Kids

Visiting the Farm

mildlygranola, , 6 Comments

This weekend the kids and I headed out-of-town to visit my cousins Annie and Megan. My cousin Deirdre joined us for the trip, which made for a fun mini reunion.

We got to their farm around five, which meant we had a few hours to hang out before the kids went to bed and the grown ups started enjoying cocktails. After the four-hour trip we were all pretty worn out.

The next morning we were ready to have some fun. It was a sunny day, something we hadn’t had in weeks. We had coffee in the sun on the front porch while the kids played. It was very relaxing.

The weather was so nice we ended up spending most of the day outside. It was so nice to be able to be out in the fresh air.

The kids liked petting the cats.

Audrey really liked crawling onto the roof of the hog house. She thought she was pretty darn cool. Elliot was not pleased that I wouldn’t let him climb up. I feel like 2 is too young to be climbing on top of buildings.

My cousin Megan has a 4-year-old and a 5-year-old. My kids loved having them to play with. They were really good at showing the kids around and sharing their toys too. If Audrey wanted to see something, like a big tractor, Eloise would take her hand and show her where it was.

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They had a wonderful time playing. Elliot really liked going to see the pigs.

He also liked riding on Uncle Patrick’s old horse.

20181013_1451211989637954500805570.jpgMy Uncle Dan took the kids for a ride in his farm jeep thingy. 20181013_152611720301416125121670.jpgThen Audrey decided she was a big shot and wanted to ride in the back. 20181013_1552205029691251465090897.jpg

Both kids enjoyed playing on flatbed trailers. Audrey’s greatest joy was kicking cats off of the trailers. Not like a sociopath, it was a gentle kick. 20181013_1540542342299840206443221.jpgAll day we kept a small fire going. It was nice to rest by the fire and have a nice chat. We ended up eating dinner around the fire. It was incredibly relaxing. The kids were playing. The grown ups were talking. It was such great night. It was the perfect ending to a lovely day.

This morning we woke up and the weather had changed. We drove home through snow for the first hour. I didn’t want to see snow until December.20181014_0938362454379028994644147.jpg

It was a great weekend, and now I am counting down the minutes until I can tuck the kids in so I can go to bed. I hope you had a good weekend too.

 

Living History Farms

mildlygranola, , , , 1 Comment

Last Wednesday zoo members were able to check out Living History Farms for free. It’s a great opportunity for the museum to introduce zoo members to another organization they might want to buy a membership for. It’s an even better opportunity for me to check out something that I usually wouldn’t pay to visit (my kids are too young to get much out of Living History Farms).

We decided to skip most of the farms and just go to the 1900 farm. We arrived there by tractor pulled wagon. The kids were so excited to see the tractor they didn’t even mind the wait.

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On the farm we checked out the animals. Elliot loved the cows. Audrey loved the horses. I loved the sheep. We were all happy.

After checking out the animals we walked to the pick up stop for the tractor. It was nice to get a little walk in. We had to wait about 15 minutes for the next tractor to arrive. They had a nice playground for the kids to play on. Unfortunately, it has been raining here for weeks, so the kids were pretty muddy after that.

We headed back into the historic village to check out the shops. Audrey ground up cinnamon with a mortar and pestle at the pharmacy. She thought that was pretty neat.

If the kids didn’t need naps we could have explored more of the town and checked out the other farms. We ended up spending about two hours there. That was enough for us. When the kids get older we’ll check it out again.

Camping

mildlygranola, , , 1 Comment

I did it again. I said I wouldn’t do it again this summer. I swore I was through with making stupid decisions. Yet I did it: I went camping with my best friend and all four of our little kids.

We headed down to Missouri on Saturday morning for a night in the camper. It was a beautiful fall day. We were able to have fun at the playground.

20180929_1618086318659511943823623.jpgWe had a picnic dinner. This big guy fell off of the top stair of the camper. He is fine, but for a minute there I was terrified (so was he).20180929_1809293370616554410480813.jpgHe just needed some extra snuggles.20180929_1802595559363640262327675.jpg

Mostly from camel. Camel’s name has recently changed from Alice to Cam Cam. I’m a little sad about the name change. Thankfully, Elliot’s voice for Cam Cam (it is very high pitched) hasn’t changed, which makes me happy.Once Elliot felt better we sat around the fire.20180929_1809364205328014811653398.jpgElliot and Bryan had a nice little chat.20180929_1823202219143577193932831.jpgThe kids had s’mores. They were all fans.20180929_1826063030795008917020544.jpgAfter the fire we put the kids to bed. Then my kids were absolutely crazy and Elliot is no longer allowed to camp until he is 4 and I thought they would never sleep. It sucked. I am not taking them both camping at the same time next year. If I tell you I’m taking them camping please remind me of this blog post. Audrey and Elliot were so naughty I grounded them from the Laurie Berkner Band for two weeks. Are they too young to understand a punishment that long? Absolutley. I’m already feeling guilty about that, but not guilty enough to listen to anything but my music on the way home.

