Day Out with Thomas

For the past year I've wanted to take Connor to the "Day out with Thomas" festival at Edaville.  The problem is, Edaville does not offer this activity everyday.  I started off the day thinking we'd just play in the yard and in the kiddie pool, but something told me to check the Edaville schedule.  Thank God I did - it was now or never.  The only other weekend they were offering it was next weekend, and we'll be away for a wedding, so we packed up our things, bought the tickets online, and hit the road!

Connor was very quiet for the first hour.  He was taking everything in.  He asked for a lollipop when we first got there, and I figured it was a special day so why not.  We bought 3 Dum Dums at 25 cents a pop, so we weren't breaking the bank.  He held onto that lollipop for an hour and a half and wouldn't let go. He finally ate it on the train, but wanted another. I gave him one and he held onto that one until he fell asleep in the car. It was so strange, so in all of the pictures you'll be able to spot the lollipop!


When Connor saw Thomas he lit up. He pointed and kept saying "THOMAS! THOMAS!". It was very cute. We had an hour and a half before our train ride, so we went inside where they had the ball pit, the train sets and a viewing of Thomas. He wasn't that interested in the ball pit because he had to relinquish his lollipop to get in. That didn't last very long. He did, however, like the Cranberry museum where they had the tractors set up. Boys + tractors = fun.

Before our ride we had some lunch. Connor had a very healthy lunch of potato chips and juice (and don't forget the lollipop), but he was an angel in the massive food line, so I let it pass. Actually, he was pretty much an angel all day. The only incident we had was getting him to stop playing with the train set in the gift shop, but once he realized I bought him a Thomas Pez dispenser, he left with no problems.

Our train ride was hot, but fun. I was a bit worried that Connor wouldn't like it. After all, a train from afar is very different than actually being on one, and in December he screamed so much we had to get off the train before we even sat down. Thankfully, he was great. He was sure to remain seated, and every time I stood him up to see something outside, he looked quickly, but would sit down immediately. He loved pointing at the different wooden characters and telling me what they were (a dog, a puppy, etc). He liked the train whistle, too, which was loud and could have been an issue. He really seemed to enjoy his trip, but by 3:00 we were roasting, sweaty and exhausted so we called it a day.


    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

Roger Williams Zoo

Our second adventure of the week was hitting up the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence.  We'd never been before, so both Mommy and Connor were eager to check it out.  The day started off relatively mild, but by the time we got there it had warmed up quite a bit.  That didn't stop Connor!  He was ready to visit the zoo and all the animals.  One of the first exhibits are the elephants.  Connor used to be afraid of elephants, but lately has been requesting the elephant sound Mommy makes, so I think his fear has lapsed.  He loved to watch the elephant spray himself with mud.  Mr. Elephant was pretty close to us as well, so that made it easier to see.  On the way out one came right over to our part of the fence and was eating hay from a raised net.  We could see right into the elephants mouth!  Pretty cool for an almost three-year-old (ok, and for the 34-year-old, too). 

After the elephants we saw the giraffes, including the month-old baby giraffe.  We were able to get a very close-up view by the fence.  One of the giraffes was right next to us grazing.  I tried to get a decent picture of Connor looking at the giraffe, but this lady refused to move so I could get a picture.  She was in her own little world.  Anyway, off we went to see some other animals - the seal, cow, chickens, sheep and goats.  Then my little man started to get grumpy and hungry, so we sat and had some lunch. 

After lunch we went into the Austrasia building.  Yes, that's Austrasia.  Animals who could be found in Australia and/or Asia.  Connor gravitated right toward the snake-necked turtles and camped out.  He was in love.  They would swim by his face, which he loved, and he just watched them, totally engrossed.  Out of an entire zoo of exotic animals, my kid chooses the turtle as his favorite.  Go figure. 

