The Barnyard

Abby & I met some friends yesterday at the Tuscaloosa Barnyard, for a playdate. Though a little pricey, this place was really cool! A petting zoo, hayride, pumpkin patch, and playground all rolled into one. (Though I will say, I am REALLY missing our old pumpkin patches in TN - Walden Farms & Lucky Ladds! There is nothing nearby that compares to those. Maybe next year we'll drive the hour to Birmingham, b/c I hear there are good ones there!)

I wasn't sure how Abby would do with the animals, b/c last weekend in NC with my parents she was terrified of the horses. (Granted, they were pretty big!) Well, it took her about 10 minutes but she warmed up to the animals and had sooo much fun feeding them!! I'm sure it helped that they were all tiny (and so cute)! Goats, ducks, chickens, bunnies, and ponies, she loved them all.




I had a "proud mommy" moment when she decided she wanted to RIDE the pony! Not many of the older kids there even did that! We did two laps around the little pen, and though she was holding onto my arm for dear life, she was smiling & loved it!


After her pony experience, she got even more brave and decided to 1) feed the "big" goats herself and 2) get INTO THE PEN with the bunnies. At first, she was just feeding them out of her bucket. Then that turned into chasing them in circles & giggling! At one point, all of the bunnies were crowded together in the corner...I think they were trying to hide from her!!




Next up was the hayride to the pumpkin patch. This was old hat to Abby, since she'd been on a hayride last week with N&P. But, she did have fun at the pumpkin patch and had a hard time deciding which 2 we should take home.

The only downside to the day happened on the hayride back....Abby was super fussy and squirmy and I couldn't figure out why until I found/killed an ant coming out of her shirt. I lifted up her shirt and found about 20 bites on her back & neck :( Apparently she got attacked by ants at the pumpkin patch. And one minute later I realized they were on me too...only about 5 though. She is one tough cookie!!! I was afraid we'd have to go home but as soon as we got back to the Barnyard, she saw the playground and was a happy girl!