The College Royal

We spent the better part of the day today at the College Royal, and the kids had a blast. They all had the chance to roll up their sleeves and try out to many things. They got to check out the skeleton of a two-headed calf (what could be more exciting for young boys?!) Look at basins filled with real pigs' organs up close, touch a sea cucumber, visit with cows who had holes into their stomachs (I am sure there is a reasonable explanation why you would do that to a poor beast and I was assured that it did not hurt them...) Pet the sheep, pigs, horses, chicks, donkeys, chickens.....You get the picture. And don't forget the free popcorn!!

This pedal tractor was good practice for William, who has decided that he wants to be a farmer when he grown up (Yeah!) and that I can come and live with him on the farm with all of his animal friends. I am sure that this dream will go through many changes as he grows up, but I must say that I am LOVING this farmer stage!!

Did you know that in order to ensure optimum health, teddy bears require regular medical checkups? It is true - no lies. In fact, because of the subtlety of their communication styles, Teddies often endure illness or injury unknown to their owners, devoted and loving though they may be. Good thing the College Royal comes around every year, where Teddies can be thoroughly examined by trained (or in training) professionals and treated for any presenting conditions. Below are our Teddies recovering from their various procedures, and feeling much better.

Here is William Checking out some E Coli through the microscope - lots of fun!

Max and and Charlie were a little tired (understatement) by this point in the afternoon, so they had a little rest while William burned off the rest of his energy.

All in all, I cannot think of enough good things to say about the College Royal. Not only was it full of wonderful things to do, hands on learning and neat things to explore, it was free and local. We will definitely be doing this again next year.

As an end note, one of the best parts of the day for me was how many wonderful friends I ran into from the GHG. When we began homeschooling it was because we felt that it was (and is) the best way to approach our kids' education and upbringing. I never anticipated how many wonderful other families that I would meet in the process, and how my own social network would grow. I hope that you all enjoyed the day as much as we did!!

Now, after dinner and a quick bath, it is off to bed for the boys. I might even get some 'me time' out of the day!!