-50, depending on the seats. Go here for more information about the show and to purchase tickets.

A happy Alaina and her new stuffed animal, Circus Camel, snuggle in for bed after a great time at Fully Charged

Note: This was a compensated post in that my family and I were given tickets so I could review the show. All opinions are mine (and my family’s) alone.

I haven’t been a skinny minnie since before puberty, although I was fit enough for a few years before I met my husband that I was once confused for a staff member at the gym. Those days are long gone, however.

First came the happy relationship/marriage pounds. Then came Ava — I lost weight after her, but not nearly enough. Then a miscarriage at 11 weeks that left me wallowing in sadness and comfort food. And then came the twins, who I was determined to grow as big as possible through the cheeseburgers and ice cream prescribed in the books for pregnancy with multiples. (And hey, it worked. They were 5 weeks early at 5 pounds and 5 pounds, 1 ounce. No NICU time, either. Amazing.)

But all that combined with 5 years of child-related sleep deprivation and a monster work schedule scattered with too many 10- and 12-hour days has left me with way more padding than I’d prefer. (And a stomach that looks like a bear attacked a kangaroo pouch.)

From time to time, I rally the energy to make a go of it, and get my rear to the gym and watch what I’m stuffing in my mouth. But then something always pops up to knock me off the horse — kid stuff, work, no sleep, heel spur, whatever.

I’m planning to keep myself on track better this time by starting a Fitness Fridays segment this summer. That will force me to do something fitness-oriented to write about! And perhaps knowing that all you friends and strangers out there are watching me will help, too. (If nothing else, I know myself. I suffer from overresponsibility syndrome. I mean, I can sidetrack myself — no problem. But I can’t let YOU down. That just doesn’t happen in my world, or I’d eat myself alive with guilt.)

So help me out! Leave me your tips and tricks. Knock the cookie out of my hand. Just let me know you’re watching me.

Ingredients