Labor Day Weekend

With everything that's been going on this summer, we haven't really had much chance for a vacation of any sort. The three-day Labor Day weekend gave us a good chance to get out a little and do a few activities for our very nice kids.


Before we get into the holiday weekend rundown, here's a picture of Owen imitating an ad he saw in his mom's magazine. She was looking through it when he was having a snack. After showing him the picture, he was quickly up out of his chair and rummaging through the cabinet.


It's nice when you don't have to stage these things.

Day 1: Saturday -- Tanners Orchard

We drove up to Tanners Orchard on Saturday. A family favorite destination, Tanners has all sorts of fun activities for kids, terrific fresh apples and baked goods, and is always a good time.

Owen rode a pony (Maya would have nothing to do with them), we played on the hay bales, admired the flowers, and panned for precious stones.

The best part of the day, though, was the tractor ride. The kids got into their cider barrel cars and were pulled through the orchard. Maya and Owen rode together. Owen proudly steered his car the same directions the driver took. Meanwhile, Maya waved and waved at anyone who would look her way. (They're in the last populated car of the train.)

Day 2: Sunday - Nana and Grandpas

Then it was off to Nana and Grandpas. Nana begins her chemo and radiation treatments, so it was nice to squeeze in an extra visit. We had a wonderful time playing in the park and around the house, reading books and cheering the Hawkeyes narrow season-opening victory.

We then drove home and had a final trip to the pool for the summer. It was a great way to end the year. Owen met a very nice little girl named Kaleen who was seven and quickly took it upon herself to give him a swimming lesson. He's always been a bit timid around water, but with her guidance he was paddling back and forth across the pool, going wherever she would lead him.

Maya and I, meanwhile, played around and splashed like crazy. So far she seems very easy in the water. She planted her face right in several times trying to see what was on the other side of the surface.

Day 3: Monday - Monticello Railway Museum

Like many boys, Owen loves trains. Looking around for things to do in the area, we found this train museum about an hour's drive from home. The museum has many vintage trains, with cars set up so that you can walk through and see what things were like. It also has a working diesel engine with two passenger cars and a caboose that you can ride on from the museum site to downtown Monticello and back again.

We rode in the caboose on the way into town. Sitting up top where we could look out the windows over the top of the car, we had a great view and a fun ride.

Once in Monticello, we had lunch and played in a wonderful city park while we waited for the train to make its run to the museum and back. It was a wonderful summer-like day and we all had lots of fun.

The kids were both exhausted afterward. Maya (who managed not to nap on the drive back to Normal) laid down on a seat on our train trip back. Owen (who napped like crazy on the drive home) looked out the window and soaked it all in.

There was even a yellow train to look at when we got back. This was very good, because when you ask Owen what kind of train is his favorite, he always answers "Yellow ones."