This was the first year that we didn't bring the stroller in with us. How nice that Sam was able to walk and keep up with us without needing to be carried or become too cranky to want to keep going on her own two feet. The other thing we did different than in previous years was bring our little portable potty. It folds nicely into a small, compact form and we were easily able to put it in our backpack we used. Now that Sam is potty trained, I felt like she was too innocent yet to experience a port-a-potty. There are many years ahead that I know we will have to tackle that. But for now, this smelly, gross experience was going to have to wait a little longer. When Sam said she had to go, we found a private area, away from the beaten path and set up the little potty. Sam went pretty quickly and all was well. No was traumatized and I loved that she was comfortable enough to go out in the open; usually our portable potty has only been used in the car.
There were two moments that stood out for me yesterday --
1. We waited 30 minutes on Braddock Road with just 1/4 mile to go to turn into the entrance; it was painful sitting in the car not going anywhere. That intersection right before turning has a 4 way stop and it was taking forever waiting for each of the cars to take their turn going through the stop sign. We timed our visit to arrive right when Cox Farms opened. Now we were a good 30 minutes behind that schedule and another 15 minutes of standing in line to purchase tickets. By the time we officially got inside, we were very ready to have some fun. Here's the moment that I will remember fondly: There was still a little bit of a chill in the air (obviously this is way before it hit the high of 80 degrees) and since the crowds were at an all-time high, we planned to go straight to the hay ride and do that first. If anything was going to get backed-up with a long wait, it was going to be this. The wait for the hay ride was minimal. Everyone in my Toppall team was in a great mood, the temp was still on the cool side and we were excited about going on the hay ride. There was a lightness about those first few minutes. No stress, no walking on eggshells waiting for a meltdown, no whining by anyone, no complaints. We were all on the same page. Our visit at Cox Farms was off to a fantastic start.
2. By the time we were ready to eat lunch, the temperature was hot. Our Toppall team doesn't do well in the heat. Plus, being that it is October already, I think we were all a little miffed that it was as hot as it was. It just didn't seem right to be at a Fall Festival with 80 degree temps outside. All the main picnic tables by the place that sells food is out in the full sunlight. This wasn't going to work for our group and I knew the key to us staying beyond lunch would be to find shade to eat. We bought food and made our way to the closest tables that offered shade. There were 4 tables and all were of course, filled with others seeking shade too. The last table in this group was being used by 2 families who came to Cox Farms together. They saw us looking to see if there was any open spaces and instantly started scooting down to make room for us. They had more people at their table than others had at the other tables, but this family went above and beyond being nice and made room for us. We actually had a wonderful time eating our lunch. These two families were super nice and brought us in to their inner circle. They had packed their lunch and had quite the spread. When they saw Sam had some fries, they quickly passed down their bottle of ketchup in case she needed it. When they saw Sam had stuck her arm in the ketchup, wipes got passed down. When they broke out their sweet item to eat after their meal, they sent down two packages of chocolate chip cookies for the kids to have. Plus, we had a nice conversation with them. When Ian was done eating he got up and started playing their 6 year old boy, named Mitchell. It was time filled with unexpected kindness. It made me feel good about the human population. I loved how friendly everyone was. I loved how "easy" it was...again, no stress, no anxiety, no meltdown/temper tantrums, whining or complaining. It was cool in the shade.
At the end of the day, when we were eating dinner and talking about our day, we decided to each say a favorite thing we liked at Cox Farms. I went last and said my favorite thing was sitting next to these 2 families and having a great experience at lunch. Instantly Jeff and Ian agreed and said it was their number two favorite thing. Thus, we then went around our table again listing our 2nd favorite thing. And then our 3rd favorite thing each. Before dinner was over, we exhausted the list of our favorite things and Ian then said his least favorite.....it was the kiddie area. I think the time has come that he has outgrown this area and is ready for more excitement. But how can I resist getting this picture updated? --
That was then (2009):
This is now (2011):
Wagon Ride then (2007):
Wagon Ride now (2011):
We spent about 4 hours at Cox Farms before deciding it was time to leave. I was pleasantly surprised to see that a good number of cars we pulled in to the parking lot with had already left. Us lasting longer than most is something new for this group.
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