NBA All-Star Jam

William and Larry Nance

William's hand on Chris Paul's imprint
The All-Star game was hosted by the Phoenix Suns this year and on Sunday we went to the Convention Center for the NBA All-Star Jam. There were tons of different places to shoot the basketball, which was all William could ever ask for. Areas for slam dunking at all levels, 3 point shooting, games of knock-out and more. William got a chance to play in Center Court with NBA Legend, first ever slam dunk contest winner - Larry Nance. All the participants got to play in a short game with him, they played knock out and then had time for photos and autographs. Even though there was not much of a sighting of All Stars, William had a great time. He had fun doing the different clinics and just shooting the basketball in every hoop he could find. Shaq walked through the area for a short appearance at one time and all you could see was him towering above the rest of the crowd. I think William had hoped to get more autographs, but they only had NBA legends and coaches about to get fired and people I never heard of on the autograph stage. It was a long and tiring day, but tons of fun.

Happy Valentines Day

William is very proud of the Valentine Box he made for school this year. His class was having a contest, the categories were Creativity and Hard Work. William's won the Creativity category. Being the Basketball fan that he is, it was only natural that his valentine box would reflect that. The cookies were for William's class party. They were my attempt at making chocolate chip cookies into hearts. They kind of spread out when baked, but I think the icing heart helped convey the message and they were yummy, so there was no problem with consumption.

Chocolate Fest 2009

We went to the Chocolate Festival in Glendale again this year. There was plenty of chocolate and other treats available as well as a beer garden, live music and abundant sunshine. William once again made a chocolate pizza at Ceretta's Candy Shop booth. There were tours being done at Ceretta's Candy Shop but since I was the only one even mildly interested in doing that, we didn't. We spent some time walking around downtown Glendale, enjoying the music, people watching and just being glad to finally be outside in the fresh air that smelled of all things chocolate.

MLK day at the Zoo

I had MLK Day as a holiday this year, so William and I headed to the zoo. As much as I despise the caging of animals, I love the baby Orangutan. Kashih will be three next weekend and we have been visiting her since we moved here and she was just a few months old. I also love the monkey exhibit they have here and I learned only four such exhibits exist in the world. You enter the exhibit and the monkeys are running free, they are climbing on the trees right next to you, walking on ropes over your head, swing from limb to limb right in front of your face. It is really a neat exhibit, it is fun to walk through and just be cautioned not to stand underneath where they are swinging and climbing or else............

Hiking South Mountain

It was a bright, sunny, warm Sunday so we decided to try hiking again. South Mountain is, well, a mountain south of Phoenix, really it was more like a big hill than a mountain. The trail was short only a little over a mile, but there are many other trails on the mountain that can be taken. It was popular with cyclists,and I am pretty sure you won't catch me doing that. There was a nice view of Phoenix from the top and allegedly this is the place to go to view spectacular sunsets. We will have to try that one day soon.

Rocket Launch

The fifth grade class has been studying rockets and so for the end of lesson field trip, there was a rocket launch. Luckily for all the launch was postponed from a rainy day in December to this bright beautiful day in January. The entire class and teachers and chaperones walked to the High School to launch the rockets at the Soccer fields. Each rocket was different and went different heights, some zigged and zagged, some went so far they ended up in the yards of people living near the school. It was a lot of fun, the kids had a blast and I was even able to help assemble the engines and parachutes. (Apparently I didn't need to be a rocket scientist.) After everyone had shot off their rockets once or twice and all the engines were used, we headed back to the school, making a stop at the park for lunch and to run off some of that excess energy.

Mike's Games

Mike is all about Video Games and here is his collection of games he received for Christmas this year. Mike also received generous gifts from his grandmothers, so I am sure this is not the end of his new video games for this season. Merry Christmas, Mike, ENJOY.