The first day great grand helped in the garden. Grandad had just completed some raised beds and who would have thought a boy would find shoveling in dirt would be such fun? It’s still a bit cool to plant seeds but we were able to plant some potatoes and onions. He did say he’s not to fond of eating onions though!
Our second day we went rock hunting. Both boys and big girl grand enjoyed this activity immensely. They scoured the garden area that was plowed for a wagon full of rocks that became projects. Some of the rocks were arranged into a rock garden, some were painted with glow in the dark paint, some became rock pets and some were just good for long distance throwing competitions.
There were several trips beyond the garden to feel Lucky.
Lucky got his name because he was born on St. Patrick’s Day. He loves being hand fed.
The next day we drove to their great uncles to hang out with the miniature horses. The boys combed and walked and rode the the horse named Lightning McQueen.
Lightning McQueen is as gentle as a favorite old dog.
The third day we decided to learn how to cast a fishing line at Copper Breaks State Park.
The fish weren’t having any part of our casting so after a picnic lunch we headed to The Red River.
On this part of the river there’s not much water but plenty of sand for building sand castles and flying kites. We found a few pockets of shallow quick sand that amazed Great Grand. He wiggled it like jelly and “escaped” just in time. We tossed in drift wood and watched it float away and ate an afternoon snack on the sand.
The next day we visited Red River Valley Museum in Vernon, Texas. There is a great collection of stuffed animals there.
A great advantage to living in a small town is the extended tour of the volunteer fire department and a ride in a fire truck.
On our last day together we met Great Grand’s mom at the Abilene Zoo. It is a nice size zoo next to a man made lake and park that offers a great wood playground, splash park, baseball fields, and dog park. I wrote more about the zoo on the Texas Women Bloggers page.
The camel here was sure the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. He crouched down on the ground and stretched his neck as far as he could reach to eat it.
The boys could have spent a whole day at this wooden Fort playground in the park right next to the zoo.
The whole visit was wonderful and most of our activities were free. There was a nominal fee of $2 a person to the state park, reasonable fees to the zoo but everything else was free. We celebrated the end of the day with some driveway basketball and a pretty fantastic sunset.
