A Day at the Fair with Kate

Kate's birthday falls on Fair Week here in Montgomery County.  So it's come to be tradition that Josh and I take her to the fair on her actual birthday.  We had such a fun time last year, that I think we were all looking forward to it this year.  And as expected - the fair did not disappoint.  First stop....the animals!!

 

 Kate is fascinated with lambs.  Her beloved toy is a Williamsburg plush lamb who has been fondly named "Lambie".  She takes him everywhere.  I think Kate would have spent all day in the lamb stalls if we had let her.  Our farming friends over at Fox Hollow Farm had two lambs in the 4-H competition, so it was fun to hunt around looking for Buddy and Marty (the lambs).  We found them too!  

Just yesterday, Kate asked me if she could go to a farm that had cows so she could milk one.  Well, it wasn't a real cow, but somehow, it sufficed just the same.  Kate was tickled pink that she got to milk "a cow" on her birthday!!

This little calf was born at the fair at 8:25 a.m. on August 16th.  She was just two and a half hours old when Kate got to see her.  Kate thought it was pretty special to share her birthday with a baby cow!

Would you look at that!  Kate found another lamb.  Surprise.  Surprise.

When Kate doesn't want to be a cowgirl, or ballerina, or chef -- she usually wants to be a fire fighter when she grows up.  She enjoyed talking to the firemen from Sandy Spring Volunteer Fire Department.  Oh, and she LOVED "driving" the truck!

 At 12 o'clock noon the rides opened and Kate was ready with tickets in hand.  She had so much fun.  I think my face hurt from smiling so much as I watch her excitement!

 Last ride of the day is always the Ferris Wheel.  We all get to share this ride together and look down at all the fun things we did at the fair. I love this fair tradition.  I hope Kate will treasure it too!

An Evening at the FDR

One of my favorite things to do on a summer evening is go downtown and walk around the Jefferson Memorial or the FDR.  I haven't gone into DC in quite awhile, so I was thrilled when Josh suggested we stop on our way home from an errand and walk around the monuments.  Even though the kids are so little, it was really special for me to share something I love with the little ones I love. 

I am looking forward to many more adventures downtown with my babies.

Katie's Panda Party!

I can't believe my little girl is turning 4 this week! Where did the time go? Ever since her brother's birthday (in April) Kate has been planning her own birthday party. This year she decided early she wanted a Panda Party. Luckily, I had just joined FONZ and was able to book a birthday party at the National Zoo, home of the Giant Pandas. We had two great tour guides, Garwin and Alberta. Kate took an immediate liking to Garwin. He treated her like a princess all morning!

Can you tell that Kate was a little bit excited?


Guests were such a great sport driving into the city under a sky of threatening rain, and early on a Saturday morning just for Kate. She had lots of family there and some special friends.

Our party included a guided tour of the Asia trail. Garwin was full of fun factoids. Here the kids are showing their "claws" just like the Bear Sloth that was hiding in the rocks. The otter's were another favorite animal; they were very playful this morning and fun to watch.

I love these two shots (one above and one below). Nathan with his favorite men...Papa G, Papa Dan, and Daddy. And Kate with her friend, Madison, walking hand in hand toward the Giant Pandas.

The Pandas did not disappoint. This big fella was sleeping when we arrived, but quickly woke up upon hearing that Kate was finally here. He sat up, grabbed his bamboo snack, and starting eating. He was fascinating to watch. Kate has wanted to see a Panda for years now. I am so glad we were able to do this for her.

Happy Birthday, Little One. May this year be your best year yet!

Another Farm Today?

So we've been visiting a lot of farms lately, thanks to my fascination with locally grown foods.  But usually when we drive up we see a barn of sorts or some animals.  Today, we saw... a castle!   Kate was thrilled of course.  "There are princesses at this farm?" She asked.  Well sort of.  Elioak Clark Farm in Clarksville, MD, does have grass fed beef and a local produce stand, but they also have a Fairy Tale Adventure Park and a kids' petting "zoo".  Perfect way to spend a Friday with the cousins.  We had a shoe slide for the old woman with too many kids, there was a well where Jack and Jill tumbled, a crooked house, Miss Muffet and well, a few others.  The kids spent very little attention to the nursery rhyme part.  They were more interested in the "rides" and animals.

The first ride of the day was a hay ride.  Aunt Deb took the kids while I kept Nathan far away from the hay, due to a weird rash he had that finally went away.  (Didn't want to risk hay setting him off!) 

Apparently, Collin felt he could do a better job driving the tractor than the lady.  

After the hay ride Brenden, Kate and Collin hopped about Old Bessy (or Dora as it was), for a good ole' cow train ride.  I didn't know there was such a thing as a cow train until Friday.    

But the big event of the day was the Pony Ride!! Kate could not wait to climb on.  I was worried she was going to knock a little girl out of the way so she could go first.  After waiting a few minutes, Kate pushed forward for her turn.  Luckily her cousins are gentlemen and let their pushy cousin have her way and go first!

 Nathan had his first pony ride too.  Honestly, I thought he wouldn't do it.  The little guy continues to surprise me.  He LOVED it.  He wouldn't hold on, but that didn't stop him from having fun.  He didn't want to get off.  Guess, horseback riding will be in his future.

I  love Fridays. No work (for me).  Days with the kids and their friends or cousins.  A little adventure to start off our weekend. 

Oh, and we did stop by the Clark's produce stand on the way home for some zucchini, patty pan squash, tomatoes and cantaloupe.  Yum!