After prodding Connor away from the turtles, we walked around the rest of the zoo, seeing camels, a red panda, a leopard, an anteater, and lots of other animals.  Connor had just about lost his steam when we started to make the trek back to the car and had to be carried the rest of the way.  I don't blame him, I was tired, too, but we had a great time!  We wish summertime could last a little longer so we could do things like this more often, but we'll take what we can get. 

Aquarium

This past week daycare was closed, the house was as clean as it was getting, so I decided Connor and I should take some "field trips" instead of hanging around the house all day.  Our first stop was the Aquarium.  A free admission for Mom with her MTA (teacher's union) card, and kids under 3 are free, so we didn't pay a cent (well, until we got to the parking garage, but that doesn't really count, right?). 

We first watched the seals outside the aquarium.  Connor loved it!  They swam right by him, back and forth.  Upside down, right side up, etc.  Connor kept saying "dolphin! dolphin!".  He's been pretending he's a dolphin lately, so he was happy to see them right here in front of him.  We'll tell him later that they were actually seals.  Besides, I don't think he'll be seeing a dolphin anytime soon, so why break the kid's heart?

Our next stop were the penguins.  I think Connor was a little mesmerized by them.  He was just staring at them and didn't say anything.  We were there early enough that it wasn't too crowded, so he was able to find a spot by the glass and see into the penguin pit without me holding him.  I think he would have stayed there all day. 

Next we started around the big tank and saw Myrtle, the giant sea turtle.  She actually rested right by our window for quite a while.  Her head was on the other side of us, but her body was smack dab in front of us.  Connor liked it, but not as much as I thought he would.  I think it became a rock to him and wasn't too exciting, since she wasn't moving, but Mom sure loved it.  We also caught the sea lion show, but it was hard for Connor to see and harder for Mom to take pictures.  I kept hitting the lady next to me with my lens.  She was very understanding, though, as she had two kids of her own.  She even picked up a lost Goldfish cracker from Connor.  After that was over, we made our way to the top where we saw the big sting ray, or as Connor called it "leaf", but at this point Connor was starting to get hungry, so he wasn't on his best behavior.  We walked back down, had some lunch and left.  Just in time, too - the line to pay for tickets was backed up until the parking garage (which is far for those who aren't familiar with the area).  The bad part about the aquarium is that it's not really built for crowds, and there were crowds trying to get in, so I'm happy we went early and avoided all of that.  Connor had a great time and crashed in the car, which is always a nice thing for Mommy! 

Stay tuned for adventure #2 next!

Maine 2010

I apologize for the delay of our Maine vacation pictures.  For those who don't know, Joey and I are selling our house to move closer to his parents.  Our offer was accepted on a house pretty much in their backyard, so we've been hustling and bustling trying to get this house in shape for sale.  Wish us luck!

Anyway, our Maine vacation was lots of fun, with just about perfect weather.  Connor had a blast.  We always travel with other family members, so Connor's cousins Emma and Kobe were also there.  They were a huge help in keeping Connor entertained so Mommy could enjoy a little lazy time on the beach without chasing a 2-year-old around constantly.  Connor adores both of them, so much so that he'd wake up at 6 a.m. every morning, head to the door and say "Emma!  Emma!".  Needless to say we did not wake up Emma at 6 a.m. just to play with Connor.  We let her sleep.  :)

We took a couple morning walks on the beach and let Connor run.  He loved it.   Hardly anyone around to bump into AND dogs.  He'd run right up to dogs to pet them and say hello to anyone who would listen.  The kid's not shy to say the least. 

For the most part Connor was well behaved at the beach.  We had a few meltdowns, but once we got into a groove they seemed to get better.  We'd play in the tidepools in the morning before the tide came in, then Connor would have a snack and juice and fall asleep.  Then Mommy had the next two hours to relax before Connor would wake up for lunch and afternoon beach time. 

Connor took a little tumble into the waves and was a little leary of them after that, but he still had a great time playing in the water - especially with his cousins.  We wish we could have stayed another week - maybe next year!