Pennies In My Couch: Back In The Gardens Again

One of my favorite outings we had last summer was to the South Coast Botanic Gardens. Two weeks ago we were so excited to have another playdate there! Jack has such a great memory, and as soon as we walked in the gate he started asking about some of the fun things we did the last time we were there. First, though, we had to wait for the rest of our friends to get there! While we waited, we played in the Japanese Garden- complete with Koi pond! That's where we were when our friends showed up, and the kids had so much fun watching the fish together. Jack was thrilled that his friends were there!

After the Koi pond we headed to the children's garden. That garden is so fun! The kids loved it and we promised them that we could come back to it before we left for the day- there was a cool water pump that the boys were loving and we definitely wanted to come back to it! First, though, there was so much more to see- starting with the Rose Gardens, which were absolutely beautiful!

Jack's favorite part of the garden was the fountain, of course. He is such a sweet boy- I gave him a penny to make a wish and he announced "I wish that we could be best friends forever!" I so love that boy's heart!!!

Then we went to a gorgeous open field and Jack immediately announced that we needed to play Tag. It didn't work out that well since the only kids interested in playing with him were two one year olds, who seemed to think that playing tag was about giving hugs or just running away, and the only adult that felt like running around was grandma (she's always up for playing with her boys!), but he didn't seem to mind that and had a great time anyway!

Then Sammy found the gazebo, where McKenna was hanging out, and decided to play there! He loves flowers (always goes out of his way to say "hi" and "bye" to them!) and he had a lot of fun looking at the beautiful ones there, and he also had fun practicing keeping his balance going up and down that step. Just like a man, though, to be completely oblivious when a girl is flirting with him- McKenna kept poking him and giggling and he never even realized! Don't worry, her feelings weren't hurt by his inattention- she was having too much fun to feel anything other than completely victorious!

While I was taking pictures, my boys noticed that I was on the ground and their natural instincts kicked in and they did what they always do... dogpile on momma!!! This is why I have a very hard time working out when they are with me- imagine doing situps when you have 70 lbs of kid on you!

(photo courtesy of Ang, who also documented our day here)

Then it was time for lunch!

Isn't this face hilarious? This is his "fake laugh/I'm just too funny" face.

I tried to take pictures of everyone during lunch, but two of our friends finished too quickly! I did manage to catch them as they walked away, hand-in-hand... too cute! Sisterly love ;)

After lunch, our friends had to leave. We were still up for exploring, though, so we kept on going! We headed down to the lake to feed the ducks, check out the guppies, climb a tree, and we even found some plums!

And then we decided that it was time to head back to the children's garden for the boys to play! We had great timing, as the hordes of children that were there earlier had gone! The boys got full control over the water pump and cans, and they were able to freely explore the house and bridge as well!