Fun at the Fire Station

The day after our trip to the circus, the local fire station had its annual open house. Aiden was with a friend at a Scout-sponsored Pumpkin Fest, so we met up with a friend who is Devin's age.

As soon as we made it across the street, they were off like a shot to go see the fire trucks!


Devin helpfully inspected the wheel to be sure it was on tight!


Then we learned about some of the tools the fire fighters use to open cars and cut down doors if needed.


And the equipment was a big hit, too!




We got to play in the fire struck a bit and even try on the seat belt.




The Randolph Fire Station recently got a new ambulance, so that was next on the list.


Devin looked a little unsure on the gurney...


We then practiced crawling through smoke in the "smoke house" they take to the local schools for experience in what a house full of smoke (or, in this case, water vapor) looks like. Devin was very good about keeping his head down which is why you only see his hat!


After all that, it was time for a piece of pizza followed by a lack-of-sleep-induced meltdown and we headed home for naps! See you next year, RFD!

Our Life is a Circus!

Most days, I feel like I'm the ringmaster of a three-ring circus. (Well, that and the driver of a clown car.) But this last week, I won tickets to a real circus, and we took the two older kids to their first ever visit to the "greatest show on earth!"

Because I won the tickets through one of the other elementary schools in town, our tickets included great seats in the "club" section as well as a "private" meet-and-greet before the show. While it meant arriving at the circus TWO hours early, the meet-and-greet was worth it as it gave the kids a chance to see some of the performers up close before the show began. Aiden was a little uncertain about the jugglers and other performers, but Devin was more than excited for his "photo op."



Girls in capes?!? Devin was all in!


After our photo op, we got to go down on the circus floor for the pre-show. Aiden was still a little uncertain, but this clown/juggler was crafty and jumped down next to him for a photo!


Then we saw some neat animal tricks and some acrobatics.






After a quick "dance party," we grabbed some clown noses and headed up to our seats for the show.






The elephants were some of our favorites!


Second favorite for the night were the crazy motorcycles!
(This may not seem all that amazing, but it is actually FIVE motorcycles in a cage!)


This video only shows five motorcycles in the cage at once because I was too fascinated to shoot video by the time they added EIGHT!


But, the creme de la creme, was the fire-breathing dragon at the end!






Many thanks to Grandma Zafft for watching Malcolm at home so that we didn't have to worry about the late night or loud sounds (not to mention, 15-month-olds aren't too excited about sitting for any length of time).

We had a blast!

Slacker

slacker (noun) - one who deliberately avoids work or duty

Every once in a while, my blog goes unattended. However, I usually have a good reason for my slacking. This time it's been a crazy, crazy semester full of work, kids going to school, and a new baby. So, I'm going to attempt to make up for some missing information in one post! (I know you're excited.)

We last left off Aiden's birthday and a promise of more pictures. Well, we took him to Six Flags with a few friends and our babysitter, Rachael, who has since left us to go to BYU Idaho (the traitor).




After that, we had the first day of First Grade for Aiden, and the first day of Preschool for Devin.




After that, G&G Wrz visited and we spent Gramma Wrz's 60th birthday in Falmouth exploring Wood Hole and Martha's Vineyard.








Since then, we've had Halloween and some good-natured fun at home.




Malcolm is finally growing, but I will create a post just for him (you're welcome, Dad) so that he isn't slighted any.

My apologies for the delay in posting all of this. I'd say it won't happen again, but then I would be lying!

Six Flags!

The week after school got out, we grabbed our neighbor, Johanna, and our favorite babysitter, Rachael, and headed for Six Flags New England for some fun in the sun. The weather was perfect, and the crowds weren't too bad.

Because of a few delays, we got to the water park just in time for lunch. So we started out with a (very expensive) snack!


Then we headed for the water! These were the first real water slides the kids had been on, so there was a little trepidation.


But Devin jumped right into the wading pools.




Our babysitter was a life saver as most of these attractions are a bit much when you're 9 months pregnant.


The kids had a BLAST!




One of the favorite attractions for all three was the junior wave pool...






And the water spouts.






We finally convinced them to try the big wave pool, too.






After the water park, we tried out some rides.






It was a great day, and we plan to go back to celebrate Aiden's birthday there next month!