State Fair 2011

Way back in October, we went to the State Fair. Normally we try and go on a weekday to avoid the crowds, but with Lila in school now, that wasn't possible. Unfortunately the only weekend that worked for us was the weekend of the Cotton Bowl game. Was that going to stop us? No way :) So we braved the crowds and the heat! Here Piper is riding with Daddy on the tram to the fair grounds. (Due to the crowds we parked in the first lot we came to which happened to be farthest away. Just when I was despairing the long walk with three little kids, we saw the tram pull up. The kids thought it was fun to ride.)

We came in the gate that was closest to the petting zoo, so we decided to do that first. We went ahead and paid a $1 for feed but in the future, we now know you can pick up feed off the ground to give the animals! The baby goats were particularly cute.

Lila feeding a baby goat.

I don't remember the name of this animal... an antelope? He was hungry though!

Sweet girl.

She was happy to ride around in Daddy's arm.

Family photo. Fortunately for us, my sister joined us for this outing and took our picture for us.

I could have tried to Photoshop these two images together to get one where all 3 kids are looking at the camera, but that would be too much work :)

This is what I normally get when I say "smile for me".

Happy girl.

Next we went to the Little Hands on the Farm exhibit. Before you begin, we had to take advantage of the cutout photo op.

Silly kids!

On to the tour... first up, the orchard!

Feeding the chickens.

Milking the cow.

This is the first time since we've done this exhibit that Lila was willing to go anywhere near the fake cow.

Wyatt really liked riding on the tractor.

Sorting out their goods to "sell".

Here they are spending the "dollar" they got for their "goods."

Riding around in the stroller. I thought it was funny how she pushed her toes against the tray.

We let the kids play an arcade game for the first time. Basically, pick up a duck and win a prize. The prizes weren't that great (not anything you can see in the picture). So we probably won't be doing any more arcades for awhile yet.

We were off to find some rides.

Here we go.. the Kids Way.

We found a whale ride where basically the whales go around in a circle. Lila and Wyatt were going to ride together. Lila wanted blue of course! But then, at the last second, Lila decided she didn't want to ride after all. Wyatt was already strapped in though and unaware of the change.

Once he discovered she wasn't there, he was NOT happy. Poor guy. He just had to finish out the scary ride by himself.

So then we decided to do another ride, but this time Ben and I rode along. Ben rode with Wyatt.

I rode with Lila.

I tried to get both of them to stand in front of this sign so we could see how tall they were, but Wyatt wasn't feeling cooperative.

Next Lila and I went through a fun house.

After watching us, Wyatt decided it looked fun so both kids went through with Ben.

At the end there was a rotating barrel. Next to that was a wavy mirror (which is what Lila is looking at).

Both Lila and Wyatt needed help getting through the barrel.

This year we found something new - it's probably been there every year but we hadn't found it before - the Texas Midway Greenhouse. And inside were a bunch of trains!

It was pretty neat how the trains went around and above us.

There was also a place in the greenhouse for children to decorate mini pumpkins.

Then we found a very special train...

Percy! (from Thomas the Train)

Wyatt was pretty excited!

But not as excited as when we went to the Bob the Builder exhibit in one of the museums on the fair grounds.

It was a hands-on, interactive exhibit. This was a fun display on plumbing where they put balls (water) down a pipe and then they came out into these buckets.

Wyatt really liked this station.

Here he is playing with Bob and Scoop.

Another station they had was this "stone" wall. They could complete the wall by placing the stones (which were magnetic).

Piper finally decided it was time for a nap, so she snoozed while the other two played.

Next they found the play tools. Wyatt cracked me up how he wore these goggles.

Wyatt had his tool belt and tool box ready to go.

Banging his hammer.

Both of them hard at work (notice Wyatt's goggles again).

Finally it was time to go... but not before enjoying a funnel cake!!

Riding the tram back to our car. It was a fun day.

Fire Station Tour

About a month ago, I joined some other moms for a fire station tour at a local fire station. I was excited to do this with Wyatt because he is always so enamored with fire trucks when we see them. The station we went to was older... the only one in the area that still has a working pole!

For the tour, Wyatt wore his *favorite* shirt, his fireman rain boots and his fireman's hat (I tried, but I could not convince him the hat was meant to be worn the other way!).

Even though he loves fire trucks, when we got inside he was pretty shy. He didn't want to touch the hose. I was able to get him to sit on the truck but only for a minute. Then we got to go inside the truck but he was very quiet through it all.

Here he is hanging back while the fireman shows off the equipment at the back of the truck.

Then they had us all sit down and showed us the gear that the fireman wears. They wanted the kids to see the person beneath all the gear, so they wouldn't be afraid if they ever encounter a fireman in his gear.

Here he is with all the gear. The mask made his voice different. I thought it was such a good idea for them to do this because kids probably do get scared in a fire if they've never seen this before! After this, we got to go upstairs and tour their living area which was neat to see.

Then we came back downstairs, and they showed us how the pole worked. This is all the kids watching. No, we weren't allowed to try it :) In fact, they said only firemen who've been trained can use the pole!

