The Fall season for us this year has meant the end of football and the beginning of softball. Braden was a lineman and he did pretty well. He played a lot during the games and really came out of his shell. Braden was pretty sad when the season ended. I feel like we have FINALLY found a sport that he likes so we were pretty sad when it ended. He has grown up so much in the last year and as a Mom, I just want it to slow down! I do enjoy his new found independence, though! Coming up soon, we have a banquet so that will be exciting to get all of the boys together again! Sophia has gotten much more agile and athletic this year. Her hitting has improved a ton and she made it onto the Marshall SheCats traveling softball team. This team has had much success in Marshall through the years and we are pretty stoked that she made it on the team. It will be expensive but well worth it. Yesterday, we finished our last tournament. The girls dressed up as Dalmatians and were pretty stinking cute!
My Vacation times were just set for next year. I took two weeks for my kids' spring break and two weeks in July. Unfortunately, Brad and I will probably not be able to take a week vacation for just us this year like we had originally planned. We wanted to try to go to either Dominica or St. Martin. We MAY be able to squeeze a week in at the end of the year but it will depend on work. It sucks, but the kids are more important. We are planning a trip to Disney the end of July. We would LOVE to take the kids and we want them to have the experience of going. I am already starting to plan it and I am pretty sure we will do 2-3 days at Universal Studios and at least 4 days at Disney. Of course, we will work some sort of beach vacation in, so I'm planning on St. Augustine for a few days. I did some research and I am pretty sure there will be some sea glass waiting to be found on some of their beaches! I'm also thinking the bioluminescent kayak tour on Indian River Lagoon. I think the kids would be mesmerized. I know I was when we got to do the bio bay in Vieques! Overall, I'm excited to share my planning with everyone in the months to come, so get ready for loads of Disney!
This is a selfie from the bridge that takes you into the park. They had a nice creek under the bridge.
Grant's Farm was packed full of so much fun, history, and surprises. We found out about this place from a fellow cheer mom and when I looked it up, I saw that it wasn't that far away from where we were staying and we could make a quick trip from there, to the zoo later in the afternoon. I also noticed from their website that it was free. The only thing you have to pay for is your car, no matter how many passengers. That fee was $12 per vehicle and they accept debit cards. We got there about 15 minutes after it opened and the road leading to the park was packed. I knew as soon as we pulled up that we should have been there well before it opened and that it was a very popular attraction. There is a park across from the farm. Many people were parking and walking in. It's quite a long walk but if you want to get some steps in, then there ya go! It took us about 30 minutes to actually pay and park. We were getting a little nervous about this. We wondered how packed it would be once inside. Once we got parked and got our sunscreen on, we headed to the line. It was a huge line up to the entrance. There are porta-potties and it wasn't a problem to get out of line and have your significant other wait for you. Of course, the kids had to go. We waited about 30 minutes. Once we got close to the front, they had a photographer take a family picture for us. We are always a sucker for these, so more about them later. When we finally got to the front, we boarded a tram. The tram took off and we went through a large metal gate. Inside the gate were red deer, buffalo, elk, and many other grazing animals. The kids loved being in the middle of them. We got a brief history lesson about President Grant and the Busch/Budweiser Corporation and how they are tied in together. We caught a glimpse of the mansion, which was magnificent. I suggest googling it so you can see what I am talking about. The tram dropped us off at the park after a 15 minute ride through the huge pastures. We didn't get any pictures while on the tram. We were too busy checking out the animals and didn't want to miss any of it.
Once at the park, we bought the kids a $5 voucher a piece. This ticket included a ride on the carousel, 2 baby goat milk bottles, and a snow cone. We went out to see all the animals this park had to offer. We saw camels, horses, goats, elephants, many types of birds, and much more. The parrots were probably my favorite. We got a pretty good video of the parrot shenanigans. Enjoy!!!
The snow cones were great and the carousel was alright. The goat bottles should have been done as soon as we got the vouchers. By the time we went through the park and got the bottles, the goats were basically passed out in milk comas. We have goats so this part of the park was not as exciting for us, but come on...Baby goats are always cute and entertaining no matter what!
Sophia found a hungry baby!
Milk Comas
Braden finally got one to try some of the bottle
In the food area, there is plenty of little souvenirs, food, and the Clydesdale stalls along with some historical information. Did I mention the free beer? Brad didn't have anything to drink and I only had one. I tried their new rootbeer, which was actually pretty tasty. You see, I'm an extremely picky drinker. I like on the rocks and something fruity where I can't taste too much alcohol.
After we got done roaming around for a bit longer, we got back on the tram and made our way to the front. We purchased our picture, which was $20 and headed toward our car. Next to the parking lot is the Clydesdale pastures. We walked through there and checked them out while they were grazing. We also snapped a picture of the kiddos.
Overall, this is a relatively cheap attraction with a lot to do in a few hours. I would think that it could be done in about three or so hours and you would have seen everything. If you are there for the free beer, then drink up and enjoy for a few more hours :) I will post some random photos below...
XOXO...Becky
Free Carousel Ride...A bit old for it, but who cares :) Are we ever too old?
They were a little scared to turn their heads for me to get this picture HAHAHAHAHAHA
