Rodeo 2011

My cowboys ready for a day at the rodeo!

Luke was not in the mood for pictures.


We finally made it to the rodeo!

Petting Zoo!

Pure Joy!

Pony Ride!

Taylor was a natural!

Naptime for peanut.

"Fun on the Farm"

planting a seed, which grew into a pepper

Milking the cow...Isaac was very interested in that. Silly guy!

Driving the tractor! This was his favorite thing from the whole day!

Me and my cowboys.

What a fun day! Today my friend Kristin and I took the kids (Taylor, Isaac, and Luke) to the Livestock Show and Rodeo. I must admit I was a little nervous about juggling the needs of both of my boys while there, but it went so well! I could not have asked for anything better; the boys did awesome and both had so much fun! I was expecting Luke to sleep on the way there, for his morning nap, but of course kids never do what you expect...he was wide awake the entire drive. Thankfully, there was so much action around him, so he was very content. We started out in the petting zoo, it was an exciting way to start the day. Isaac had the biggest smile on his face from the second we walked in there and it never left his face! He loved petting, feeding, and learning about the animals - all of them! There were sheep, llamas, a baby pig (which he was really into), deer, and donkeys. Luke was very interested in the animals, too, he was ready to get down and crawl around, but of course I didn't let him do that. Next, we headed out to eat some lunch, hoping to beat some of the lunch rush. After lunch, we went back in to check out more animals and see what else we could find. By this point, Isaac was insisting that we find a tractor for him to "drive." Okay, we're on it. First though we found pony rides! I didn't know if he would do it, but he said he wanted to and Taylor was all about it, so we got in line. After much waiting, and watching others ride the ponies, it was our turn. Isaac didn't hesitate a bit, the cowboy picked him, put him on and Isaac was ready to go! He was very focused, and had so much fun! I was so proud of him! It was after 12:00 and Luke was getting really tired, so I had to hold him because he was not having any more of the stroller. After the ponies we walked around to look at the other animals and baby animals, and thankfully my sweet baby crashed during this time. In my arms/carrier he finally gave in the sleep. It was a short nap, 15 minutes, but it made a huge difference. We went back outside after checking out the animals, and found the "Fun on the Farm" exhibit. We took the kids through this last year and they loved it! This year was just as fun! It is a great learning experience for the kids, they learn the process of the farm to market and get a dollar in the end. They got to feed chickens, get an egg, plant a seed, then get the pepper that grew, pick a peach from the peach tree, get an ear of corn, get some wool from the sheep, and milk a cow. Isaac's favorite of those was milking the cow, he thought that was very cool! Just before the market there were tractors, finally! Isaac was thrilled, he had the best time "driving!" Once we pulled him off of the tractor we walked over to see a butterfly exhibit, which was beautiful! The kids were worn out after that, so we decided to call it a day. Everything went so smoothly and was so much fun! I am incredibly thankful to be able to do these fun activities with my boys and so thankful to share the experience with our great friends!