Then they gave us some goodies, like this plastic fireman's hat. Wyatt decided to wear it the correct way... long enough for me to take this picture anyway.

By this point, Wyatt had started to warm up and not be so shy. Here he is helping roll up a hose.

Standing up on the back of a truck with a friend (who incidentally is only 2 months younger than Wyatt... can you tell my boy is tall?!).

Standing in front of the truck bay before we left. It was fun. 

I love my little firefighter :)

(Yes, Piper was there. She hung out in the stroller the whole time, even snoozing part of the time.)

Trip to the Zoo

Back in September, I went with some mom friends to a small zoo about an hour away. We were able to walk all the way through the zoo, and it didn't take too long... perfect for little boys!

First up we saw some flamingos!

Flamingo :)

Piper had fun chilling in the stroller.

Fun with a cut out sign.

Trying to see the zebras through the fence. We also saw some giraffes.

Climbing on the fence like a monkey.

Walking on the boardwalk with friends.

We spent a few minutes in this picnic area, and the kids had fun running around.

Wyatt liked running ahead of the group, so here he let me take his picture while we were waiting for everyone to catch up to us.

They had a few goats the kids could feed. Here Piper and her friend Molly were watching the goats clamor for the food.

Best buds.

Mommy and her lil' guy

Neat statue at the entrance to the zoo.

After the zoo, we ate a picnic lunch and then played for a few minutes on the playground, which was right outside the zoo.

Wyatt had a great time climbing and running. Then it was time to go home, so we could pick up Lila from school!

My Star Student

Back in September, Lila was the Star Student for a week (all of the kids in her class get to be the Star for a week). What did that entail? She got to bring in a poster and talk about herself on Monday, and then on Friday she got to bring in a show-and-tell item. She chose to bring a Lil' Woodzeez family (toy). Some of the things she likes that she featured on her poster: drawing pictures, reading, AWANA Sparks, playing outside, coloring, catching bugs and her Lil' Woodzeez toys.

In addition to catching bugs, this summer we had the joy of housing a couple little lizards. My reaction when I find one of those fast-moving little creatures in the house is to get it out as quick as possible. Lila's reaction is to run and get her bug kit and catch it (well, to have Daddy catch it!) This particular lizard was found outside and was larger (3-4" from nose to tail) than the normal tiny ones that come inside.

You can see in this picture, the lizard was about to shed his skin. I was hoping it would happen quickly, so we could see it and then let him go. But, a few days later he looked the same. We convinced Lila to let him go before he died since he had no food. By the way, after I took these pictures, I taped the lid shut on this thing... didn't want to risk him getting loose!!

This was Lila on Crazy Hair night. She had several ponytails adorned with pipe cleaners, fake flowers and pom poms. Ben is helping with Awana again this year. Lila is a Spark (last year she was a Cubbie). They have council time (bible lesson), handbook time (where they recite their verses) and game time (where they play games, relays, etc.) She has been having a lot of fun with it all.

Lila still loves being a big sister. Now that Piper can stand, she LOVES to stand next to the tub. It is the perfect height for her. She also loves it when there are people in the tub to watch!

And interact with!! 

This week Ben was a Watch DOG at school. Watch DOGS (Dads Of Great Students) volunteer to come help at school for a day. Lila was so excited for him to do it. She must have asked everyday for a week if tomorrow was the day. Then that morning when I was making their lunches, she informed me that I didn't need to put a note in her lunch box because "Daddy is my note" (he spent about half of the day helping in her class and got to each lunch with her.) This is a picture he took on his phone at recess.

Another picture he took during "free centers" at the end of the day. Lila almost always chooses to go to the art center.

I wasn't sure how she'd handle going to school the next day after having Daddy there all day, but fortunately she had a field trip to the zoo to look forward to (which was today). And Ben was going to chaperone. I am looking forward to being able to chaperone a trip in the spring (when I don't have to be here for Piper, and somebody else could maybe stay with her and Wyatt). I meant to send along the camera with Ben, but forgot, so here is another photo taken on his phone. This was his group. The girl wearing pink is Lila's "best friend". Her dad and little sister (far left) joined them at the zoo.

Another picture riding on the tortoise sculpture.

Overall, I think Lila is enjoying kindergarten. She asks me frequently if I will eat lunch with her. We have gone a few times (someday she will know what an act of love it is to eat lunch with her at 10:45!!) If she is tired at the end of the day, she will get weepy and say she misses me when she's at school. But in the morning, she is usually fine. I have been adjusting as well. It is hard to not know what all goes on during the day (especially since Lila doesn't share much). Since she has started school, her reading ability - and interest - have increased a lot. She reads quite well and also has taken an interest in writing now. The few times we have eaten lunch with her, she seems to be fairly popular with several girls. At the beginning of the year, she had to switch seats with another girl because the other girl was talking too much. I asked her if she ever got in trouble for talking, and she informed me that she was the most shy in the class (and therefore the quietest). I haven't asked her recently if that is still true!