While he was off at school, Acelyn started off the month by taking her 2 year photos, and she hammed it up while dancing, singing and chowing down on lollipops the whole time.
The next day, we had dentist appointments, where Nolan was super excited and Acelyn was just happy to watch Zootopia on the ceiling TVs. It was her first dentist appointment, and she wasn't a fan when the dentist came to check her out. Luckily he was quick, and both kiddos got the A-Okay with no cavities!
We made a pitstop at Target and a haircut for Nolan before heading home.
Auntie Stacey was set to make a trip into town for the weekend, and the kids were super excited to get her fancy bed set up before her arrival!
Nolan had another t-ball game Saturday morning, and I also snapped team and individual pictures of everyone this season again. I'm no pro, but I definitely don't mind offering to take the photos and the kiddos do so well cheesing it up! I love that we've been able to keep a lot of our boys together through these teams, and look forward to doing so for future seasons, too!
The kiddos all played together, while the parents got a little game time in, too!
Acelyn and Perry were entertained with the VGK cornhole for a bit, and helped each other out with sinking bags over and over.
Piñata time was up, and the kids let loose on the poor thing, and then went nuts for the candy when it opened (while Acelyn was living her best life on the trampoline).
Happy second birthday, Perry! We're so glad you girls are so close in age and get to watch you two besties grow up together! We love you!
The next day, we celebrated Acelyn's birthday with a "Sweet Scoop" ice cream party where she had the best time at the splash pad with all of her friends!
Auntie Stacey and Nolan took some hilarious selfies in between periods.
On Monday, we celebrated Acelyn's actual birthday by taking a trip to Sea Quest Aquarium with Auntie Stacey. We started off right away with the playful sea otters, where we watched them play and were able to feed them, too! I'm not sure who was more excited about this... the kiddos or Auntie Stacey!
We made our way through to see more fish and one of Nolan's favorite- the stingrays!
The birds were super colorful and I loved the toucans. Nolan was even able to get up close with a birdie friend on his arm! Acelyn loved the ducks and we fed them over and over again.
Back at home, after naps, the kiddos busted out their Play Doh and had a blast with Auntie Stacey, making ice cream and grilling out with their new sets.
That night, we had some more birthday cake for Acelyn, and she opened up her gifts from Mommy, Daddy and Nolan. She was thrilled to see more ice cream Play Doh, an Acelyn name puzzle, ice cream sheets for her new big girl bed, and her favorite... Sully!
For Teacher Appreciation Day, Nolan gifted some pretty flowers in some cute teacups to his teachers.
Later in the week, he brought home some Mother's Day goodies, and I swooned over his first Mom's Day surprise craft from school.
We celebrated Erin and Jeremy's new beautiful home at their housewarming party, and got to catch up with them while the kiddos played with their furbabies and danced to some housewarming party jams.
On Sunday, we spent Mother's Day as a family and with Grandma eating a yummy breakfast at a cute new place, Rise and Shine. We followed it up with a morning at the M Pool, where Acelyn did amazing in her puddle jumper and absolutely loved jumping off the edge of the pool into our arms. We love our mornings at the M Pool and this one was just as good!
We hit up City National Arena for a VGK practice, and it definitely didn't disappoint. We saw a full team practice and were able to watch from the standing room, where Nolan loved hearing the puck hit against the walls and watching the players up SO close.
We watched Flower get some awesome blocks in, and Nolan yelled in excitement when he took off his face mask as he made his way from a quick water break and chat with the coaches.
As soon as practice let up, some players came out to sign for the kids and we made our way up to meet and greet with Oscar Lindberg and Brad Hunt! This was our first time getting autographs and Nolan was a little shy, but so excited. From here on out, he made it a point to learn many of the players names so he could follow along with them as we watched when we would attend future practices throughout the season!
We took a seat in the bleachers to watch the Zamboni clean up the ice, which was just as exciting to Nolan as meeting the players and watching them practice.
We made a stop in the Arsenal to check out their VGK gear and goodies, after waiting in line for about 15 minutes (which was a short wait compared to other times we've been to CNA!)
City National Arena seriously has the best vibe, with a DJ playing most days and even appearances from the Golden Aces (cheerleaders) and Chance the mascot. As you'll see in more monthly updates, this was definitely not our last time visiting the arena, and probably one of our favorite things we were able to do through the months of May-June!
