Last weekend, Jeff and Julie (Travis’ parents) came in town for a visit. Besides the obvious reason for the visit (Owen), they went to the Tom Petty concert on Thursday night. I have nothing to say about this concert considering I did not attend. If you read this post, you should not be surprised at all by this. I opted to stay home in my pj’s and watch movies…at least that’s what I thought I was going to do. Turns out, Owen came down with some nasty fever virus and was up with a high fever all night long. Such is the life of a mom.
Anyway, being the planner that I am, I had the whole weekend planned. We were going to go to Grant’s Farm on Friday and then the Botanical Gardens on Saturday (because you can get in free on Saturday before noon if you’re a St. Louis county resident…I know, call me Frugal Fran). Unfortunately, Owen’s sickness made us throw my well organized plan out the window. Instead of going to Grant’s Farm on Friday, we hung around the house and installed this new swing I bought for Owen at a second hand kid’s store for $8.50! Needless to say, we thought this swing made for a great photo op.
Owen’s fever finally broke around noon on Friday and never returned. Since he was feeling better, we got up on Saturday morning and beat the crowds to Grant’s Farm. I hadn’t been to Grant’s Farm since I was a kid, but I distinctly remembered feeding the goats. After seeing these pictures, you’ll understand why this is an experience that you’re not likely to forget. I mean, Owen is only 14 months and I’m sure he’ll be remembering this one for a while.
While Owen was freaked out by goats jumping all over his mom and trying to eat her shorts, Jeff and Julie may have found a new calling… I’m just sayin’, they look pretty natural!
Goats aren’t the only attraction at Grant’s Farm. We saw some elephants and then got a picture in front of these camels:
After Grant’s Farm, we had planned to have Steve and Kathy, Sarah and Dave, and Tara and Lars over for a cookout. They are family friends from Mena, AR. We had a ton of fun playing with Sarah and Dave’s son, Jackson. He is just as cute as he can be! Owen and Jackson had a grand old time being pulled around the backyard in the red wagon.
Besides being long-time family friends, this crew also loves concerts! They all went to the Tom Petty concert together on Thursday night…which is why they are all wearing their awesome concert tees. I guess that’s the thing to buy when you go to a concert…since I never go, I don’t really know what is and isn’t concert etiquette. Anyway, here they are:
I’m sure some of you are wanting to know more about that concert. I’m turning any kind of concert recap over to Travis. I’m sure he’ll do a post about it, but you may have to wait a while…he’s not as prompt as me!
Glad Owen is feeling better. I always go a wee bit Freak-o-Mom whenever Sophie gets a fever, especially if it doesn’t respond rapidly to Tylenol. Poor thing, I start layering cool washcloths all over her (and consider plopping her in an ice bath). Usually that, and giving the medicine a milisecond to work, does the trick, so I don’t have to resort to turning my child into a Freeze Pop. But, you know, I’m prepared to if I have to. =)
Julie and Jeff and the goats. Hilarious shot. They do look totally comfortable playing mom and pop to a herd of baby goats. Julie appears to be having a whole semi-relaxed conversation while tending to her little one’s feeding needs.
The concert-goers in their concert-wear: niiiiiiiiice. Very We’re-United-In-Our-Love-For-Loud-Music-And-Moshpits-Woohoo!! I like what might be referred to as “Wussy Concerts”. People like: Sarah McLachlan…and well, Sarah McLachlan. Hmm. I can’t remember going to see anyone else. But I saw her twice. Once in Colorado. Once in Albuquerque. It was great! But the everybody-packed-in quality of concerts gives me the willies. Not into lots ‘o people in small areas. Eeee.
And to wrap up this novel…
Are you going curly these days? I like it!
Does Jeff still do the thing when taking pictures where he points the camera down at your shoes and it takes forever for him to take a picture? That always cracked me up. Do you know what I am talking about Travis?
I am laughing out loud at Josh’s comment right now. And to answer your question, Josh, I didn’t see any of the “off-subject focusing” that Jeff is known for. I was the subject of a few of his photographs that evening and I kept waiting for “it”, but it never happened. =)
What a great post! I agree with Kristy. The picture of Jeff and Julie feeding the goats is a HOOT. Julie looks like she’s just calmly carrying on her convo with Jeff…”So I was thinking I might go with red drapes in the dining room…” So funny.
Thanks again for such a fun cookout! We all had such a nice time and felt very relaxed in your cute home. Jackson had a ball, too! He fell asleep before they backed out of the driveway! It was wonderful to see you guys in action as parents. You’re both such naturals! And Owen is such a doll!
P.S. Emily, we made $155 through Craigslist today! Wa-hooooo! How’s your stuff going?
oh tom petty t-shirts…i’m not sure what i think about that…never mind, i know what i think about it. it’s not good…
that picture of jackson and owen is so cute! this is one of those posts that makes me want to be close by! i wish we could have been there!
[...] night with Friends – We were invited over to Travis & Emily’s house for a cookout on Saturday evening. We enjoyed delicious burgers and beverages. We watched [...]
Kristy~
I have been going with the curly look lately…I finally got smart and realized that I can get ready in an hour with straight hair, or 20 minutes with curly hair. I also got it cut shorter and my curl works better when it’s short. Thanks for noticing! And yes, I’m with you on the fever situation. We did the cold bath and I gave lots of Tylenol…and when it still didn’t go down, we visited the doctor. I start thinking the worst immediately so I need the one with the medical license to tell me that my child is going to be okay. Great to hear from you!! I’ve missed your comments!
Josh~
I’m sure Travis will answer this in his own way, but I know EXACTLY what you’re talking about and it has gotten better. When he’s under a time crunch (AKA…at Grant’s Farm holding up lines of stay-at-home moms with strollers) it seems to be a bit faster.
Sarah~
$155 on craigslist???? That’s great! I’m getting ready to repost my stuff and reduce some prices. I haven’t had any action in the last few days and I’m ready to sell some more junk!
Josh, your comment killed me. Funny stuff – I’m impressed you remember that. Emily’s explanation pretty much says it.
We got really lucky this week, actually. We sold two mattress/box spring sets (which we NEVER expected to sell…used mattress from a stranger? I wouldn’t ever do it. =) ) and our entertainment center. I’m sure your stuff will sell soon!
I just now got to see this post! I LOVE it! The goats are our new friends, I think I will get some to keep in the back yard. Yes, Josh, and everyone else; we still point the camera down in the shady shots. I forgot this weekend when I took one of Owen, and let’s just say, I had to take a few more when this fact was unearthed. For future reference, we call it the “down-up thing with the camera.” Also for the record, we still use a film camera. It’s hilarious to watch people take pictures with our camera, holding it out at arm’s length looking for that LCD screen on the back. “No, you gotta look through the lens!”
Thanks, Travis, Emily, and Owen for a great weekend! We had an absolute blast! And thanks, Schulte clan, for coming to visit and going to the concert together. Winwood and Petty rocked the house, and I hope I never get over it!