We took some friends (the Js) with us apple picking last year. She emailed me this year to see if we were planning on going again so we had another fun adventure this year. I didn't get nearly as many apples, but still a ton. We didn't see any bears, which I'm always worrying about at the back of my mind. We had fun and now we're munching on yummy apples (which I had to immediately start cutting open with my little car window hammer/knife set since Buddy has so many loose and missing teeth and Little Guy fell out of bed messing around the other night and injured his front teeth and the gums above them).
I love driving in the direction of the apple orchard or Shenandoah because all of a sudden we're in the foothills, and my kids, who spent 4 years in Kansas and now live in a flat part of Virginia, are intrigued by hills, foothills and mountains. Buddy exclaimed, "What is that?" when we came upon a hill on our drive today. I don't think he was expecting to run into a hill so suddenly.
Our friend Mom J took this and posted it on her blog.
There's a little produce stand we always go to that has a few locations with Pick Your Own stuff and animals. this little one near my parents added these goats a few years back with high up ramps for the goats to walk around on. I love it. The kids thought it was pretty cool. We fed the goats, sheep, chickens and an alpaca. Little Guy called the alpaca "the goat who looks like a lion."
Princess Sparkley before the pumpkin patch when we sent the kids out to get in the car while we gathered up the camera, etc.
After buying our pumpkins from a road side stand (which is still better than a grocery store) last year, I decided this year I better search high and low for a free pumpkin patch. I found one about 20 minutes away that included a free hayride as well. This is probably the first hayride in Little Guy's memory.
I took the kids to the county fair today. Buddy and Princess Sparkley earned free tickets through the library's reading program and kids under three were free so I just had to pay for me to get in.
Princess Sparkley I know has been to the Ventura County Fair in California. And maybe Buddy. But she was three when we moved, and he wasn't yet 1 1/2, so neither remember it. A few days ago I asked Buddy what he expected to see there and he answered, "elephants." PS corrected him, "You're thinking of a circus." So they might have had high expectations going in, but they still had fun.
I think the most enjoyable part was walking through all the animals stalls. We started off with the petting farm area. I asked PS if she wanted to go in. Maybe. I asked Buddy. He said maybe. I asked Little Guy, he said yes. So we all went in. Little guy refused to touch any animal and was a little freaked out by the experience. The big kids and I all pet a sheep, a goat, a pig, a cow, a weird chicken and a bunny. Little Guy pet the bunny. Then we toured through the miniature animals (our favorite part*), sheep, goats, pigs and cows. Then we moved onto rabbits and chickens (our other favorite part). PS would like a pet bunny. We also got to see some chicks, baby ducks, and baby turkeys (as well as grown turkeys).
*The top two middle pictures are a Miniature Zebu... the cutest thing ever. It's a cow, basically, but the size of a small sheep. You can get a better idea of its size when you see Buddy in the picture with it. Little Guy liked all of the smaller animals. He'd yell out "there's a little goat!" He told B when we got home that his favorite part was the "animals" and when I was taking him up to bed he said his favorite part was the piggies with their noses sticking out. The top left hand picture. Their noses are sticking out of their pen onto the walking by area.
We made our way through the displays of flowers, produce, artwork, photographs and baked goods. PS has great plans to decorate a cupcake and bake something for next year. Buddy would like to draw a picture (although there were some great Lego creations on display as well). This part was perfect timing because it started pouring rain just as we left the rabbit exhibit.
Then we battled our way through more rain and bought a funnel cake to share at a picnic table under an awning. The food there all smelled SO good. I kept walking around saying, "Mmm... that smells like a really good burger." Or, "Mmm... onion rings." But we settled on a funnel cake to share. I asked them to pick between a funnel cake or elephant ears (neither of which have they ever seen, had or heard of).
Our last stop, after seeing the rabbits and chickens again, was the 4-H tent where they did a bunch of crafts, many involving paint, so I was glad it was last and I didn't have to carry around wet paint for too long.
We skipped the rides because as much as they wanted to ride them, they aren't brave enough to go without me and Little Guy isn't tall enough to ride any (plus I'm not sure if he can with his heart... all the rides have little signs about medical conditions). We just walked around and looked at them (all mostly empty due to the weather).
As we loaded everyone into the car, the load speaker announced that the fair was closing early today due to rain and weather. Overall, not the "best in the state" fair I'd seen advertised, but for $8 plus a funnel cake, a fun few hours. And it was empty because of the weather, so I'm much happier to have come today than yesterday when it was $2 day.
