Loaded Weekend-- Fair, Anniversary, NY Fun

Yee haw! It's time for the Monmouth County Fair!
We went to the fair last year with T, and planned to take him again this year. Most of the things at the fair were the same-- animals, produce, log rolling, pig races, etc. and Trenton was just as enthralled as he was last time. Above, he poses as Farmer T.

We absolutely love all the local displays and environmental displays. T had no qualms about jumping under the yellow rope and touching these tractors ;) Below, he walks through a simulated storm drain.

The pig races, at left, went by in the blink of an eye... good thing I was ready to snap this picture! He liked looking at the chickens, roosters, ducks, etc. above but got REALLY excited about the bunnies. The best part was reading off all the creative names for each animal. He'd say "Reeses? That's funny!" Ha!



The horse here is named Thor. We totally remember seeing him from last year.

Then it was on to the petting zoo portion. Baby turkeys, above, ducks, and a calf, below. He said hello to all of them and even got to feed the ducks some grass.

Very cool that there were clowns walking around. Here, Macaroni Ann Cheese makes T a monkey balloon. It was so cute, because it was made with an armband so that he could 'carry' it around! He also made his own button, got free tattoos, stickers, pencils, and coloring supplies.

We spent some time at the area where the dog agility show was taking place. It was neat to watch the dogs-- who were in various stages of practice-- run through the tunnel, over the bridge, and through the posts.

Working backwards, now... above is a copy of part of the breakfast menu from Kaya's Kitchen in Belmar. We did the smart thing and hired a babysitter so that we could go out for a few hours-- to celebrate our Fifth Year Anniversary! After walking around Asbury Park (if you haven't been there lately, you have GOT to check out all the new improvements), and hitting up the free samples at the farmers market there, we went to this Zagat rated vegetarian restaurant for lunch. The meals did not disappoint. I had the Happy Hippie (pancakes with chocolate chips and peanut butter chips, tofu scram, home fries, veggie ham, and sausage) while Jim had something called The Hungry Vegan (similar, with plain pancakes). It was really nice to eat and be able to talk to each other. Seriously. ;)

Trenton has decided that his babydoll is a boy, and that his name is Mike. Don't ask me how he got that name... Anyway, he is practicing taking care of Mike a lot more lately. Tells me to hold him and "Be verrrry careful, Mom!"

These final shots should actually have MORE, but I forgot to take out my camera!!! I did remember it when seeing this sign above. ;)
Each month, my college girlfriends and I have a Girls Night Out together. This month, we went into the city for Spanish tapas at Alta. It is really exciting to choose different appetizer-style dishes, taste and sample them all, and enjoy delicious Sangria with it all (no, I did not have that, but theirs looked fantastic). Afterwards we walked to Magnolia Bakery and got some of their famous cupcakes as we chatted it up outside at a park. The weather was wonderful this past Friday-- warm, but comfortable in the evening.
It really got me thinking about how much I LOVE my husband. Seriously! This is the guy who got a job in NJ so that I could stay home to raise our kids, go to the beach in the morning (which T and I did), and head out to NYC in the evening with my best girlfriends! Jim has done so much for me this pregnancy, too, from waking up with T in the morning (I loooove the extra hour of sleep) to cleaning the bathrooms to emptying the trash even when it is only half-way full (sensitive pregnancy nose). I made him a CD of special songs to celebrate our anniversary and I think he likes it ;) Here's to many more years together! Love you, baby!

Melissa and Andrea Me and Amy