Outdoor Fun

It has been a very hot summer and I am very pregnant.  The kids are lucky I ever take them outdoors because it has become quite difficult for me to bear.  Although staying inside with the kids all day is also difficult to bear at times, so out we go.

Not too far from our house a new splash park opened up this summer.  We have been there several times as the fountains are very small (not too overwhelming for Will and Eliana who don't particularly like fountains over their head) and there are nice spots to eat.  This particular day we met up with our friends Claire and Lucy.

While we were at the splash park, William kept pulling me over to a drain crying and saying "Water fall down!"  I though he was trying to tell me that the water made him slip and fall down.  I tried to comfort him and see if he had gotten a scrap somewhere.  But he kept saying, "No, water FALL DOWN!"  Then I finally realized that he was upset that the water was going down a drain.  I couldn't help but laugh as I tried to explain to him that it was ok, the water was supposed to go down that drain.  He was like, "Why??"

Eliana and Lucy

William with Lucy

We have also visited the pool may times this summer trying to stay cool.  I think I love it as much as the kids.

On another day we took a trip to the zoo.  This must have been earlier in the summer because Eliana was excited that the Africa exhibit was open again.  We stood in line for a long time to feed the giraffes.  Actually it is kind of a cool story.  We were in line waiting to feed the giraffes, and things were moving well.  All of the sudden, the line stopped moving.  For 20 minutes!  We just stood there, slowing inching forward as more people just gave up and got out of line.  So it turns out the giraffes were not very hungry so the keepers were having a hard time getting the giraffes to come over to the fence to eat.  No one was getting through the line because there were no giraffes to feed.  Eliana was really looking forward to feeding the giraffes and I kept asking her if she wanted to just go and try again some other day.  But no, she was insistent that we stay and feed them.  So after 20 minutes of giraffes just milling about the enclosure and no where near the fence to eat, the kids and I were pretty tired of the waiting.  So I said to Eliana, "Let's pray about this."  So we said a little prayer that God make the giraffes get hungry again.  Just a simple prayer from the heart of a child.  And almost immediately, several giraffes wandered over to the fence again to eat. The line started moving again and our turn came up a few minutes later.  I was a little surprised by how immediately God answered this prayer!  But I was quick to point it out to Eliana - what a simple thing to pray for and God said yes!  I want to take these little opportunities to show the kids that we can pray for anything, God is always listening.  The things you can do at the zoo!

Note how Eliana also has her tongue out, just in case the giraffe forgot how to eat.

Will would hold up the lettuce but then at the last moment when the giraffe's tongue would come near, he would drop the lettuce and pull his hand away.  Which meant Eliana got to feed the giraffe twice as much. 

We also stopped by the petting farm at the zoo.  Eliana ran around from goat to goat but Will just plopped down next to one goat and petted it for a long time.

We ended our trip in the usual way - a ride on the carousel.