Tulip Festival attempt

April 25th marked "Dutch Day" at the annual Tulip Festival down at Thanksgiving Point. I thought it'd be kinda fun to go, fully expecting to see lots of Dutch costumes and eat lots of Dutch food. Well, that morning was quite soggy, but my grandma was adamant that we still go. She always says, "We're not made of sugar - we won't melt!" So my mom and I packed up Daisy and Grandma Oma and headed down there. We were not prepared for the cold, windy rain! My mom had just had bladder surgery and couldn't push or hold anything more than ten pounds, so I got to push grandma's wheelchair. Let me tell you, she is not light. Daisy was pretty cold and miserable from the moment we got there so she spent the whole time perched on Oma's lap. Did I mention that we were all starving and ready for lunch BEFORE we left the house? If you've never been down there, it's a long, winding, somewhat hilly, walking trail through all the gardens. All the booths (all five of them) were set up at the END of the trail. There were a ton of beautiful tulips and flowers, but since it was so chilly, they were all closed up. As for all the Dutch stuff I expected to see, there was one booth with some Dutch food, (which was all covered up and 'out-of-order' because of the rain) and a bunch of other booths with other random stuff. None of which were even remotely Dutch! Oh, and the costumes? Yeah, I guess the rain deterred some people cuz they weren't there either! So we grabbed some pork sandwich thing from the only booth that served actual food (and not candy or junk) and huddled under the only covering - an awning by the restrooms - to eat. Doesn't that sound like so much fun?!? Oh, and remember I'm about 10 weeks pregnant and the time, and quite nauseous. I did manage a few pictures to document our sad soggy attempt, and yet my grandma still enjoyed every minute of it, and bragged about her day to everyone! Old people sure do forget things easily! That night, a much happier Daisy got to paint her little wooden shoes, the highlight of her day!

The ensemble I had to push around the whole time. Notice how happy Daisy is? And no, I could not see my way over that dumb umbrella, nor hold one over my poor head!

Painting her wooden shoes. Notice how I separated the paint into neat little puddles?Showing off her finished masterpiece