Fair Oaks Farm

Labor day weekend, we decided to drive up to Fair Oaks Farm to use a Groupon we bought and also to see my friend Devin and girls (who moved to Chicago a few years ago).  Sadly, I'm THAT far behind on the blog...I know.  To quote Charlie, "I'm doing my best!"

The day was beautiful, very sunny and not too hot.  We took the "official tour" in the bus (not quite as informative as I would have liked as I wrangled my 3 littles) and saw the farm.  Then we had lunch at their cafe before checking out the play area.  The kids all loved the train, and a giant "bounce house" type thing that I didn't take a picture of.  After a few minutes, we saw a green light in the cow building, so we went in to see a cow being born!  It was pretty awesome, really. 

 By the "end" of the day (I'm guessing it was 2pm) my kids were exhausted and hardly wanted to smile for pictures...so this is the best we could do as a group shot of the kids.

All in all, I found the dairy a pretty interesting place--especially the place where the cows get milked!  It's a turn-dial type wheel where the cows get in line, step on...and then the workers down lower clean and get the cows hooked up to the milkers (all while it's moving).  The cow rides the circle around, where she is detached at the other side and then walks out just before another cow loads.  Pretty amazing.

Zoo day!

A few weeks ago I met up with two of my friends, Jenny and Kristy, and their children for a playdate at the zoo.  One of our first outings without Charlie--so much easier with just 2 when you're used to 3!  Sam had a fun time tagging along with Andrew and Keane (they're both almost 4).  Jenny took all the pictures.

The baby girls played for a bit at the playground--Julia is just 3 weeks older than Lily (and are also in class together at school, as I teach with Jenny this year)

 

 Sam in the treehouse!

The day concluded with the normal end-of-playdate-almost-meltdowns but we escaped just in time.  Hopefully we'll do it again soon!

State Fair 2013

Another  year at the State Fair.  Once again, we managed to go twice (and free both times, thanks to the Indianapolis Public Library summer reading program!).  The boys just can't get enough of what the fair has to offer, and the weather was perfect for it!

On a (crowded) Saturday morning, Scott and I took the kids.  First stop, after checking out the fish at the DNR building, was "Little Hands on the Farm"-a yearly favorite. 

 

After walking through the pioneer village, we checked out all the tractors, and took a few more pictures. 

 (Success?)

 (Clearly Julia is the heart of the family...the boys fought over who would hold her!)

After a quick stop at the FFA building to feed the goats and play a little miniature golf, we ventured over to the animal barns.  The kids loved the cows and had to pet almost every one we passed.  A quick lunch at the Dairy Barn (fried mozzarella and a chocolate shake, yum) and time to head home for naps.

The following Thursday we returned, and we had awesome weather and no crowds!  We took our time playing 18 holes of mini golf, playing with the toy tractors, checking out the fish again, and walking through the horse barns.  We also watched a few minutes of a sheep competition and a pig competition...interesting.

Until next year!

Strawberry Picking

The boys were very excited this year to pick strawberries at Spencer Farms.  We found the perfect day--Sunny but not too hot, and beautiful blue skies.  Charlie couldn't wait to get started (and Sam wasn't sure what to think)

 Julia wore a very "summery strawberry" looking outfit

  And Charlie just can't get enough of her (he loves holding her)

After a few photo ops, and nursing Julia standing up in the middle of a field (add that one to the list, ha), we started picking.  Sam started out with intensity and had 20+ strawberries in his bucket when Charlie only had 5 or so.  After a few minutes, Sam found a smashed one and showed it to me.  I told him "You can eat it, don't put it in the bucket".  A minute later, "Mom, I eat this one?"...followed by another request.  Three minutes later I noticed his entire bucket was empty.  So much for strawberry picking.  I filled a few buckets, with Charlie helping here and there (and Sam eating his weight) before Julia decided we had enough.

Time to pay for our 6+ pounds of strawberries, and get some ice cream (pre-lunch?  why not??) and fudge.  Charlie chose chocolate chip cookie dough and Sam (with my guidance) chose cookies and cream.  In all fairness, Charlie chose the random bright colored ice cream (like day-glow) and I veto-ed the decision--feeling good about my choice when I saw the rainbow colored child sitting at the next table.

 

 

All in all we had a good morning. If the farm wasn't so far away, we would definitely go again...but it'll have to wait until next year.  We're hoping to pick blueberries at a farm in the city in a few weeks!