Lewis and I had no plans the Tuesday-Friday of the week between our Cincinnati weekend and Labor Day weekend, and that felt like a lot of time to fill for some reason. Part of the reason was the weather...the 10-day forecast had every day in the 90s with storm chances (which means nasty humidity). We've stayed pretty busy this summer, with camps and play dates to break up our weeks, but that week was pretty dead.
Anyway, I thought a trip to the zoo would be doable, with the focus being on hitting up the splash park--I chose the day where it was *only* going to be like 92 vs. 95 degrees, and we headed out. Wow, what a difference it makes once school has started--there was hardly anyone there! It might have been the fact that it was nasty hot/humid, too, and field trips haven't really started yet. Anyway, I was able to modify our usual route to make it more pregnant-lady-friendly, and we had a fun and not-too-miserable morning:
Lewis spent some extended time under the misters (in the background)
Watching the elephants do their exercises
Polar bear training
Qannik
She was born the month before Lewis (January 2011).
Ahhh, the splash park! It's been real!
I knew that it would be closed after Labor Day, so I'm glad we got one more visit in for the summer. I was a bit more involved with the water this time aka I was happily walking through the sprinklers, too, instead of trying to stay dry. :) I also went up and stood with Lewis to make sure he was waiting in line for the slides (a concept he's still working on)--he did pretty well with it that day. When he'd get to the front of the line, he'd ask the lifeguard, 'Is it my turn now?' They were so patient with him.
Our maiden voyage on the tram
Part of my strategy for minimal mama-passing-out was to ride the tram from the splash park, up the hill to the top (near the exit). Contractions tend to happen when I'm walking up hills and/or pushing a stroller and/or trying to coax Lewis to walk up a hill, so the tram was a welcomed alternative. :) Lewis seemed to enjoy the ride--he sat very still, holding on the whole time.
:)
Finishing our trip with the carousel
We'd started out the morning on the train, of course. (As if Lewis would let a trip to the zoo go by without riding the train!)
Another day that week, we headed to the Science Center. Our membership had expired, but I decided to go ahead and renew it due to the hot weather situation. Lewis had asked to go there a few times that week, out of the blue--plus, it will be a good place to go over the winter when it's too cold to play outside (especially for a newborn):
Again, it was so empty!
I couldn't believe it--I thought it'd be busier with the hot weather. There were just a handful of other kids, which was a little disappointing for Lew. It was kind of nice to have the place mostly to ourselves, too, though.
This quickly turned ugly
He was watching the water come out like a geyser, and he accidentally pointed it towards himself. The water went down the apron, soaking his shirt and shorts and shoes. :) He tried to dry off a little and was 'all done' with the water table after that.
Sensory stations
We spent quite a bit of time in this area--it was pretty peaceful, playing with different sand-type materials. Of course Lewis found a tractor and carried it around (see right hand, above). :)
So long, ambulance!
A few days after our visit, they were going to start a major renovation of this space. Demolition, I guess I should say--they're getting rid of KidZone entirely (plane, bus, ambulance, space ship, construction site, water table, etc.) and are expanding the Science in Play exhibit into that space. I like SIP, but I hope that they include some of the things that Lewis is into, too (e.g. vehicles). They are doing it in two parts, and I think it's supposed to be finished by next summer.
To end that week, Grandma and Grandpa T. called and asked if they could have Lewis on that Friday, so that kind of saved the week for me. I was running out of things to do to keep us cool! Today, Kevin has taken Lewis to the zoo, and I think (hope) that the weather is supposed to start to cool down some and be more fall-like. Hooray!
No comments:
Post a Comment