A Family Date to the Circus!

A few weekends ago, the circus came to town!  Ryan and I surprised G with a family date to the event. A friend that Ryan works with also shared about the all-access pre-show pass for all ticket holders at Barnum and Baileys' circuses. It began an hour before the show and Gracie just loved it!  She got to go down to the arena floor and see the animals and clowns up close. I was impressed and so was G!  

  

In the picture below, the yellowish blob in the top center is an acrobat hanging upside-down!  Pretty cool!

An elephant painting!

Ryan was a little nervous when we were buying our tickets online. We wanted to be close enough to see, but not "close enough that the clowns can jack with us" according to Ryan. Good news... The clowns were not close enough to 'Jack' with us!  All the clowns were friendly-looking. No one seemed creepy. Gracie quite enjoyed their antics!  

We've begun these 'dates' with Gracie. Sometimes it's one-on-one with one of us, but the family date was really great, too!  I just love this age and the genuine giddiness that comes with new experiences!  You know, I once read a blog post about waiting till your kids are old enough to remember the fun. The author pointed out that as parents, we deserve to make memories for ourselves, too. I couldn't agree more. I remember going to the circus as a kid. I have foggy memories of sitting in Kemper Arena watching motorcycles drive in a caged ball. But I can clearly recall the feeling of joy my family had going together. I hope Gracie can remember that feeling from her childhood, too. Because Ryan and I both feel such joy when we're all together having fun!  It's not about remembering a circus, it's that I want her to know that she has always been and forever will be loved and cherished by her Momma and Daddy.