The Show

Giving the lamb a bottle

I decided to take the three youngest boys to our local show (fair) this weekend. It only happens once a year and the boys didn't get a chance to go last time, so I thought it would be nice to spend the day there today. Nathan had to work so he wasn't able to come, which was a pity, but it was fun hanging out with the boys and introducing Felix to some things he had never seen before. We got organised early in the morning and got to the show as the gates were opening, so we were able to wander around a lot before it got too crowded. It was quite relaxing. 

"Get me away from that goat!"

Felix had big, wide eyes as soon as we arrived. He looked pretty apprehensive as he looked around and absorbed the sights and sounds. The first things he saw were the carnival rides and the sideshows. There was a lot of colour and a lot of noise. He seemed to be a little overwhelmed by everything and sat very quietly in his pram and rested his head on the side of it. It probably didn't help that it was close to his nap time. After a while Isaiah offered to carry Felix for a while because he thought he might feel a bit happier being held (such a caring big brother).

We headed straight for the shed we knew would have the farm animals in it. We all thought Felix would like to look at them. He loves animals in his books at home, and has posters of animals on his walls. Our house is full of (big) dogs and cats, so we were pretty confident he'd love it. Well...we were wrong! From the first animal to the last, Felix shook his head from side to side, "No!" If Isaiah tried to take him close to the animals, he would try and climb his shoulder to go the other way or reach out to me. If I was holding him, he would reach out to one of the boys to try and escape. The only things he didn't mind getting a bit closer to were the ducks.

The show was exhausting

After a while one of the men, who was looking after the animals, offered for Felix to bottle feed a lamb. He led us in behind a little fence, and Felix and I sat on a hay bale and waited for him to bring the lamb in to us. It was so cute and tiny, and very hungry. I was sure that Felix would be happy to pat this little lamb. Wrong again! He looked horrified when it came close to him and kept trying to climb off my lap. It was like having a toddler and a newborn all over again. I had to concentrate on keeping the toddler still without removing the bottle from the newborn's mouth. It must have looked hilarious! Felix settled after a few minutes and sat looking at the lamb, willing it to hurry up and finish it's milk to he could get out of there. Isaiah did manage to take a couple of good photos that almost look like Felix was enjoying it (don't be deceived!)

Shortly after we looked at the animals, Felix fell asleep for about forty minutes. Isaiah and Aaron had a chance to go on a ride and buy a couple of show bags. I can't believe Felix slept through the pounding music coming from the carnival rides. Yet there he was, mouth hanging open and head on the side, dozing away. When he opened his eyes, he was a completely different Felix. He woke up with a new lease on life and was really happy. There were a lot of "Oooooh's" and lots of pointing as he took in everything around him. He was loving it, and it made being at the show much more fun to know that he was enjoying it too.

Looking at the big Clydesdale horse

While we were on the grass having lunch, we noticed a helicopter taking off and landing nearby. Felix is really fascinated by helicopters at the moment. He has one on his 'I Hear Ewe' app on his ipad, and he loves to press it and hear the sound a helicopter makes. It's one of his favourite things to sign right now too. When we were finished eating, we decided to take Felix right up close to the helicopter and watch it as it took people on short flights. To be honest, I thought it would really scare him because it makes a ton of noise when it takes off, but he couldn't take his eyes off it. Even though there was dust blowing in his face and the sound was almost deafening, he really loved it. It hovered right above our heads before it landed again and Felix thought that was great. I think he would have stayed watching it for ages.

I loved everything about today. The fact that Isaiah and Aaron were happy with their one ride and couple of showbags (which was our agreement before we went). Not once did they ask me to buy them anything else. They happily tagged along with their Mum and baby brother and genuinely enjoyed showing Felix different things. They each took turns carrying him and never complained. I just love them all to bits :)