Zoo Boo!

 Monday evening I learned that kids in costume get in free to Soutwick's Zoo this week (and that adult admission is discounted, too).With this information in mind I knew that this was the week to go on a zoo adventure. The weather (according to the often incorrect Weather Channel app) didn't look great though so I kept this idea to myself in the off chance it didn't pan out. While today started out grey, by late morning it started to clear up and I knew that if we were going to make this trip happen that was the time to do so. The girls hopped in their costumes and off we went. As we traveled down 495 the sky became more and more clear and a beautiful day appeared before our very eyes! What luck!

 I love that the peacock posed for this picture, too!

Parakeet Landing was such a dream come true for Grace. This girl loves birds just about as much as her Gramma Terri and to have the chance to feed them like this was more than she could have ever hoped for. I truly think she could have stayed there all day. For those wondering why there are no pictures of Emma feeding the parakeets it's because she got really freaked out by them. One landed on her feeding stick, then another landed on her wrist. The poor thing was taken by such surprise and that was the end of that. 

 Oh, how we love the Deer Forest. Such a peaceful and serene place. The deer are just the sweetest, and I was so very happy that Emma was able to feed this sweet deer without any trouble. 

 Grace tried easily for about 30 minutes to get a deer to come to her. Just about each time it would happen something would spook the deer (other deer, turkeys, very noisy school kids on a field trip). 

 She kept at it though and was finally able to feed one thanks to a little help from Emma. 

What a great day! The weather was perfect, the zoo wasn't crowded at all, and the animals were full of energy while we were there. Had we not had plans at the library this afternoon we surely would have stayed much longer. I'm so glad that it worked out for us to go today, and we've already decided that we will be making Zoo Boo an annual thing (well, until they age out of it that is)! xo

No Jacket Required

Today it reached just about 60 degrees!  The sky was a gorgeous shade of blue, the clouds were perfectly puffy, and the sun was happily shining down.  It was simply amazing!  A glorious day such as this surely calls for an adventure to be had.  And, as luck would have it, plans had already been made to meet up with my friend Julie at the Natick Community Organic Farm.  Our timing couldn't have been any better!

Someone get these girls a farm, please!

What started out as a simple errand of dropping off some yarn to my friend Julie turned into a completely lovely adventure.  Our time spent at the farm today was just what we all needed. Soaking in loads of Vitamin D and connecting with nature truly feeds our souls.  Watching the girls run with wild abandon and connect with their friends and the animals made me feel (once again) that they really should be farm kids.  They would do well with lots of land to explore, animals to take care of and gardens to tend.  Thankfully we have the last two covered!  Thank you Mother Nature for this gift of this day!  We girls truly appreciated it!

Introducing Sugar and Violet

A few weeks ago a friend of mine from high school posted on her Facebook page that she was in need of a new home for her families two guinea pigs.  They were moving and were not able to take them along on their new adventure.  Having had a couple of guinea pigs as pets when I was a kid I chimed in and said that we would be happy to take them.  Originally she thought that they would be leaving in September but their departure date got moved up and so we hatched a plan that involved her dropping off the piggies at my parents house.  Since I was waiting on a friend of mine/doula client to have her baby we were not able to scoot down to be there when they were being dropped off.  Finally, the baby was born and our schedule was out of its holding pattern that happens when I have a doula client.  After some discussion it was decided that the girls and I would head down to Connecticut (apologies to all the friends and neighbors that we did not see during the brief 24 hours we were there) yesterday to visit and pick up the newest family members.  The girls had no idea that there was a surprise waiting for them.  They were simply over the moon to be heading to Gramma and Grandpa's house for a visit (though the surprise awaiting them would surely be the cherry on top of the sundae)!  We arrived, chatted, had some lunch and then Mom and I brought the girls upstairs to see the surprise she had waiting for them.  From the first moment that Grace and Emma laid eyes on them they were head over heels for Parsnip (renamed Sugar) and Ginger (renamed Violet Ginger after we told the girls about my friend, the piggies and the three kids who previously snuggled them).  Violet and Ginger have barely been put down since we introduced the girls to them.  They seem to be very happy to have some kids to snuggle them again, and they did great on the two hour car ride home today.  Thanks to JoAnna and her family for having us adopt their very sweet piggies.  We are so happy to get to be their new family and will surely keep you updated with lots of pictures and stories!  



Further Proof That We Belong in a Small Town

Looking for frogs (and other fun things) with Uncle Grant. 

I'm pretty sure that if we had a creek running through our property I would never get the girls inside.

Uncle Grant and Em head over to the neighbors to feed their livestock while they are away.  

The girls never pass up a chance to spend time with animals. Especially bunnies. 

A trampoline in the yard? The girls could not believe their eyes!

These ducks are the funniest things you've ever seen. 

 The ducks were really not sure of the girls. 

Uncle Grant and Grace head back home.

Emma has been in a funk for the last couple of weeks, but while we were in Connecticut she was back to her normal self.  Both of the girls just love being outside, and being outside at Gramma and Grandpa's was even better!  So many things to explore and discover.  So many things to make into toys or use in their play.  Flowers to collect.  Leaves to examine.  Frogs to peek in on.  Could life be any more fabulous?  Some day sweet daughters we'll be a small town family with a small farm of our own.  Someday....

Fabulous Friday

Today we were invited to tag along on a field trip with the playgroup that my friend Molly organizes.  They were headed to Davis' Farmland and since she knows how much we love animals and being outdoors she invited us to join in the fun.  I quickly accepted the invitation and anxiously awaited the arrival of today as if I was a kid waiting for Christmas.  If only the girls knew where we were off to, they'd have been as excited as I was!  We got up, got dressed, had breakfast and managed to get out the door and to the farm for 9:00am.  When we arrived, the girls were thrilled to see that we were at a farm, but they were even more excited to see that some of our best friends, Sarah, Meaghan and Owen were there too!  Sadly the weather was chilly and damp, which was a bit of a  bummer considering that the entire place is outdoors.  

We headed in and made our way to the hay ride. 

This is a Scottish Highlands Cow that I initially photographed for our friends Pat and Kim who spent five years in Scotland while Pat studied to become a vet. 

However, after I took the first picture, she decided to wander over to the wagon,

reach up, 

and have a bite to eat!

After the hay ride the children all got to feed the goats.  

The girls did a great job using "precious heart hands" (like we do at yoga) to feed the goats. 

Emma feeding a goat. 

Meeting a baby turkey.

Seriously, we need to move to a small farm. 

Baby goats are truly about the most fabulous creatures ever. 

With any luck, someday we'll have a few of our own. 

Emma sat on this rock for quite some time hoping that the goats would climb on her like they did to me. 

Finally, one climbed up!

And this sweet calf could have come home with us too. 

Emma was a big fan of Teddy, the Scottish Highlands Calf.  

"Mama, when I get bigger can I bring a bunny home?"

Grace showing off the heart she asked me to paint on her hand. 

Emma had a wonderful time painting polka dots on her arms. 

We had a most fabulous day and were so thrilled to have been invited to tag along!

Grace spent a lot of time this afternoon and evening talking about all the fun she had today, and I do believe that if Em had more words she would have been jabbering on along with Grace too.  The girls really would do quite well on a small farm, or even just some land with various animals. Hopefully some day we can make that dream come true.  For now, we will continue to enjoy our visits to various farms and other areas that have animals and local produce/goods.  

Thanks, Molly for a super fun day!

Have a wonderful night, sweet friends. 

We'll see you tomorrow.