Nolan had his school program this month, and performed SO well in front of everyone! I was a bit nervous for him, as it was on a real stage, with lights and a decently large audience... so I wasn't sure if he would actually sing and dance, since in the beginning of the year, he rarely would even in class! To my surprise, he sang every single song with a smile, and looked like he was having a great time!
Each student had a chance to lead a song and dance, and it was Nolan's turn to step up to the microphone. All month, he had been telling me how he was going to perform the "Pilgrims and Indians" song, so when he stepped up for "Turkey Tango", I knew something was off. Funny enough, he actually had to switch last minute with another student, so really, he had to perform a song he wasn't prepared to do in front of everyone, and still managed to do it well! After his performance he said, "I think my teachers forgot!" But he handled the mixup well and performed like a champ!
Halfway through the show, the back row switched to the front, so we had a better view of him this time around. His second performance at the microphone came up, where he performed "3 Wee Leprechauns" with his friends.
Shortly after all the songs and dances were performed, each student received their certificate of completion for the school year! Nolan was so proud of himself, and we are so proud of him and how far he has come this preschool year!
We started by meeting our tour guide outside in the front entrance, where we immediately were greeted by some desert tortoise! Donny and Marie were able to take a quick snack break and eat while we watched, and our guide let all the kids touch their shells as he explained a little bit of their history. We also saw a Sulcata tortoise, who can grow as old as 150 years old!
Next up, the prairie dogs, where the kids thought they were super cute and loved how quick they ran around their enclosure.
The pot bellied piggies were way too cute, and sadly, lots of them get brought in by owners who think they are adopting a "mini" pig but end up actually growing into these guys! Acelyn particularly loved the pigs and didn't want to leave, and they were the first animal she brought up when she told Daddy about her day in the afternoon.
We peeked in on a porcupine, but she didn't want to come out of her shaded nap (can't blame her!) so we moved on after seeing all of those needles!
It was finally time to move inside, and the first animal we met was a red tailed boa. I kept my distance, while Nolan got right up close and asked a bunch of questions about it.
The next session of the tour was the up close meet and greets, where the tour guide explained each animal and also let us pass around or touch each one. First up was Elvis the hedgehog, as well as some animals that look just like hedgehogs, but are actually called Tenrecs and aren't related to hedgehogs at all. These guys names were Penn and Teller (so cute)! They were all surprisingly soft and super friendly!
We were able to meet a Macaw, and I volunteered to hold him on my arm as well as a few other Mamas. It was intense and he was way heavier than I thought, and I was way more nervous than I thought I would be, too!
The two toed sloth was probably the coolest animal we were able to meet, and he was so calm and cuddly. We weren't able to hold him completely, but we were able to pet him on his back, which all the kids loved (and us Moms, too)!
We ended the tour with the kids getting their wiggles out, dancing on the stage and running their energy out. It was a great little tour and a fun way to spend the morning! We love having this Field Trip group to explore different things in the city and I love planning and arranging these fun get togethers!
That evening, Daddy had to work late, so it was just the kiddos and I for dinner and the Knights Western Conference Finals game 4 on TV. We pumped ourselves up by making a fort in the living room and watching the pregame show and warmup on TV, where Nolan always roots for the Golden Knight at the top of his lungs.
Fleury played an amazing game with some wild blocks... he is seriously magical.
We finished with the W and the kids wouldn't stop chanting "GO KNIGHTS GO!" One more win and we're Conference Champs!
Nolan spent another Saturday morning at the T Ball diamond, and is getting so much better at hitting off the tee!
We met up with the Espejos and the Halls at Toshiba Plaza for game 5 of the Western Conference Finals... where we FREAKING WON AND ARE GOING TO THE STANLEY CUP FINALS!!!!!!! {Proud side rant:This team is the heart of our city and you can feel it at every game and every viewing party, every VGK event or practice. We beat the odds as an expansion team to make it to the Cup Finals (500-1 odds, at that, and the second team to ever do it), and to say that Vegas is hockey obsessed is an understatement. The vibe in this city right now is unbelievable and is one of the best times we've had living here, celebrating together and embracing our home team (FINALLY)!}
We knew it was going to be warm as we made our way down there, but it was really freaking hot sitting in the direct sunlight, in the heat of summer, with a bajillion other people. We tried to keep the kids entertained and under shade for the majority of the time, which proved difficult, but despite the heat, they all did really well! I brought VGK and Chance coloring pages for the kids, where they all colored a page for Chance, but little did my Mom-brain think about leaving the crayons out... so they ended up melting all over the place because it was so hot! Mom fail!
