Birthday Dreams

"But my words, like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells... of silence" - Simon & Garfunkel

- Imagine a dream where you walk outside and realize that you are the only one left... no people anywhere.

OR

- Think of a horror movie that takes place in an old amusement park or a crazy carnival.

OR

- Picture a post-apocalyptic world with all the evidence of a once bustling civilization slowly being overcome by rust and decay.

That is what we experienced when we took the kids to "Wonderland" for the girls 5th birthday.

First of all, there isn't much that could possibly more exciting to two 5 year old girls than their birthday. They have been counting down the days since Christmas. There has been lots of planning, excited discussions, dreaming, and smiles during January related to their birthday. It is fun to watch. We decided that instead of just toys, we would take the kids somewhere for their birthday to create some fun memories. "Wonderland" seemed like a perfect place. It has amusement park rides for adults and children, plus it also has a decent sized water park with lots of slides. Double the fun.

We arrived at the park when it opened at around 10AM. We got the first indication that this would be a different experience when we realized that out of a huge parking lot, we were the only car. We then walked up to a large row of ticket counters to find that only one ticket window was open. We purchased our tickets and entered.

We stayed for most of the day and.... we were the only visitors there! To be honest, in the afternoon at the water-park we did see one couple sitting near a pool on the other side, but that was it! It was surreal.  I mean a huge park with dozens of rides, shops, games, buildings, eateries... and we had it all to ourselves.  It was cool, but also kind of creepy. The ride operator(s) would just kind of wait around to see where we walked to next and then walk over and fire that ride up just for us. What made it even more eerie was that none of the rides had any music or sounds!  I mean can you even imagine a carnival, fair, or amusement park without the blaring music and sound effects?  ...Nothing.  Just the whirring sounds of machinery and hydraulics. There was booth after booth of carnival games all set up and ready to play, with no lights and no one there convincing you to 'win it big' or test your skill. No people. No sounds. Yeah, eerie.

The kids loved it. They got to go on any ride or slide they wanted with no lines. Want to ride again? just let the zombie-like Bangladeshi workers know and they push the button for another round. Did I mention NO LINES? Yvonne and I also enjoyed the grown-up rides we went on. Have you ever ridden a roller coaster where you were the only rider? Some of the rides were a great thrill... but often it was more the scare that the ride might break down rather than the thrill of the ride itself. Without music, you notice a lot more of the bangs and clanking noises... not to mention, these rides were just plain old.

In the end, the outing was success. The kids had fun. The parents had fun. We all made some great (although slightly creepy) memories. Plus, the kids got to ride a real camel.

What the Heck?

Twinsanity!

"Double your pleasure,
Double your fun" - Doublemint Gum

This last weekend, we attended the first ever X2 Twins Festival in the Middle East.  Held at Safa Park in Dubai, it was a big gathering of lots of twins, triplets, and other multiples of all ages.  It was fascinating and fun. The kids got to play and Yvonne got to ogle at lots of other twins and share parenting stories with lots of other mothers who have "double the trouble, but double the fun."

The girls are a bit small for their age and Talon is energetic for his, so we got a few comments about how cute our triplets are.  We corrected some, but at times just smiled and said that so many kids so close together are a lot of work ;)

The highlight for the kids was a dangerously steep inflatable slide that had no supervision and resulted in a fair amount of bonked heads and tears shed... but also a lot of big smiles.

Here are some snapshots of the fun:

Girls & Smiles

"And if I'm feelin down and blue,
or troubled by some foolish game,
she always seems to make me change my mind." - James Taylor

Do twins have different personalities?

"Now, the world don't move to the beat of just one drum,
What might be right for you, may not be right for some." - Different Strokes Theme

Recently, we went to a friends house for a birthday party.  One of the attractions was that they had someone there who was giving henna tattoos to those that wanted one. (Henna is a traditional middle-eastern temporary body-art.) It is often done to the fingers and hands and is mostly worn by women.  Yvonne got a floral design on her hand.  Abigail got to choose what she wanted.  I think it came down to a floral design or a butterfly.... this is what she ended up asking for:

Next, it was Saylor's turn to decide what she wanted.  I think her first response was... a dragon!  After some contemplation, she decided that instead of a dragon, she wanted a BIG BAD WOLF.  I'm guessing that henna artists don't do a lot of those, but here it is:

They are starting to wear off now, but for the last few days, the girl's hands have become more like pets.  We were in the swimming pool and "my wolf" or "my butterfly" were "swimming too".  Or, some food has to be shared with them at mealtimes.  Anyway, sometimes people ask us if our twins have different personalities this young.  You tell me.