A Field Trip/Playdate & BBQ

Have you noticed how busy the end of school can get?  Today was no exception.  A field trip for Katrine and I to Black Creek Pioneer Village.  A playdate adventure for Elspeth (thank you Ashley).  Topped off with a nursery school barbeque.  End result?  Happy kids who have already fallen asleep and a slightly rosey faced mother who got too much sun.

1. Black Creek:

In 15 years of teaching I have been on many field trips.  However, I have never gotten the opportunity to go on one as just a mom.  Today I got the chance.  I put on my mom hat, climbed aboard the bus and went to learn with a group of third graders.  It was a lot of fun because I had none of the stress!  I was warned not to embarass her as we left the house.  I tried to stay good all day but I may have pushed the limits when I gave her a quick hug.

We had a really fun tour guide in the morning.  She explained a lot of things to the kids and worked hard to make history begin to come alive for them.  I think that the highlight of the day for me was lining up with all of the students (and grownups) to learn a pioneer dance.  We all sashed, skipped and turned without crashing into a unruly pile which is pretty darn good.

I also learned how many children Katrine’s age already have their own cell phones and ipads.  It seems like we are behind the times in our house.  It was surprising to see almost 85 – 90% of the kids walking around snapping photos with their phones or using them on the bus.  Some of them aren’t even 9!  Heck, my cell phone is older than some of theirs.  Below is an example ot the type of photo that they were taking about half of the time.

2. Playdate Adventure:

Elspeth was a super happy little girl today because she got to spend the whole day playing and interacting with a close friend.   To top it off, they went swimming!!!   Who wouldn’t enjoy being the center of attention? Apparently she also ate her weight in watermelon today so we know that she is well hydrated.

3.  BBQ:

Our second last BBQ function of the month (the last one is tomorrow).  Yet another round of burgers could have been redundant but it was in actual fact quite fun.  The fact that there were apples hanging from trees, even more watermelon and ice cream cones may have greatly influenced the evening.  As usual, I did not get to eat there but it is always nice to have an excuse to chat with Elspeth’s teachers and her friends parents.

Then the cherry on the cones…we saw a baby bunny on the way home.