We went to a different pumpkin patch for our music class field trip. It was freezing cold but there were some more things for the kids to do. Buddy loved the giant "sandbox" of corn kernels. And riding the bikes.
Buddy really wanted me to film this.
Buddy and PS jumping in corn and making corn angels.
Baby X and his two pumpkins... I love his little pointer finger and how obsessed he is with pumpkin stems.
Buddy and his second pumpkin... this is the one he ends up deciding to carve to look like a mailman.
B's older brother lives south of Kansas City on 10 acres with sheep, chickens, and dogs. Each time we visit our kids get a bit braver on the farm. Buddy was so excited about getting to jump on their trampoline again and I watched him out there with his cousins that tend to be more rough and tumble than he and PS and they were holding their own and having a great time.
PS facing off with a chicken.
The kids are off building a fort with cousin E. Click the picture to enlarge.
I was out on the balcony taking pictures and when I turned to go back in I found this. Baby X held his own too with cousin D who is 6 months older and much larger. You know how Baby X likes to flip stuff, like his binky handle?? He went up to cousin D, flipped D's binky handle, and then yanked the binky out of his mouth. Cousin D looked at me like, "what are you going to do about that baby taking my binky?"
This was by far the highlight of our trip. Walnut Grove was seriously lacking other than getting to play in Plum Creek just like Mary and Laura. Our trip would have been a bit disappointing had it not been for DeSmet, mainly the Ingalls Homestead.
First, aren't these scenes beautiful? These are pictures I took of the 160 acres that Pa homesteaded outside of DeSmet, SD.
If you've ever been to Nauvoo, this was a bit like this but instead of focusing on the pioneers of the Mormon church, it focused on Laura from Little House on the Prairie and her family, a different type of pioneer.
Here we are when we first arrived and climbed a giant "tree house" to see the prairie. And here's Princess Sparkley doing the wash with help from Buddy. And Baby X discovering grass for the first time ever in his little life.
Princess Sparkley sewing on Ma's sewing machine. Buddy playing "Mary's organ." Pumping water from a well. Visiting a 3 week old baby pony. Riding a pony. Roping a "calf." Etc. Our kids were so brave about riding the ponies, petting horses and kittens. Princess Sparkley even held the reigns and drove the wagon to the school house.
DeSmet was all like a dream come true for Princess Sparkley. She was giddy with happiness and running around with so much energy. It was like Christmas morning waiting to open presents. She was also very brave wanting to do everything, even if it involved talking to or getting helped by the workers. Buddy also enjoyed it all, but not on the same scale as Princess Sparkley. Baby X was a trooper. He was really really great on this whole trip.
Here are pictures of Princess Sparkley and Buddy making rope. They also made a corn cob doll/corn cob superhero and twisted hay into a hay log as kindling for a fire. The pictures of them pulling on the rope is ringing the bell at school. Buddy in the straw hat, and Princess Sparkley at the desk in the pink pioneer girl outfit are at school. The bottom right corner picture is Princess Sparkley driving the wagon to school.
The sign for the city of DeSmet says "Little Town on the Prairie." Princess Sparkley with the graves of Ma, Pa, Mary, and Carrie. Princess Sparkley disembarking from driving the horses before the pageant. Before the pageant started.
This is our third year at Schaake's Pumpkin Patch for a music class field trip. I'm going to have to turn on our desktop computer and see if the pictures from the last two years are there so I can post them and we can all see how much the kids have grown.
Princess Sparkley is all about the pose lately. She doesn't just smile (which I guess it's good that she's finally outgrown the big CHEESEY smile phase.), she poses. (ie: see a post from the St. Louis zoo a few days back where she's with the gorilla statue.)
These pictures are from the Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead that is part of the Park and Rec Dept. in Overland Park, KS. I've been twice with family before we moved to Kansas. And this was my second music class fieldtrip... although we took B with us since we were on our way to Des Moines, Iowa, and no one else from our music class was there due to the possibly stormy weather.
Boy pets a baby cow. So brave.
Princess Sparkley pretends to be the horse while Boy sits on the saddle behind her. Princess Sparkley on a pink tractor ride on toy.
Boy on his dream tricycle.
Plus, we saw a set of Elders there doing service in the cow barn, feed baby cows from a bottle and giving them baths. That's the service I would pick if I was a missionary. Seems like a lot more fun then some stuff you could end up doing.
