...The Fair is in Town

(2006 Fair visit -- 1, One year old child
and 1 stroller)

Marty grew up in Claremont just a stone's throw from the annual L.A County fair. And subsequently he has fond memories of hanging out there with mischievous friends and slingin' burgers in one of the hundreds of grease stands. So last summer he convinced me that going to the fair would be a fun family outing. Minus the 100 degree heat and my pregnancy induced nausea he was right and we had a great time with Jayden.

This year we made the hour drive again to witness our daughter's excitement over all things farm animals, and to spend a day with Uncle Mike. The weather was perfectly warm with an occasional cool breeze allowing us to delightfully inch our way through the mass of families and strollers to peer at every cow, horse, pig, bunny and chicken with glee.

(2007 Fair visit -one 23 month old, one 5 month old, 1 double stroller, 1 backpack, 1 Bjorn)

And of course part of the enjoyment of any Fair is indulging in a bit of gluttony. I managed to enact some self-control and shared an ear of corn with Jayden (it had been dipped in a vat of liquid butter however), while Marty and Mike ate some kind of BBQ sandwich monstrosity. Three hours later we were full and fun-ed-out. We definitely need 365 days before the mood to feast at the fair will strike again.

(Swarms of people lining up for a little Deep Fried Sin.)

....We went on a walk with Shelby and Baby Charlotte

Any day spent with Shelby is a great day. And today was particularly fab because we walked from her house to It's A Grind for some caffeine therapy. Jayden LOVES playing with her 3 kids (Abby 6 , Nate 4, Charlotte 6mos) and their dog Hezzie. So much so that her role playing at home often involves calling Shelby on her toy phone and chatting with Nate and Abby.
Shelby is an awesome encouragement to me spiritually and physically -- lately she's been kickin' my butt with her Plyometrics and Core workouts (she is a personal trainer and teaches Pilates at a few local gyms). After our killer walk we hung out a bit at her house so that Zachary and Charlotte could spend some time hangin' out. Zachary absolutely lights up at the sight of her - it is going to be such fun watching the 2 of them develop a sweet friendship.

...We went to Kids Club

Every Thursday morning at the Thousand Oaks mall dozens of women and their pint-sized tots gather for an hour of sing-song mayhem. Today we met up with our friends Lisa, Luke and Ryan to participate in the entertainment. Jayden and Luke were both tentative at first to join in the song and dance, but soon enough they were meandering through the crowd and stomping their feet. Lisa and I laughed at our toddlers while chating and holding our squirmy babies. Then we headed to La Salsa for lunch. Jayden and Luke ran with glee to the resteraunt, yards ahead of our strollers. We managed to scarf down our food before Luke slipped on some water, hitting his little head and unleashing the typical toddler melt-down. We always enjoy our times together no matter the amount of time, the number of giggles or tantrums. Next week we will try the park though.