fomo

Dear Gracie,
I had so much fun with you the week the twins and Dad were in Mexico. That week was just what our relationship needed.  Heart to heart and having fun!
You'll always be my baby.  I can't wait to see how God uses you in this big, wild world.  You have a heart for kids and living life to the fullest!
I love you!
Love,
​Mom

​This child loves to be on the move!  She's tenacious, talkative, and has THE biggest case of FOMO I've ever witnessed!  In case you are unaware of what that acronym means, it is FEAR OF MISSING OUT!  

Mom's who have FOMO kids are always on the run or are constantly having to say NO.  I try to balance the two, because she is constantly asking to do things!!!  

The week the rest of the family was on their mission trip, I let FOMO rule.  We ran and had fun!

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We ate out a lot.  I even used the Waitr app for the first time ever and got sushi after spending the entire day at Red's with our friends.  She had friends sleep over.  I stayed up late watching Netflix (RARE) and slept in late every morning.  Dreamy!

Our favorite day was going to the Audubon zoo with cousin Sarah.  We arrived when they opened and stayed until they closed.  Seven hours.  And it rained for a couple of hours. That's long for me.  But we rode the train all day and saw EVERYTHING there. 

The Orangutans were their favorite.  My favorite was the beauty of the older part of the zoo.  It opened in the 20s and the above fountain was built in the 30s.  I could just sit under those Live Oaks and stare at that fountain for hours.  No one was on that side, so it was very peaceful.  

I was mesmerized by the beautiful, large pelicans swimming near us while Grace was freaking out over all of the Red Ear Slider turtles everywhere....turtles that we see daily in our ditches.

I am not a snake person, but I was mesmerized by the reptiles on this trip!  One of my favorite parts was going inside the reptile house.  Okay, maybe the AC inside was a perk, but I stared at each snake for the longest time.  Something about being so close to something that is normally dangerous and only having a glass pane separating us just astounded me.  

The above picture was captured when we were leaving the zoo.  The workers took the 6 foot Boa out of an ice chest and placed him on the lawn for exercise.  We talked to the keepers for a long time about the snake.  Towards the end of his 30 minute recess, he finally began moving and was heading to the plants pictured above which was an apparent No No because they were treated with chemicals.  The worker had to keep picking it up and moving it around.  Interesting to observe something so big and not behind bars.  It was found after Hurricane Katrina on the street and donated to the zoo.

Next time we go and it's as hot as it was, we'll be sure to do the splash pad and lazy river.  Those beach chairs sure looked inviting!