The Weekend Adventure Club

[NOTE: This is going to be a huge picture post, so if this is not what you are in the mood for... run! Run fast!!! But if you decide to stick around, don't say I didn't warn you.]


So, you want to be a member, huh?

Seriously thinkin' about joining our Weekend Adventure Club?


Think you've got the chops??

Here are the requirements:
1. Must love the outdoors (even if it's over 95 degrees!)

2. Must enjoy holding (without the benefit of extra support) a 23lb. child for long periods of time while he points you in the direction he would like to go

3. Must enjoy chasing said child while shouting after him to "put that stick DOWN before you poke out an eye!!!" as he runs and trips and runs and trips away from you

4. Must find great pleasure in anchoring said child so that he does not...
......a) Get carried off by a giant Silverback to live in the Gorilla exhibit
......b) Join the Giraffes for lunch (no one likes an uninvited guest!)
......c) Become part of the park's water feature
......d) Cause a train wreck

If you fit all of the above criteria and would still like to join.... Welcome aboard!!

Just so you are up to speed on the club's recent activities, here's a little recap...

A couple weeks ago we went to the Aquarium. (Anecdote and photos here.)

The next week we went to the zoo...

It was 95 degrees. I was a drippy mess. (Sweat dripping from under my sunglasses and down my back and down my front. Ugh!) Dashell loved it!!

Loved the Meerkats!















Loved the Gorillas!

This is Dashy banging on the safety glass, after having spied the giant male Silverback...















And this is what happened after he had been banging for a while...















Ok. So yes, this is a bit of a "reenactment" photo but unfortunately my fabulous photographic skills did not really capture the moment when, in response to Dashy's banging, the male gorilla came running toward the glass pounding his chest. Veeeeery exciting!!

And this was Dashy's response...















What do you think... stunned, pleased or suprised?

Here's Dashell's reaction to the Flamingos...















And here's his reaction to the Giraffes...














You can definitely tell how much more he loved the Giraffes, can't you?? (And if you are thinking to yourself, "Boy, that Gwynn has got a fantastic eye for composition!" I say, "Thank you! I have been working on holding a baby on the railing of an exhibit while trying to photograph them and not loose my grip for a few months now and I think that I finally have it down.")

On our way back to the car, Dashell decided that it was time for a stroll and took off on his own weaving and winding his way around (and sometimes into) the other zoo patrons. Many of which exclaimed loudly that they were very impressed with his downhill skills. (Think skiing... it helps a lot if you are already staggering allll the way to the left and then alllll the way to right!)

After we made it down the hill Dashy decided to round the corner and start back up again. Here he is making sure that he handed me a much prized leaf to safely hold onto for him...



















This past weekend we went to one of our local gardens where they have many ponds and streams inhabited by several varieties of wildlife...















He was so excited, he had to make sure that I saw the fish too...



















And then he had to get down for a closer look...



















After we got done checking out the fish in the stream, we went to check out the fish in the pond...















And the turtles...

































And of course Dashell had to make sure I didn't miss a thing...















After he had successfully distracted me by pointing out one fish, he bent down to try to actually pet another one...















Then he decided that he should make a little shrine so that other travelers might be alerted to the fact that he had been there first...





























He arranged everything very carefully...



















And this was the final result...



















(I wonder if the person who found it had as much appreciation, as his mommy did, for his obvious superior artistic abilities?!)

We then proceeded to a lovely stand of mature trees where Dashy found the stick of his dreams...



















And proceed to run off with it...



















...amid my protests...


(Ok, I admit it, I shouldn't have giggled but the kid freakin' stopped to explain himself, something along the lines of "it is down", before continuing his stick-walk! I know, I know I should have had a better rebuttal.)

Since he had almost scratched his eye out with another stick earlier in the week, he knows now that he is not allowed to walk with sticks. (Unfortunately, as you could see, he only listened to me for a very short period of time.) So I took the stick away, but damn if that kid wasn't willing to fight me for it!



















Finally I was able to distract him and we left The Land of the Stupendous Sticks behind and headed to see the train. "WOW!!" was the only word the boy could seem to utter...





























If I had to rate Dashell's favorite things at this moment in time, the list would look something like this... (but please don't ask me to explain it.)

1. Fire Trucks (although he has only seen one in his life, he hears them all day long because we live two blocks from the firehouse and he loves, LOVES, LOVES his fire truck book.)

2. Horses (same as number one: he's only seen one in his life and I think it's size alone left him speechless)...

































3. Fish (see the upper and lower sections of this post)

4. Trains (once again, hasn't seen very many in his life time but obviously that is not a big determining factor where his likes and dislikes are concerned!), trucks and cars

After I extricated Dashy from the train, so that they could take some nice people for a ride (for which you must be at least 18 months old, which sadly we are not), he spied some lovely flowers...















And decided that he simply must sit amongst them and commune with nature for awhile...















...(or at least until he started to decapitate the flowers and mommy decided that it was time to go before we got kicked out!)



















On our way out of the park Dashy cried, "Agua!" (or, more accurately, he cried, "Aaah-ba!") and darted toward the sound of the water. Soon we found ourselves at yet another pond with, you guessed it, more fish!!















Boy, that kid loves him some fish!















Just as we were turning to leave a little fella decided to come up and say, "hi" and of course Dash couldn't resist pointing him out to mommy...(follow Dashell's finger to find the turtle.)















So, if we haven't deterred you yet, and you're still thinkin' you're interested in joining our Weekend Adventure Club, sign up below and we'll let you know where to meet us next weekend.

Adventures A-hoy!!

(Maybe I just left you a little hint there, or... maybe not. You'll have to wait and find out!)