Grant's Farm

We woke up this morning and headed to the hotel lobby to eat breakfast. They had eggs, sausage, biscuits, gravy, waffles, cereal, and a lot more! After breakfast, we went back to the room to get ready for the day and pack up. We really liked the hotel and we may try to stay there the next time we visit St. Louis.
Our plan was to go to Grant's Farm. I went there a long time ago but honestly my only memory of it was that a girl was bitten by a Clydesdale horse. It was a really neat. First we went to the Clydesdale stables and then we headed to the rest of the farm. We didn't realize that you had to take a tram from the front entrance to the rest of the farm. I was excited for the kids to ride on something like this for the first time, but I was worried about the stroller situation. Luckily, it wasn't a big deal at all and they loaded the stroller on for you in a different part. On the way in, they had a guide telling you about the animals and other sites. We literally drove through where the animals live and they were all around us. We saw bison, cattle, deer, goats, and birds. Once at the farm, we saw an elephant show, looked at animals, ate lunch, and got some free beer samples. We left around noon and headed home. Both kids were passed out and we had done pretty much everything we could do. We will have to visit in a few years because then the kids will be big enough to feed the animals. Macie could have technically done it now, but she didn't want any part of touching the animals. She would look, but not touch!
We were back in Evansville around 4. Even though it was a short trip, it was a great one. We love St. Louis and I'm glad that we were able to take Gavin there for the first time. I'm sure in a year or so we will be back!

We had to take a picture of Matt. He stars in the commercials and is the horse who kicked the football. There was a tour guide there and he made sure to tell us that Matt was undefeated!
This baby was small compared to the full grown Clydesdales. He was the size of an average horse!
Macie and Daddy on the tram

Mommy and Gavin on the tram

Bison

Brian couldn't believe how big this turtle was

Macie loved the elephant show. She kept making elephant noise the whole time. She thought it was so cool when the elephant sprayed water everywhere. She even clapped when the crowd clapped. It was so cute!

Watching the elephant show

Best Western St. Louis Inn

During lunch, Brian called to see if our room would be ready early. We were thrilled that it was because we wanted get to the room so that Macie could nap and then we could go swimming. This weekend was full of firsts for the kids. They hadn't ever stayed in a hotel. Once we got to the hotel we were very happy with our room and Macie ran around checking everything out. We had a king suite with a fridge and microwave in our room. We unpacked everything and set up Macie's pack-n-play. Of course, she wouldn't sleep so we decided to head to the pool. They had a very nice indoor pool with a 1 1/2 foot, 2, foot, 3 foot, and a deeper section. Perfect for kids! Besides a scare in the kiddie pool, Macie and Gavin both loved the water. It was Gavin's first time swimming. Brian took both kids into the deeper water with him and they had so much fun. After swimming, we all headed back to the room to nap. Macie had a hard time falling asleep, but she eventually did for a short nap. After naps, we got ready for dinner. We ate at Casa Gallardos. It was very good. Once back at the hotel, we got into our pjs and all four of us cuddled in bed and watched tv. Macie didn't have as much trouble falling to sleep once we put her to bed this time. I think she was wiped out from the day. After she was asleep, Brian went and swam for a bit more. We were in bed early and I conked out. What a great day!!

The cutest luggage I've ever seen!

The water was a bit cold, but Gavin didn't seem to mind!

Macie wanted to hold Gavin. They looked so cute in their matching pjs!

St. Louis Trip

Yesterday morning, we got up bright and early and headed to St. Louis for a mini-vacation. We left the house around 4:45. We planned it perfectly so that I could feed Gavin before we left in the morning and then he wouldn't need to eat again until we got there. We only made one quick stop to get some free drinks and a snack at a Pilot travel center and then we were on our way. The kids did great in the car. Gavin slept the whole way and Macie watched Mickey Mouse and slept some. Our plan was to go to the zoo first. We wanted to be there when it opened because the first hour the zoo is open, several things are free and we wanted to take advantage of it. We parked the car around 7:30 but we had plenty to do before we could go inside. We had to feed both kids breakfast, change diapers, lather the kids in sunscreen, and load the stroller. The weather was perfect. The high for the day was only 84, so it was cooler and breezy when we got there. We went straight for the carousel. Macie hadn't ever done anything like that and I was so excited to take her on it. She was excited too...until it started moving. She kept saying "no, no, no" over and over until I held her. I even convinced her to get on another animal but she wasn't having it. Oh well...maybe next time! That is exactly why I didn't want to pay for it! The next thing we did was go to the Children's zoo. It was a lot of fun, but once again not something I would pay for at this point. With the kids being so small, you never know if they will enjoy it or not so if it's free, you can't be disappointed. We made sure we hit all of the big animals that we knew Macie would love before she fell asleep. She was in awe of the elephants and penguins. We ate lunch at the zoo and stayed until around 11:30. We didn't see every single animal, but we were very content with what we did. Gavin even got out and looked at some animals. It was his first trip to a zoo. Our day was off to a great start!!!

Gavin had to find some way to occupy himself while Macie rode the Carousel! Next year, we will take him on it too!

I LOVE this picture!!!!!

In the children's zoo, turtles and chickens were just walking around freely. Macie loved to look at them, but she wanted nothing to do with petting them!

Macie is as tall as a koala and Daddy is a little bit taller than a llama.

CHEESE!

Macie loved the penguins

Checking out the chimps

"I see you back there, Mommy!"

5 Months Old!!

Gavin is 5 months old today! Time has flown by! He is such an important part of our family. I can't imagine life without him! Here are some highlights of the last month:

• He is still a laid back kid, although he is wanting more and more attention. He is awake for longer stretches and watches what is going on around him. He especially loves to watch and "talk" to Macie!
• He eats cereal and fruit in the morning and veggies at night. So far he has tried peas, carrots, butternut squash, green beans, sweet potatoes, bananas, peaches, applesauce, and pears. He loves them all. Let's be honest...the kid loves to eat! He is still nursing and eats every 3 hours or so.
• He loves to lay on the floor and kick and squirm. He rolls up on his side, but he isn't' actually rolling over yet. Most of the time he would rather be on the floor or ground than be held. He wants you to talk to him though!
• He still doesn't have a lot of hair but he is getting more and more each day. It is getting thicker and staying brown. We still can't quite tell what color his eyes are. They are blue with hints of gray and brown in them.
• He plays with his taggies and links. He also grabs at the fish on the floor mat and makes the music go off.
• He made his first road trip to see Dr. Haggstrom. He will be going to see her every 6 months for a while. Luckily, he does pretty well in the car!
• He is getting so strong. He can sit for a few seconds but it won't be long before he is sitting up on his own!
• He continues to be the best addition to our family we could ever ask for!!!