Between periods, I took the kids around to cool down by the fans, refill our water and enjoy the activities and vibes that Toshiba puts on during the viewing parties. Nolan enjoyed some cornhole, and he was able to shoot some street hockey shots again, too.
We watched the Knight Line by Drumbots perform, which is always fun, and continued watching the game, where we were leading 2-1, before another period break where I took the kids to the Armory to get some air and check out some VGK gear. On our way back, Nolan got to take his picture with Chance, and Acelyn said, "No, no, no Chance bite you!" She has a love/hate with Chance... loves him from afar but refuses to get up close!
Acelyn transitioned from her crib to her big girl toddler bed, and did so flawlessly! She was waking up a few times a night, and since the transition, has been sleeping pretty well through until early morning.
The Luks boys came over to visit with Erik and Julia who were in town for the evening, while Jess and Scarlett were at a dance commitment, and the kiddos played together in their PJs before relaxing and watching Despicable Me together on the couch.
The next evening, we celebrated Becks and Jess' birthdays with a "POO-l" party, and the kids had a blast swimming together and living their best lives in the water.
Acelyn had a giggle fit with Scarlett, followed by some Poo Piñata time, where each kid took a turn whacking at the piñata before gathering all their candy once it busted open.
We all ate some delish poop donuts and cake, and Acelyn had no problem digging right in.
Happy Birthday Becks and Jess! We love ya both so much! (And Becks, how are you three already!?)
Monday was Memorial Day, and Jason had the day off, so we decided to hit up City National Arena to watch the team practice again. It was game day and the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals, so everyone was extra pumped up with VGK spirit!
While we waited for the team to come out on the ice, we were able to watch the zambonis work their magic and Nolan was in heaven, of course. Shortly after, some of the guys made their way out. Since it was game day, we knew it would be an optional skate for the team, and we were surprised to see that only a few opted to participate. Fleury was there, though, and Nolan was star struck watching him and his blocks the entire time. The place was packed, so we opted not to wait in standing room for autographs and just enjoy the bleacher view... and it worked out because they ended up not signing due to a team meeting. Nolan was pretty upset that we couldn't do a meet and greet, and I told him that maybe we could come back later in the week.
We watched the game from home that night, where the Golden Knights started off the Finals series with a freaking amazing, heart-racing game, winning 6-4 against the Washington Capitals! #GOKNIGHTSGO!
Sure enough, I drove all the way back to CNA the following day to enjoy another practice! The place has such a good vibe, I don't mind driving half way across town to spend our mornings. This particular one was slammed with people. We heard on the radio from 94.1 that the wristbands were going fast, so we hustled down there bright and early at 9AM. Somehow, we managed to grab the last three of the ten wristbands left! Phew! We were there SO early, that practice didn't start for another 2 hours... so we did some shopping in the Arsenal, where Nolan cashed in on a VGK Lego Zamboni he had been asking for for weeks, and then took a quick trip over to Downtown Summerlin to pass the time.
It was a full team practice that day, and we were stoked to see who was signing when we finally made our way in to the rink's autograph line. Nolan was so excited to see James Neal, and we also got to meet Deryk Engelland, both some of our family's favorites!
Some of the guys were still practicing by the time we had finished receiving autographs, so we headed up to the bleachers to finish out practice.
It was by far one of the longest days we've spent at CNA, but so, SO worth it and the kids love every second of being there!
We watched another game from home for Game 2 of the Finals, where the pregame show was, by far, the best one we've seen all season. Vegas pregame entertainment for the NHL is pretty legit, and this was the icing on the cake. If you've yet to see any of our pregame shows from the season, definitely take a watch at this one!
Nolan had his very last day of Preschool for the year, and I put him in the same shirt he started school with to note the difference. Boy, what a year's growth makes! For their last day, they had "Water Play", so a swimsuit was necessary and he had a great time getting wet with his friends! He's had the best time at Preschool and loves every minute of it. He can't wait to start summer session in just a few weeks!
...Here's to a packed month full of birthdays, hockey and so much fun! Until next month!
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