In an effort to not spend too much money and save on vacation days for Robert we decided to not go anywhere, but do things local in Dallas. Our first stop was the Arboretum and I'm not sure who was more excited about this trip, Robert or the kids?!
We packed our lunch, brought along the wagon for Braden to ride (which of course he didn't), and headed out. Since it was Spring Break, we decided to get up early and arrive shortly after they opened, which I'm grateful we made this decision. It was a little chilly in the morning, but definitely bearable because the crowds had not yet arrived.
We have never been before and I have to admit that it was beautiful. The flowers were gorgeous and actually made me want to invest some time and money in our own yard, which is a rare occurrence for me.
When planning our trip we picked this specific day because there was going to be a petting zoo, which I knew Braden would enjoy. I wasn't sure how excited he would be to walk around a look at flowers all day.
This year's theme at the Arboretum was Fairyland Castles. They were based on the original stories, not Disney, that were written many years ago. Upon entering the park, we were given a scavenger hunt for the kids to look for at each castle. This was wonderful for the girls and they were very excited to find each castle to finish their scavenger hunt.
Rapunzel's hair
I learned that day that Braden does not look at the camera. He will say "cheese" each time, but doesn't understand the concept of actually looking at the camera. I guess he figures he's just supposed to say cheese. After all, that's what we ask him to do! Because of this dilemma, I had a very difficult time getting pictures of him.
Case in point...
Sometimes I just settled for the "natural" picture.
Right before we stopped for lunch, we explored this adventure area.
Here he is not looking again...
We had pretty much made the rounds of the place and stopped for lunch at this point. Braden was getting tired and the place was getting a little too crowded, so we thought it best to head home. However, it was an enjoyable day and a great family outing for our family of 5!
On a side note, we saw several of these gators while at the Arboretum and Braden seemed more excited about these than anything else. He kept telling me, "I want to ride on that." I just had to get a picture because the irony in this story is so exciting for me. Little does he know, that in a few short days he will have his very own for his birthday!! Well, a smaller version, but exciting still the same!!
Looks like yall had fun. I am going to try and get out there in the next couple of weeks. I can't hardly get a picture of Bailey to save my life either. She also says cheese but doesn't always look at the camera! HA!
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