This morning I had more coffee than normal and tried to wear the kids out before our drive home. We headed to the playground where they climbed for a long time. 20180930_0908128867068045618194909.jpgWe headed home after the playground. It was a 4 hour drive. Both kids were exhausted. Neither child napped. I’m now going to make a cup of tea and try to forget the bad parts of the trip and focus on the fun parts.

 

Orchard Pit Stop

mildlygranola, , 4 Comments

The kids and I drove up to visit my parents yesterday. It is a two-hour drive, so we usually stop at some point because my kids are small and two hours is a long drive for them.

Instead of stopping at a rest stop yesterday we made use of our season pass to Center Grove Orchard. The orchard is only 5 miles off the interstate on our drive back to my parents house. It is about a quarter of the way into our drive, which is perfect for car naps.20180924_1119272959868064732549028.jpg

We spent about a half hour exploring the farmyard. It was a great way to wear them out.

They learned how to milk a cow.20180924_1139266436608292976159587.jpgThey drove tractors.

They played in the corn pool.

Audrey even went down the dump truck slide with the big kids. 20180924_112939(0)8615374697558427391.jpg

After wearing them out we had lunch before hitting the road. I’m posting this picture so you can see how tired they were. 20180924_1205493940418993455185143.jpgDid they nap? Of course not. Did they complain when I didn’t let them listen to The Laurie Berkner Band for the entire ride? Of course. Do I care? Not really. We were able to play in the sunshine on a beautiful fall day. It’s OK if they skipped a nap yesterday (it is really easy for me to write that because they are both napping well today).

Beaverdale Fall Festival

mildlygranola, , 4 Comments

I love our neighborhood. We’re within the city of Des Moines, but it often feels like we’re in a small town. I get that feeling the most often during our fall festival. The neighborhood comes together to celebrate all things Beaverdale. We spent a lot of time enjoying it this weekend.

Last night we walked downtown to get some food and let the kids pick a ride. Audrey had never been on a ride and was incredibly excited to experience it (after all, Pig from If You Give a Pig a Party goes on carnival rides with her friends, so it must be amazing). Elliot got so far as to go up onto the platform and then screamed until John handed him back to me. 20180914_1809213789777245907480539.jpg

After the ride we let the kids try cotton candy. It was a HUGE hit.

They enjoyed the cotton candy on the walk home and we enjoyed the quietest walk we have had in quite some time.

This morning we were up bright and early. We loaded up the stroller and headed off to enjoy the morning.20180915_0858406182858676259470280.jpg Our first stop was my dear friend Laura’s house for brunch. It was great to catch up with her and spend some time with her family.20180915_0919202326140436678133535.jpgAfter brunch the whole house headed a few houses down to watch the Beaverdale Fall Festival Parade. I planned ahead this year and brought bubbles to keep the kids entertained until the parade started. I also brought a mimosa with me, which really makes parades more enjoyable. A little champagne makes firetrucks, horses, dancers, and members of Congress just a tad more enjoyable.

We had planned on heading back to the fall festival this afternoon, but it is so hot here we are staying put. Taking toddlers going through a post-parade candy detox out to a crowded street in 90 degree heat sounded like a recipe for disaster.

The Perfect Day

mildlygranola, , , , , 5 Comments

Greetings from the end of a wonderful day. The weather was perfect today, and we made the most of it.

We started our day at Center Grove Orchard, about 40 minutes from our house. Calling it an orchard doesn’t do this place justice. It’s full of entertaining options for little kids. We got season passes this year, so we will be there often.

We visited last year, but the kids were a little too young. This year Audrey is loving every part of the orchard. The jumping pillows were a hit with her.20180911_104239(0)1244462636535434436.jpgShe even braved the huge slide – all by herself!

We took a hayride to the train. Elliot was terrified of both rides. He has no issue with the train at the zoo, but this one was too much for him. Audrey liked it. She got to blow the whistle at the end, which she thought was very cool.

After the ride out with a terrified Elliot, I decided we would take the trail back to the farm-yard. It had a couple of hills that were steep for little legs, but it was worth it because we saw a turtle on our walk. After our walk we headed home for lunch and naps. We will be back again soon – we didn’t even play in the corn pit or feed the goats or ride the pedal tractors or visit the three little pigs houses. I think we’re really going to enjoy having season passes.

This afternoon we headed to our neighborhood farmers market for the last market of the season. I really wish the market would go later in the year, it’s still nice in September, and there is still plenty of produce to harvest. I picked up a tote bag (I have a tote bag addiction – they work so well as project bags) from the neighborhood association. I love being able to get a new tote bag and justify its purchase because I’m helping the neighborhood association.20180911_1924323089708464773164937.jpgWe had a picnic feast of all sorts of foods – a falafel wrap, a bean and cheese papusa, egg rolls and pad thai. We brought baklava home for John. The pad thai was awful, Elliot ate the eggs out and we threw the rest away.

I love it when we are able to spend most of the day outside. Warm, sunny weather and fresh air are good for my soul. So is not having to cook dinner. I hope your Tuesday was as joyful as mine.