She Did Something

Let me start this one by telling you that Jim really wanted to hang signs around Brandon and Dylan’s neck so he could just call them one and two (most of the time he doesn’t remember my name..identical twins are completely beyond his memory capability). I didn’t think this was a real good idea so he just didn’t call them anything while he was riling them up. Jim is in his element in places like the Biological Park in Albuquerque. I, on the other hand, tried hard to keep them straightened out, but occasionally just randomly said “Brandon” or “Dylan” to see which one turned around. By the end of the day I think I had it down fairly well that Brandon was wearing a white shirt and Dylan was wearing red. The boys have distinct personality differences. I just hope I matched the personality with the name correctly. My apologies if I got this wrong, Patti.

Brandon, Dylan and Jim check out a Sea Turtle

Jim did a great job of keeping the boys amused so that Patti and I could have some talk time. Of course, we had to keep an eye on Jim, but I told the boys that it was their very important job to keep him from getting in trouble. I was very proud of their ability to do this. I also pre-warned Jim that teaching them some of the things their Uncle Shaun taught them was simply not acceptable. No offense, Shaun, but teaching them to burp the alphabet over the phone??? If I didn’t pre-warn Jim he would have tried to one up you…a pretty scary thought. I’m sure when Patti and I weren’t looking Jim taught them some of his own really strange kiddish things, but it’s like he has a secret pact with them or something. He’s just not telling.. I know they were all, Jim included, really interested in the dead fish floating in the pond and they excitedly made us go look at it. Jim denies and responsibility for the fascination but I know him better. All in all, the boys, all three of them, were very well behaved at the Bio-Park

Dylan and Brandon Climbing On Rocks

We had a great buffet lunch in The Shark Reef Cafe. This time we were smart enough to let Patti sit between both kids instead of letting Jim sit next to one. There’s always a danger that Jim might teach them to shoot spit balls through straws when he’s next to a six year old. Separating them looked like a good thing at the time. The cafe has a wall of glass so that you could watch sharks, sea turtles, and mantas swimming by as you eat. It was a great experience even if Patti was really sneaky in preventing Jim and I from paying the bill.

Patti, Brandon, Jim and Dylan

We considered going to Old Town after the Bio-Park, but we were all pretty tired out and in need of downtime. Jim and I headed back to the hotel to call his cousin Allen and relax for a bit before heading over to Patti’s to meet Dave. We were greeted at the door by naked little boys, in various degrees of towel wrapping, who had just gotten out of the bath. As soon as they were in their pajamas, Jim proceeded to help them build pillow and blanket forts to hide in. Of course there was also the water squirting dinosaur.

Since the boys had to get up for school the next day, we made it an early night and after eating the most excellent takeout barbecue we headed back to the hotel with plans to meet up after Patti was done chaperoning a school field trip the next day.