Old MacDonald has a farm.... and so does Sonja for a day!!!!!

YEEEE HAAAWWW!!!!! Sonja the kid, sidekick Max, along with Sonja's little cowpoke friends had a blast at Sonja's second birthday celebration at Old MacDonalds farm! The farm has a petting zoo, bounce house, horse and hayrides, dairy farm and mini put for kids to enjoy. They also have a snack bar that serves pizza, burgers and hotdogs along with other short order menu items.
The day started out with all of the little cowgirls and boys getting a hat and bandana to wear to help set the mood for the days adventures.
First stop for all of the cowpokes was the bounce house. They LOVED it! It was a bounce house with a climbing wall and a slide, all kid sized. All of the kiddies were giggling, bouncing, climbing and sliding until they were out of breath. As soon as they would catch their breath, they would be right at it again. Things were so crazy I was concerned that someone was going to get hurt but fortunately no injuries were reported!

Below are pictures of her happy day!!!

HOWDY PARTNER!!! Sonja and Max doing there best cowboy walk!!!

The cutest little cowboy I've ever seen!!!!!

Happy little cowboy

EXTREME CLOSE-UP

"Hey! Did you see this guy? He's trying to eat my shirt!"

Hannah with sister Gracie (L), Drew (R) and Grandma Audrey waiting their turn to ride the horse.

BFF Maiya and Mommy Lisa

Sonja and I. The birthday girl LOVES horses and loves riding them. Sonja has expressed an interest in horse riding so I will start her and Max in lessons as soon as they are able to do so. There are a few very good riding academies in the area and will even let you board your own horse there if you like for a reasonable fee.

Martial arts is in Sonja's near future. She absolutely loves to play "karate" with us. We are looking into enrolling her in our local Kai Sho Do classes. They usually allow children 4 years and up to join. I was told by the Canton instructor that she can go to a few classes and see if she has the ability to stay with it. If she likes it and I think she's has the capability to stay somewhat focused, I will keep her in it. Otherwise, I'll bring her back next year. We'll just have to wait and see. The timing of the classes are good too because it won't interfere with her dance class. Hopefully I can bring her next week to try it. She loves to act out the scenes from Mulan 1 and 2 and has a crush on Chang (Mulan's boyfriend/husband)! I also think it's a good thing to teach a girl how to defend herself in this day and age. I think that if anyone tries to bully her or Max because of there ethnicity etc., they will be better able to defend themselves. Max will be enrolled next year or the year after.

Max and Grandma. Max rides like an ol' pro even tho he has only been on a horse three times.

Cousin Luci with Daddy Dean. BTW Deano, I love the shirt!!! :-)

Cousin Drew with Grandma

Maxie boy roaming the range.

My beautiful sister Vicky and her beautiful little girl, my niece, Ana. Vicky looks better than most women half her age. YOU GO GIRL!!!!!!

The kids wanted to feed the chickens in the chicken coup. Sonja thought they might like to have a little popcorn for a treat!

L to R Lizzy, Sonja, Uncle Dean, cousin Drew, Grandma Audrey, cousin Luci, Maxie boy, BFF's Gracie and Hannah with Mommy Heather.

Our little peanuts

Going for a hayride.

The hayride's were said to depart at a specific time so we all waited at the designated area as instructed. After waiting for a little while, we saw a tractor pulling another hay wagon. we were told that it "broke down" and they were going to get another hay wagon. After waiting (which seemed like forever), another hay wagon arrived and everyone got on. They had corn and hay for the kids to feed the animals. We were told to save the corn for the pigs and the hay for the cows. Well.... almost as soon as the corn was given to the kids they all started to shuck it. Corn silk and shucks everywhere! They seemed to be having fun just shucking the corn! Anyways.... they all were able to feed the 1000 lb pigs and the baby piglets, cows and bigger goats.

L to R Forever friends Maiya and Sophie (sitting on Mommy Barbs lap), Shelby, Matt (Sophie and Shelby's daddy with the hat obscuring his face) Billy with Ana on his lap, my gorgeous sister Vicky, Grandma Audrey and Uncle Dean. Also present were our friends and travel mates Lisa and Scott, Ronna, Dave and Sydney. My best friend Heather and her children Lizzy, Gracie and Hannah hung out in the back of the hay wagon with Dan, Sonja, Max and myself. It was a little cramped but no one complained about it. I think the kids having fun out weighed any inconvenience anyone may have experienced!

I LOVE this little guy!!!! He looks so cute scratching an itch on the post. I don't know why but I've always had a thing for goats. I think it's because of their rowdy, feisty, take no crap attitude.

Bessie and the girls getting some treats from the kids.

YIKES!!! Looks painful but she was o.k. Everyone ended up in a big pile at the bottom of the slide.

WATCH OUT!!!! Lizzy, Max and Sonja having fun on the slide. Grace seen in the corner trying to avoid a collision
The kids took a break from the action with some pizza, veggies and birthday cake. The cake was decorated with play horses, fencing and trees in a pasture scenery. Everyone was also given a barnyard goody box filled with candy, ink stamps, finger puppets, animal figures, stickers and a little stuffed animal, all in the farm/cowboy theme.

Uncle Dean getting in the mood and being silly in the trolley. In the background, Billy, Vicky, Chase and Ana. Next to Dean is my good friend Heather and her cutie patootees Grace and Hannah (my god daughter!).

