What a Corn Dawg!

This past weekend we visited a local ‘fun park’.  This was my first time to Corn Dawgs…but I assure you, it won’t be my last.  It.  was.  awesome.

Oh so much fun.  Or maybe it was just the company….it was us – my boyfriend and baby – and my family – mom (little Debbie for those newbies), my sister Norn (whose actual name is Lori), her son Cole Baby (and yes, I always call him that), Norn’s ‘special friend’ Andrew (let’s call him Boots McGee) and my dad – who is too cool for a nickname and any photos…so don’t get your hopes up.

The park actually wasn’t too outrageously priced…$12 for an adult.  What am I saying?  I have no idea if that is too much or not.  I just know that online every other place was more expensive.  When we got there it was awesome weather and they had PLENTY of fun games.  There were mazes for adults, ringtoss, swings, haybales to climb all over and giant slides to zoom down.  They had some things (like the ziplines that cost an extra buck or two) but for the most part everything was included.  

  

The one game that we did pay an extra buck to play was the apple launcher.  Seriously why do I not own one of these in my back yard?!  Oh right…because I would need a giant billboard to launch the apples at to see the fruit explode into a bazillion pieces.  So cool.  

I think our favorite part was the free petting zoo.  They had bunnies and llamas and donkeys and pigs and goats. 

Our favorite was the goats. 

We could have sat there with those billies playin the role of goat-petter all day. 

Oh and did I mention that they were hungry?  Cause they were.  I have never captured my mother laughing like this photo.  It’s brilliant.  Both sets of teeth laughter.  The nose wrinkle laughter.  All because of that crazy goat.  Will’s expression is also priceless.  Such a serious little guy.  And yes, his patchy little head of hair is chestnut colored.  Sometimes red.  We don’t know how that happened.  He’s my very serious redheaded child.  Never would have guessed that one. 

They also had giant cutouts.  I love cutouts.  There is very little in this world that is more fun to me than a cutout.  This must be where my weird homeschoolyness pops into my life….my adoration for a piece of plywood with a hole for your head.  It’s so simple yet such a joy in my life. 

They also had several corn mazes.  We did the kiddie one and let Cole Baby lead the way.  It’s been a while since we were in a corn maze…and I now know that I can live my whole life and not miss corn mazes. 

One thing that really got Will excited was the corn box.  It was like a giant sandbox except filled with corn.  This is actually the first time I had ever seen one of these and now want one in my back yard. 

  

Cole Baby loved it too.  We buried him.  Note the corn kernels in his right ear

They also had this whole under 6 section.  It alone was worth the $12.  They had BABY ziplines. 

Amazing.  I took pictures of how it was constructed.  I want one in our yard pronto.  Will doesn’t look too excited here.  But he skipped both his naps that day…so I am pleased that he wasn’t screaming like a horror movie victim at this point. 

The other fun part of the under 6 section was the theme…farmyard.  They had a John Deere tractor in the playground… 

And backwards tricycles…backward John Deere tricycles.

And buried tires…see it in the background?  And tons of other fun barnyard stuff.  I could have played there all day. Makes me wonder why I don’t have visit the park more often…

Not to go on a completely different tangent but do you see Will’s pacifier?  That’s it.  That’s our life.  Keeping track of that singular two-inch diameter item.  We got it at the hospital.  I have scoured the web looking for the EXACT same paci…you know to use as an emergency paci just in case, God forbid, we lose this one.  No luck.  Similar ones are out there…but our baby spits them out.  He’s very discerning.  He’s one discerning serious redhead.  He’s nothing like me.  And I am thisclose to offering a hospital nurse hard core cash for an extra one. 

Also, notice his belt.  It’s actually a shoelace.  WHY THE HECK DO BABY CLOTHING STORES PUT BELT LOOPS ON ALL THEIR PANTS IF THEY DON’T SELL INFANT BELTS?!?!?  Small things like this drive me insane.  Also what drives me batty is when the Baby Gap sales lady looks at me like I am a nutjob when I ask for an infant belt.  YOU SELL DISTRESSED INFANT JEANS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!       

Now that I am done yelling at the Baby Gap people, let’s look at some random shots of the day.  This is what I look like at every family get-together.  I have the camera stuck to my face and I am all up in people’s personal space.   

Jeremy, the Tinkler and Mr. Corny.  My boyfriend is so cute. Yes honey…I am talking about you.

We snagged a family photo.  I love that my sister can take a photo.  All I gotta do is set things up for her the way I like it and she always presses the trigger at the right moment.  And it’s in focus.  It’s trifling but I love that about her. 

I also love her for loving my baby.  She does too.  A lot.  She is a great mom to Cole and a loving Aunt to Will.  Every Thursday we have family dinner night and ”Momma-sissy” ends up fighting with Little Debbie over holding him.  Norn literally will ‘fly’ him around the house to his little hearts content. 

Plus…she’s so beautiful.  She looks like a boot model here, doesn’t she?  No offense Boots McGee but she could do better than you.  She could do better than all of us.  In fact, there is no one out there that is good enough to deserve her.  I don’t deserve her as a sister.  She’s that amazing. 

All in all, it was a really fun day.  Like the funnest family day I have had in a really long time.  I can’t wait till next year to do it again. 

 

Oh and did I mention that there was a pumpkin patch?  On the way out the door, we stopped in and did an impromptu photoshoot of Will.  We had already visited our own local church pumpkin patch (more on that later) so we didn’t buy anything but I absolutely love these photos.  Will’s first Halloween.  Definitely scrapbook worthy. 

So that’s one long recap of one of our fall celebration events…more to come, promise.  Afterall…it is Spooktacular week