Fish Fry Fun

After lots of rain pushed back the start to our week of fish fry fun, we had to make up for lost time, beginning on Thursday.

We headed to the fairgrounds to eat fish and were thrilled to get there in time for the Clydesdale showing.
Lee was very impressed by the horses, and Matt and I were impressed at how incredibly friendly the handlers were to the kids. Lee loved it!

Then it was on to the fish tent! Notice this is our last year for Lee to eat free:-( They would have charged us this year, if they saw how much he ate. This kid can put away some catfish and hushpuppies!

Our full and happy crew

The kids around the county participate in a "catfish poster contest." All the entries are displayed at the fish tent. Lee found his while we were eating. It is on the second row from the left and the third one down. Sadly, he didn't win a place in the contest, but I think just having it displayed for all to see was reward enough for him. He was very proud!

This was his face when we told him we were headed to the carnival next.

It's a good thing he's so darn cute and persuasive, because I wanted to hit the gate when I saw this! I spent the rest of our evening looking at the ground and watching my step for an escapee. Let's be real, people. Look what kind of people are guarding those things!

Just like last year, Lee had absolutely no fear of anything. His most favorite ride was the bumper cars. He was still too short to ride alone, but I think Matt enjoyed it as much as Lee.

Wade was pretty bored with the carnival. Once the "nay nays" were gone, and the fish was eaten, he was ready to head home.

Pure joy!

The swings were always a favorite of mine, too.

We ran into lots of Lee's friends while there, but the best surprise was seeing "girl Charly" from preschool. (Yes, he still really calls her that. Fortunately, she no longer calls him "Flea.") They rode together and giggled non-stop.

This was the last ride of the night, only because it started to rain on us. We made a mad dash to the car, just before the monsoon came!

We enjoyed 4 hours of nonstop fun and didn't spend a dime. Matt's cousin is a Jaycee and provided us with fish tickets. (L&W ate free.) Then we ran into Matt's aunt, who was with her granddaughter at the carnival. Poor Kiley was not having fun and wanted to leave, so Aunt Leisa gave us their tickets. Just as we were about to have to purchase tickets to get through the rest of our rides, a lady came up to me and handed me a handful of tickets. She said they had to leave and wanted to give them to someone. We still had tickets left when we were running to our car. I yelled back at Matt to give the tickets to a teenager who was still riding rides in the rain. So, he handed them to the first person he came to. What luck!

Friday was parade day. This is probably my favorite Fish fry activity all week. The kids absolutely love it, and I love watching them. Wade was too small last year to know what was going on, but he was really into it this year. I took his earphones, which he promptly took off and threw to the ground. I fully expected a meltdown with all the sirens and bands, but instead, he clapped and stood on my lap for most of it. Miss Jill started his day off right by feeding him a donut.

Here's the rest of our crew, patiently waiting on the start.

Now with Wade

(Side note to my family: That's my cousin, Jamie James(Ronnie's and Tammy's son), in the background.)

Let's get this party started!

Captain Skyhawk made an appearance.

He gave Lee a shirt!

Lee's teacher's daughter is the Hostess Princess. She's the beauty at the top of this float. She won queen in her very first pageant ever! The beauty at the bottom right is Wade's queen, Kaylee. She takes care of him in the church nursery, and he is smitten with her!

I loved their float!

The Clydesdales are always a sight to see!

Matt's cousin's daughter is the baby queen on this float, and one of his best friend's son is the king.

There's Queen Evie in the highchair.

This was one of my favorite floats.

Another fish fry activity is a success!

Sadly, Saturday was our last day for Fish Fry. Our local paper sponsors Catfish Races to raise money for the Paris-Henry County Literacy Council. Local businesses sponsor a catfish to name and race. Some even write a tall tale about their fish. It is a lot of fun, and the money goes to a great cause. Matt had to hold his fish out of the water for quite awhile, because the racer next to him kept dropping her fish on the ground. By the time he let it go, it just sat in the water. He didn't win the race, but

he did win BEST CATFISH NAME! This is the third time he has won this honor, and we were so excited. This year's fish was "Cruella DeFuel."

Wade helped him accept his award.

Read all about it here: http://http://www.parispi.net/articles/2011/05/03/news/local_news/doc4dc030f166745166973257.txt

Thanks to the Paris PI for our gift certificate to El Vaquero! We had a super fun day and week and are already looking forward to next year.

Sneaky Baby

Tonight I put Wade in his excersaucer while I was cooking supper. After a while, he got fussy, so Lee gave him an Easter egg for entertainment and then went on about his own business. A little while later, Lee came to me and asked if I had taken the candy out of the eggs yet. I told him no and asked why. He said that Wade had opened the egg and there "might have been some chocolate in there." Upon further investigation, I decided that yes there must have been something chocolate in there.
Wade tried to deny it, but the evidence was all over his sweet face! I thought he looked a little guilty here.

But he kept looking in that egg for more! He is going to have his mama's sweet tooth!

Baby Bossy Pants

On our walk today, Buzz took every step we took. Wade was in his car instead of his stroller, so he was lower to the ground, and he took advantage of being on Buzz's level to boss him around.

It took me a minute to determine what he was saying. After he repeated it,

I knew for sure what he was saying.
He was waving that sweet little hand and saying " 'mon" (C'mon but without the 'c')

When Buzz would come to him, he would point at him and say, "Sit."

" 'mon!"

"Sit!"

Buzz didn't follow his commands, but I don't think he cared. He just liked being able to boss someone around, for a change.

Super Sized Saturday

Today was one of those days where we went nonstop from the time we got up until bedtime.

It started with us cleaning up this mess from Tuesday's storm.
We lost 3 trees, so Matt got a trailer and hauled them off after cutting them up.

We had just been talking about having these exact 3 trees cut down, because they never bounced back after the past couple years' drought and ice storms. We were so fortunate that none of them were by our house, so we had no damage from them.

Next, we finally got to play our first t-ball game after being rained out last week.

Lee is #4, which he still says is his favorite number.

Paul is #8.

Getting a little play in the in-field

Paul got a hit the first time he swung!

He was so excited and wanted to make sure his fan club was watching.

Here he is sliding home with his best pal waiting for him.

Then it was Lee's turn to bat again. He got another great hit.

I love to watch him run with his goofy little style. I'm pretty sure he got this "Phoebe-style" of running from me.

He has to jump on each base when he gets there.

"Did ya see that, Mom?"

And for Lee's grand finale....the slide into home,

which is his very favorite part of the game.

He is filthy and so proud of himself!

It's going to be a GREAT season!

After the game, we headed to Paul's 6th Birthday party. The kids are lined up for an egg hunt.

And they're off!

This never gets old to Lee. I don't think he even cares what is in them. He just loves the hunt.

Wade found some, too. He may or may not have been assaulted by some aggressive Kindergartners, and Mommy may or may not have had to intervene.

After those pesky big kids left, and he was out of danger, he went in search for more.

Paul's theme was dinosaurs, so he had these cool dino-shaped eggs. Lee loved them!

Awesome dino cake

Time for cake and singing

This little guy took a short nap after the egg hunt, but he woke up when he heard someone mention ice cream!

Here is my other cake and ice cream lover.

So glad he got his Mommy's sweet tooth, so we can share!

More ice cream please!

After we left the party, the big boys brought Wade and me home, and they left immediately for the World's Biggest Fish Fry Kickoff at the fairgrounds and watched the demolition derby. It was Lee's first one, and I'm pretty sure he is hooked. Wade finally collapsed at 8:00, and Matt and Lee were in bed around 10:15. Now that's a super sized Saturday!