Newport Aquarium

Last week we went on a field trip to the Newport Aquarium with our home school group.  We met up at mass, since it was the feast of St. Joseph, then caravaned (is that a word?!) to Cincinnati.  Since the aquarium is right across the river from downtown Cincinnati, Brooke and Julia were able to meet us there.

The baby humpback whale at the entrance

All the Klinker Girls

Julia was not afraid of the big boys...
she jumped right in to help them with their game

Rose being silly with Amelia

Ava and her buddy, Mary Jane

Sweet Julia on the frog

Rose debating on whether she is brave enough to pet a shark

The sharks we were able to pet

Fearless Ava dipped her fingers right in!

I had to pull her away from those sharks!

Madeline standing on the shark scale

I think she started a trend :)

Penguins!

The girls with Chrissy and Mariel

Sweet cousins

So good to see Brooke and Julia

My little Madeline

We saw Dory and Nemo, sharks, some nasty eels (those things gross me out), and plenty more water creatures that make me a little more than nervous about swimming in the ocean!  I wish I would have gotten a picture of the enormous crabs...their bodies were as big as a frisbee and their legs had to be at least 2 feet long...I would not want to meet one of those in person!

We had such a good time with such good families!  We hope to make this an annual thing!

Little Comedian

Ella has been cracking us up lately.  I love this age between 18 months and 2 years when they start talking and their little personality comes out.

Just the other day, Paul was holding Ella up to the basketball hoop so she could make a basket.  But whenever we said it was someone else's turn, she would drop her head, hunch her shoulders, make a pout face, and sulk away.  I wish I had my camera so I could have gotten it on film.  Paul and I were dying laughing!!!  Such attitude!

She has impeccable taste in accessories

Here is a little video of some of the words Ella can say and a little peek at her personality:

Here she is doing her chore...we start them early around here ;)

She is an active little thing.  Here she is swinging like a monkey.

Just look at that face...and that mullet!  What a hoot!

Klinker Comedy Show

While Paul was in Colorado, I took the girls to Sunday mass by myself.  You may not think that a big feat, but let me just say that lately, even with two of us, we have been splitting up for mass some weeks because Ella is a full time job all by herself!  She is at that hard age (between 1 year and 2 and a half years old) where she does not sit still, doesn't know how to be quiet, wants to run around and play...oh and she screams.

Mass started out pretty well that day.  I remember thinking during the gospel, "This isn't so bad.  I got this."  Well, immediately after the homily, the chaos began.  Ella started to fuss...loudly.  I had already tried snacks, books, quiet toys, holding her....I had exhausted all my resources.  So I had to get up and take her into the cry room with Madeline, and I left Rose and Ava in the pew by themselves.

As I watch Rose and Ava from the window in the cry room, I see them whispering back and forth and messing with some papers.  Every time I catch their eye, I motion for them to be quiet.  After about five minutes of them not behaving, I march back into the church and tell them to come in the cry room with me, leaving all of our things back in the pew.

Back in the cry room, Ella is not happy.  She does not like the cry room.  She wants out and I won't let her, so she decides to throw herself on the floor into an all out tantrum.  No one in the room can hear anything over her screams.  I can't take her back into the church because she is way too loud and I can't take her outside and leave all the girls in the cry room.  I am stuck.  I just look around at the other parents whispering "sorry" and try to console her.  All the while, Madeline starts fussing at me because she wants a drink and the other girls are bouncing around like little jumping beans...you would think I fed them candy and Mt. Dew for breakfast!  I felt as if everyone's eyes were on me thinking, "can't you control your kids?!"

After communion, when everyone is silently praying in the church, I see the lady who was sitting next to us in the pew walking towards us holding my purse.  I am thinking, "why would she be bringing me my purse?  Mass isn't over yet ?!"  She walks in saying my phone was ringing!  I was mortified!  Low and behold, I had accidentally brought my phone in church and my alarm was going off (I had set an alarm to go off every day at noon so we would remember to pray the Angelus).  Ugh!  I wanted to run away and hide.

What a spectacle?!  We were definitely the Klinker Comedy Show at mass that day (as my friend Kim so cleverly puts it).  I was at my wits end by the time mass was over, but now I look back and laugh at what a sight we must have been!  It wasn't our finest moment, but that's real life with 4 busy little girls!  

Winter Fun

In the beginning of February, Paul, Ben, and Ken went out to Denver to visit Michael and to go skiing.  It was a great way to celebrate Ken's 60th birthday.  They had an awesome time skiing, visiting, and eating Stacy's delicious food...and luckily, no one got hurt!  Here are a few pictures they took along the way.

Michael loading up the Jeep

On  the way to the ski slopes...what a view!

The runs they skied down...in-between the trees!

Paul at the top of one of the slopes

Ben covered with snow after a run

The Klinker men

While Paul was away, the girls and I took a trip to Cincinnati to visit Brooke and Julia for some girl time.  The girls just played and played while Brooke and I chatted and relaxed.  It was such a nice girly visit!

The girls doing a mess free painting craft for Valentine's Day :)

The girls using toilet paper tubes as heart stamps

All the girls having story time in Julia's crib

Twirling in the office chair

While we were in Cincinnati, we were also able to meet up with an old childhood friend of mine, Katie, and her daughters.  We both have 4 girls...what are the odds?!

Eating LaRosa's Pizza

We both had a wonderful time...such a good way to add some fun to the dreary days of winter.

Grandpa Ken Turns 60!

Ken's Birthday is February 5th and this year he turned the big 6-0.  I know it is hard to believe, seeing how he looks like he is barely out of his forties!  Paul says he hopes he ages as well as his dad...then again, don't we all!

To celebrate, Ken and Joy, and Ben, Brooke, and Julia all came to Louisville where we went swimming at their hotel pool, went out to a nice dinner at Macaroni Grill, then came back to our house for cake.  We wished Michael and Stacy could have been there, but it is quite a long way for them to travel for a weekend!  

Getting ready to sing to Grandpa

About to blow out the candles

Grandpa with all 5 of his granddaughters

Grandma Joy & Grandpa Ken with their grandbabies
what are the odds that they would all be girls?!

Ben, Brooke, and Julia spent the night at our house, which we love because the girls get more time to play together and we adults get to stay up late and hang out...without the kids :)

On Sunday morning, I went upstairs to check on Ella and Julia and this is what I found.  They were laying together in Rose's bed quietly reading books.  A-DOR-ABLE!  I hope these two will always be best buds!

And I think Ken would agree that the best birthday present he received that weekend was finding out that he was going to be a grandpa again.  Congrats Ben and Brooke on your new little bun in the oven!