Clark’s Elioak Farm

On Monday, Mary and I took the boys to Clark’s Elioak Farm, which boasts over 50-year-old life-sized fairytale displays from our parents’ childhood time (my mom even remembers going there as a kid). They have worked to restore the displays from the Enchanted Forest, in addition to providing a petting zoo and huge rainbow slide to play on. Unfortunately I have no pictures from the petting zoo area. I was too busy preventing Milo from collecting chicken eggs from under the chickens. But enjoy the rest of the pictures! It was a very cool place for little kids, plus they had some crazy blue jay colony on the edge of the woods that I found… enchanting. Wah, wah.

We are really enjoying living in DC. There is so much to explore, and everything is free! I know I have said it before, but it really makes life easier when you can come and go as you please and not feel like you have to stay somewhere all day in order to get your money’s worth. That kind of mentality is a recipe for disaster for any toddler. Talk about over-stimulation! So we have been enjoying the zoo in the afternoons (during the week there is no one there, plus the bored zookeepers will talk to you and feed the animals snacks so you can see their huge teeth- I’m talking about the 5400-lb male hippo here, very cool), the Building Museum on some rainy mornings, and there’s still so much to see and do!This afternoon we plan to take it easy, though. Tomorrow is the first of two surgeries for Milo. And though it is relatively minor and outpatient, I am still extremely nervous. Mainly it is the anesthesia that freaks me out. Seeing Milo all hooked up to tubes and wires and machines is probably going to be a test of my courage. But I might not even see that tomorrow. Andrew and I decided to flip a coin to see who will accompany Milo while they put him to sleep. Then next time, we will switch. I am not even sure which side I would rather be on, but I’m sure I’ll be a wreck either way. He’s still my little baby!

Also, on the less scary end of things, I am a little worried about the drive to and from Johns Hopkins, as Milo will probably be STARVING by the time we get there at 10am tomorrow. He won’t be allowed to eat or even drink milk until after the surgery, which means he will be going about 19 hours without food! He can drink clear liquids up until 4 hours before surgery, but something tells me he might want more than juice at that point. That, combined with Milo’s contempt for the car seat, might make for quite a trip. So… wish us luck on that one, too.

Alright… I’ll keep you updated. Until Saturday….