The day was topped off by a visit to the dairy farm. The kids were all plugging their noses and giggling about the smell of the barn. I guess they must equate it with the humor they find with farting and other bodily functions....all funny stuff for 2 and 3 year olds!

The girls

This is a calf that we were told was just hours old!!! You can see her coat is still wet from birth.

At the end of the tour, the kids were given coloring books to remember their day.

It was a fun day for the kids and everyone certainly seemed to enjoy themselves. I loved watching all of them play and laugh. Sonja still talks about her birthday and with Max's birthday coming very soon, she has started saying "my birthday coming again too".

Max is having a pirate themed party so it should be interesting! Stay tuned!!!

YIPPEEEE!!!!!!! SONJA TURNS THREE!!!!!

Queen Sonja holding court in her throne on her most royal birthday!!!!!!
In September Sonja turned three years old! To talk to her, and in her mannerisms, one would think she's 30! She's like an old soul trapped in a three year old body!
She is also very bright, learns quickly, but is....oh....shall I say.....STRONG WILLED. She was very early (18 to 20 months)knowing her colors, shapes and knowing each sound animals make. At two she started taking an interest in puzzles, doing simple ones and now can master the 35 piece puzzles herself. She can also do a 50 piece with help.
She has, and remains to be, fasinated with the printed word. She asks a million times a day...."Mommy, what does that say?" pointing to the butter container, puzzle box, computer......anything that has words. She will sit with a book and pretend to read it to Max. It is soooo cute. Max usually just sits there and listens to the "story" but sometimes he decides he wants to get in on the action by turning the pages and adding his two cents worth. This usually results in a little tiff but soon, all is forgiven and they are back to being all lovey.
Below is a few pics from her birthday party at home.

Max, of course, enjoying his cake. I've never seen a kid that loves his food soooo much.

Sonja, Max and Grandpa eagerly anticipate tasting Sonja's yummy cake!!!

Sonja's crush Chase and his daddy Billy. Sonja absolutely LOVES Chase.

"Lucky Smiles" Day at the zoo

On August 25th, we attended the Lucky Smiles Day at the zoo. Lucky Smiles is a group of people and families affected by Craniofacial disorders. This support group was founded by a woman, Kelly Luckey, who's son Cody, was born with CL/CP. She has done a great deal to help people with craniofacial disorders and their families get information, provide lists of doctors that specialize in Craniofacial disorders and lobby the government to push for better insurance coverage for those affected. I became a member and also a pathfinder. A Pathfinder is a person who would assist another in finding information and to support other families new to the craniofacial disorders world.
The day was filled with fun and the kids loved the animals. It was also good for Max and Sonja to see other children with CL/CP.
The Amazon parrot above was the first animal we had seen..... and guess what his name was....MAX!
Below is a few pictures of the day.

Sonja, Max and Daddy standing in front of the giant aquarium.

Max and Sonja looking at the penguins. Sonja wanted sooooo badly to pet the penguins. Sonja LOVES penguins. This little penguin kept swimming really close to the glass, almost as if he wanted to get petted too!

Little penguin's Max and Sonja

Sonja saw the tigers and wanted to pet them too!!!!! We told her that they are not like on the cartoons and would bite her...... so she decided she would settle for this one

I thought I would give Sonja and Max some lesson's on milking a cow complete with the ol squirt the "milk" in the face trick. They kept wanting me to do it to them again, .........kids.

This, as you can see, is a wooden cow and inside is a water bladder with tubing going down to the teet. Sonja and Max did succeed at doing it after a few tries.

Sonja fine tuning her "milking" the goat skills.

Max and Sonja looking at a huge saltwater aquarium.

What are you thinking about Sonja? Possibly being a mermaid? :-)

After visiting with all of the zoo animals, we were talking with Kelly and it started to downpour. The kids....being kids........ headed right out into the pouring rain.

Yeah!!!!!! Puddles!!!!!!!

Max soaking wet and lovin' it!

Max, Sonja, Cody and his little brother playing in the puddles after the rain.

It was a great day.

We later found out that Max and Sonja's pictures were featured on the website!! Pretty cool.

Summer Fun!!!!

In August we went to Pirates weekend. It is a week filled with activities such as treasure hunts for kids, reenactments of local pirate history, parades and much more. I have always enjoyed going and Dan and I thought we would bring the kids up. Well....THEY LOVED IT!!!! Sonja was REALLY into it! She acted like a pirate, talked like a pirate and dressed like a pirate too. Max had the ol' ARRGGHHH done pat. There were locals including a family friend, Alex Moshier, (who plays Capt. Bill Johnson during the events), that dress up and give out "booty" to people on the street and also participate in Street theater. We didn't stay too late in the evening because it tends to get a little rowdy at night. Above is a picture of a pirate skiff that is used during the reenactment.

Sonja and I on the "pirate" skiff. Sonja was very interested in the ship and especially the galley. They have multiple bunks for the kids that partake in an on board learning experience where they travel and live on the skiff. The kids do all of the duties including cooking, navigating, cleaning. They haven't running water so they keep clean by taking a dip in whatever body of water they may be traveling in.... very cool.

The bathing beauties as pirates complete with eye patches, loot, hats, compass AND don't forget the hook hand!!