Another One With A Parade

Last weekend the boys and I joined grandma and grandpa and some friends on the side of the road to watch the 52nd Annual Armed Forces Day Parade!  Jack was so incredibly excited about it, as he remembered the parade from last year and was very ready to see those marching bands again!  The boys' friend had a birthday party in the morning, so we grabbed lunch on our way to the parade and ate it while we watched the parade!  The boys were so good and I was so proud of them- they were both completely absorbed in the parade and watched each and every exhibit!  Even Sam paid attention to the whole thing, staring at each exhibit as it went by and every time one went past us he'd crane his neck to see what was coming next!  Jack didn't sit through the whole thing, but only because he insisted that every time a big American flag came by he and grandma needed to stand up and place their hands over their hearts and wave their little American flags.  He was cracking us up!  I think we are definitely a parade family!

Thanks again, Shelly, for letting us join you at your parade spot!!!  

Tanks, Helicopters, Rescue Boats, and Us!

Last weekend was Torrance's 52nd Annual Armed Forces Day Parade, and we were so excited for it!  We had such a great time last year, and this year Sam was old enough to enjoy it as well!  The day before the parade we headed to the mall to check out the vehicles that were on display!  Right before we left I told Jack where we were going and that he had to put on his pilot's costume (which barely fits him anymore!) so that he could fly the helicopter.  He had a great time, and Sam did too!  As long as we weren't trying to put him in a helicopter or jeep or on a sled or something like that. 

Time for a Jack funny!  He got so excited when he saw the medic-sled display.  There was a little boy pulling (with the army medic's help) his brother and sister on the sled.  Jack wanted to try it, so he asked grandpa to pull him...

When he was done he wanted to switch places and pull grandpa!  So grandpa got on the sled and Jack pulled him- with the army medic's help.

Jack's a little too smart, though- he realized that the guy was helping him and when they got to the other side he said "Now I want to pull him by myself!"  He was so bummed when he couldn't pull him, but it was better when grandpa got off the sled and Jack pulled that all by himself.

He wasn't satisfied with that, though.  Thinking back to the kid that was pulling his siblings he said "Now I want to pull a little boy!"  So I offered to have him pull Sam.  Yeah, Sam so was not having that- Jack only got to pull him a short distance before Sam flipped out!  After I pulled a screaming Sam off the sled a still less-than-satisfied Jack asked if he could pull a different little boy!  We all laughed and I told him that enough was enough and it was time to move on.

They also had a display of all the creepy crawlies that are found in the deserts where our Armed Forces have been spending a lot of time.  And when I say creepy, I mean CREEPY.  Ew, yuck, and yikes!

We had such a great time!  This is definitely one of my most favorite of the annual events we've attended!

Fire, Water, And... Wind?

On May 14th the Torrance Fire Department was having an open house!  Dave was off that day, but when I asked if he wanted to join us at our local fire station he said "I don't really want to go to a fire station on my day off!"  He had a good point, and I had to laugh at that.  So Sam, Jack and I picked up grandma and grandpa and headed over to one of the smaller stations. 

 

One of the firefighters on duty happened to be the same one what was on duty the day we went to the City Yard's open house the year before, and amazingly enough he remembered us- or rather, he remembered Jack- despite the fact that our trip to the City Yard was 11 months ago!  As for Jack, it was quickly apparent that he felt right at home in a fire station.  He wasted no time pointing things out and telling us what things were called and what they were used for, and making one of the firefighters help him climb up into the seats to be a "real firefighter just like my daddy!" 

We happened to be the only family there at the time, and as such we were given the undivided attention of the firefighters, which suited Jack just fine!  And, as a special treat, rather than showing us their hose demonstration, they let Jack take part in it by being the one to actually man the hose (who, I am informed, is actually called the Hose Man- imagine that)! 

He was so excited to be there, and he was absolutely hilarious!  This kid loves to tease, and he definitely has his father's sense of humor!  I should have immediately written down everything he said, but he definitely had the firefighters cracking up.  The most famous of his lines, though, is unforgettable.  Towards the end of our tour while we were checking out the station's TV room, Jack climbed into one of the lazy boy chairs while the adults were talking.  Soon, he came back over and very excitedly exclaimed "Mom!  I just tooted in the fire station!"  Of course, we all died of laughter and the firefighter who had remembered Jack said "This kid has the best lines!"  Then he knelt down to Jack and told him not to worry because he was pretty sure it wasn't the first time someone broke wind in those chairs!