Deanna Rose

This weekend the weather was gorgeous (we thought, turned out it was HOOOOOOOTTTTT), so we loaded up the Pilot and headed to Overland Park, to the Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead (also discussed here). Lauren had been talking about giving the baby goats a bottle for awhile, and who are we to deny a "feed the baby goat a bottle" craving?

Besides goats, we also saw a buffalo, ducks, chickens, prairie dogs, koi fish, bumblebees, butterflies...the list goes on and on.

(The one above is for you, Aunt Jane.)

Finally, the goats. Lauren fed some baby goats a bottle or two (we're really proud of her, those goats are persistent and she manages to hold on to the bottle and fend off other greedy goats once she's selected her favorite...this is probably because she has to play defense with Stella to get out the door).

Lauren was a little grossed out by this adult goat with the long beard. Me, too, kid. Time to wash your hands.

We also visited the Kanza Indian encampment that's located on the Farmstead, which included a pond of bullfrogs (photo above).

Lest you think that I only post perfect photos of my children, or rather photos of my children being perfect, check out the shot below. It's a fairly new thing. Everything we read says that you're not supposed to tell them that it's wrong, it encourages them to continue, blah blah blah. Ugh. So there you have it, my beautiful little girl with her finger up her nose. Welcome to twodom.

Deanna Rose Farmstead

You all know that we love Lauren, right? What we don't love is the fact that she's recently started waking up around 4:30, then again at 5:30, and is up for the day by 6. Until the very recent past, she'd been sleeping until 7. Let me tell you folks, the weekends are long when they start at 5 or 6am. So what are two sleep-deprived parents of one very hyper young toddler to do? Scrounge to find early morning activities in Kansas City, that's what. This past Sunday that was the Deanna Rose Farmstead, for our first visit. And let me tell you, it's the best deal in town. $2 per person admission and Lauren was free. It's set up to be like a turn of the century barn, with a petting zoo, a dairy barn (with daily milkings), ponds, etc. And it's fantastic. It's a loooong drive from downtown (it's in South Overland Park), but was worth the drive because it kept Lauren busy for awhile.

Aunt Jane, I cannot believe that I didn't get a picture of Lauren with the cows. Actually there was one particular calf that she was crazy about. She went up to him and said, in the sweetest little voice, "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" She also waved at him, and couldn't quite figure out why he wasn't waving back.

So Lauren LOVED the goats. Loved them. And her little friend from school had been at Deanna Rose the weekend before and fed the goats, so we got some goat food to let Lauren feed them. You probably won't be shocked at what happened next: Lauren ate the goat food instead. Disgusting. But she won't eat vegetables?

What are you staring at, goat?

A wink and a smile.

Lauren, who has only been successfully walking for a few days, took off in a dead sprint to get this cat. Sorry Lolo, this is the closest you'll ever get to a cat on my watch.