The baby cows and the mama cow she'd say Moo Moo

One of the kindergarten teachers at the boys' school married a dairy farmer, which means....Field Trip! It was a lot of fun, a lot of facts of life moments, and a lot of getting used to the aroma.
Checking out the feed and acclimating to the smells of nature

Getting up close and personal with a few of the cows

It's hard to see, but these are the water beds the cows sleep on - actual water beds covered with sand....pretty poshThe kids got to have a dance party on a sample water bed - the cows weigh about 1500 pounds, and each of these cute kids is about 50 pounds, so they could accomodate a couple of classes!

Jack got to feel the milking machine - this farm operates 24 hours a day and makes a LOT of milk

Jack found a new calling - he was checking out each machine to see how many pounds of milk each cow produced....they have several consistently good producers who make 30 pounds or more each session!

They got to pet a couple of calves before heading to the park for lunch and play - all in all a great field trip - Thank you Mrs. A!

Laurie Berkner's Farm Song

It's all happening at the zoo

If you've been around a while, you may remember that Harry has a penchant for walking like this:

April 06

Well, he's added an accessory - what a difference 4 years can make!

The school took a field trip to a zoo yesterday, and it was a lot of fun to chaperone. We truly lucked out as the weather back home was not great, and we dodged all sorts of storms on our way there and home. The kids were a dream, and I thanked my lucky stars as I watched some moms running after excitable kiddies. It would have all been worth it, regardless, this morning, as Harry said "Thank you for being my partner at the zoo, Mommy! I love you SO much!" :wub:

This zoo is really cool because they have built a high sidewalk where the giraffes can come right up to you and enjoy treats.

It's a big hit with the kids!

I didn't take many animal shots, but thought this guy had the right idea....lazing on a sunny afternoon, indeed ;-)

And I'll be surprised if someone didn't send this to the coke people - this peacock was screaming for a coke....know how that feels!

After a fun lunch, we went back to the giraffes for a second round of treats, and Harry just let this guy dive right into the cup, skipping the middleman....

..getting nose to nose at one point about his behavior and concerns that he might still be hungry even tho we'd fed him numerous times and there was a line waiting for their chance

Thanx to the teachers, bus drivers and amazing kids and parents for a fun day! Thanx to my DH for making it possible for me to share these wonderful times...love you!

Simon and Garfunkel's At The Zoo

Gettin' down on the farm

The boys' preschool went to a local pumpkin farm this morning, and it was a blast! They each went with their class, so I went with Harry and their friend Sam's parents helped keep Jack in line (thanx, Carol and Allen!). They got to take a hayride out to the patch, choose their own pumpkin, play in a sorgum maze, have a sweet snack of pumpkin cookies and hot chocolate. The owner even gave them little painted pumpkins. It was a perfect fall day :-)

Harry's class

Jack and his pumpkin
Harry and his pumpkin

Harry and friends hitting the maze

Harry posing for a picture with his painted pumpkin

one of the cool barns

One of my favorite pix from the day

Tim McGraw

Hooray for pizza day

A group of friends got together for a tour of California Pizza Kitchen - it was great! Before the tour, the boys took a little imaginery Train Trip....

Jack sold tickets

while Harry read the schedule and decided Sodor Island looked like fun.

We had a great group of about 15 friends, mostly from preschool, with a few older sibs who were on vacation and a couple of younger friends

The kids got to see all parts of the storage and prep areas - starting with the freezer...brrrr. I'm playing with colors and saturation
The amazing Miss Hannah and Harry look on while Jack asks the wonderful tour guide a question
"You want me to do WHAT?!?"
This guy was really great with the kids. Here's Jack telling him "I can do it myself" and his friend, Benjamin, trying to catch a peek
A little bit of cheese
and a final pat should do it!
Harry had his own "I can do it myself" moment with the sauce
did a little spreading
some patting of cheese
and crowned it all with pepperonis...yum.
And this is the big surprise buffet that awaited us moms - eight of their awesome signature pizzas!After the tour, the kids went to the play area....does this remind you of those Clown Car dares in college??

Jack asking for 'just one more minute' after serving his TO for a screaming banshee impersonation

Harry got tired of waiting and demonstrated what "Don't Tread On Me" means

Here are some of the boys idolizing Zachary, and Jack and Sam cracking each other up

It was a lot of fun, especially for this age (as you can see the countertops were a stretch for some kiddies). CPK was so organized and the kitchen manager did a great job with our big group. They do tours like this nationwide, so call your local restaurant for a fun outing :-)

The Aquabats' Pizza Day