Playtime!

Copperdog has a new dog bed and the boys found out that big boxes are awesome!

A Christmas Pageant

As many of you know, Westin goes to preschool at a lovely Catholic school called St. Agnes. Wednesday night was the St. Agnes Christmas Program*, which always starts with the preschoolers singing various Christmas songs. Was Westin nervous in front of a crowd? Nope. Not for a second. The kid is a natural. I saw the kids march onto stage through an open side stage door, when Westin walked by and saw all of the people, he didn't get nervous, instead he had a big grin and gave the crowd a thumbs up. On stage**, he was dancing and singing his little heart out. Fun was had by all.

His favorite song is Christmas Bells (apparently sung to the tune of 'Jingle Bells').

*Um yeah, so Dalen and I didn't realize that Westin had a Christmas program until the reminder email Wednesday morning, and truly didn't know what to do about it until 3:00 pm that very same day, following a confirmation/explanation e-mail from Westin's teacher. Because, we're responsible parents like that.

** Westin is the little boy on the left side of the third row (second row of risers)...not standing still, but dancing to the music. He is in front of a little girl in a red dress and to the right of a little girl in a green dress. I know that the quality of the movie would not make it in and HD IMAX theater, but we didn't have time to charge the video camera and had to wing it with my iPhone.....

Happy birthday Westin!

Our little guy turned four today. We had dinosaur cake, opened lots of presents and went on an adventure to the natural history museum. Thank you to everyone who helped make Westin's 4th birthday so special. We love you so very much, Westin!

Football Saturday!

We are so proud of Mama! Lisa was recently selected for USD's “Faculty Appreciation Days” program.   The USD Athletic Department showed its appreciation to Lisa for the impact she has made on the academic lives of USD student-athletes and treated our family to a wonderful day at the game this past Saturday. 

The student who nominated Lisa is a backup QB for the Coyotes. He is pursuing a MD program for gradshool.

Go Yotes and Gooooooooooooooooooo Mama/Lisa!!!

Boo!

Happy Halloween!

The boys are "Minions" from the movie Despicable Me. Myth has it they are the creation/cross between an Oompa Loompa and a glow stick. Scarrrry!!

Autumn has arrived in Vermillion 🍂

Musical Moores

Our very own city of Vermillion Jr. Firefighter

Westin's feet grew over night!

"Here where you are standing, dinosaurs did a dance...." - talking heads

Friday night the Moore family headed up to Sioux Falls to the Kirby Science Discovery Center located in the Washington Pavillion. Our mission was for the boys to meet "Sue". 

"Sue" is the nickname given to FMNH PR 2081, which is the largest, most extensive and best preserved Tyrannosaurus rex specimen ever found. 

During the summer of 1990, a group of workers from the Black Hills Institute, located in Hill City, searched for fossils at the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation, in western South Dakota near the city of Faith. By the end of the summer, the group had discovered Edmontosaurus bones and was ready to leave. However, before the group could depart, on August 12, a tire on their truck was deflated.While the rest of the group went into town to repair the truck, Sue Hendrickson decided to explore the nearby cliffs that the group had not checked. As she was walking along the base of a cliff, she discovered some small pieces of bone. She looked above her to see where the bones had originated, and observed larger bones protruding from the wall of the cliff. She returned to camp with two small pieces of the bones and reported the discovery to the president of the Black Hills Institute, Peter Larson.He determined that the bones were from a T. rex by their distinctive contour and texture. Later, closer examination of the site showed many visible bones above the ground and some articulated vertebrae.The crew ordered extra plaster and, although some of the crew had to depart, Hendrickson and a few other workers began to uncover the bones. The group was excited, as it was evident that much of the dinosaur had been preserved. Previously discovered T. rex skeletons were usually missing over half of their bones. It was later ascertained that Sue was a record 80 percent complete.Scientists believe that this specimen was covered by water and mud soon after its death which prevented other animals from carrying away the bones. Additionally, the rushing water mixed the skeleton together. When the fossil was found, the hip bones were above the skull, and the leg bones were intertwined with the ribs. The large size and the excellent condition of the bones were also surprising. The skull was nearly five feet long, and most of the teeth were still intact. After the group completed excavating the bones, each vertebra was covered in burlap and coated in plaster, followed by a transfer to the offices of The Black Hills Institute where preparators began to clean the bones.

Source: your friendly neighborhood Wikipedia

7 years

2 big moves, many miles, 1 dog, 2 beautiful children and I still remember the first day that we met at Adventures's Edge. Like it was yesterday. That's amazing. I love our life! Happy Anniversary!

Playtime!

Pushing both boys at the swing set today might be one of the most enjoyable things I have ever done. Simple as that.