A perfect evening at the park

I took the weekend of Mother's Day off from work to have some time to spend with my boys. Ray and I had plans together on Sunday, so I suggested we have a family night Saturday. I had inadvertently gotten myself into two days of yard work. Ray and Sawyer took off for the morning so I could dig and plant in peace.



When I was done and clean, they picked me up and we headed to the Tanger Outlets in Mebane. Sawyer napped the whole way, and we went straight to the Bass Outlet to find Ray some new shoes. (Which he did ... three pairs! It was buy one, get two free.)

Sawyer woke up and wanted out of the stroller. As he was wondering around the store, one of the store employees befriended him (or tried). He wouldn't really talk to her,  U N T I L she came and offered him a cookie. I swear the kid gets free stuff everywhere we go!



After shopping, we drove back to Burlington, grabbed dinner and went to City Park. It has a 100-year-old Dentzen Carousel, a miniature train and other amusement rides.

We rode the train first. We all squeezed into one car, and Sawyer sat on Ray's lap. Sawyer just took it all in, his eyes wide. Every time we went through the tunnel, he swiveled his head to see me, and he looked like a little owl with that white moon face and big, round eyes.





The train chugged over bridges, plunged you into a dark tunnel and blew its whistle around every bend. When we neared the station for the last time, the driver rang the brass bell to signal our arrival.

 



We watched and waved at the train before heading off to check out the other amusement rides.





We rode the carousel. Sawyer chose a horse and I rode an ostrich. The carousel is beautiful. Built in the early 1900s and completely restored, it has giraffes, ostriches, pigs, cats and more, and you can really see all the gears and wooden trusses on the inside.





Sawyer then drove a jeep and a boat. It tickles me that he's never afraid to do any of this stuff, even by himself. So many kids this age are scared to ride things alone, even when they can see Mom and Dad, and end up screaming to get off.







After we let Sawyer roam the playground for awhile, it was starting to get dark. We had two tickets left, so I suggested we ride one more thing. Naturally, Sawyer chose the train. Ray stayed off to take pictures of us. I felt kind of bad for the driver. We were the only two passengers. Sawyer climbed up on my lap, and we went around and around the track, waving to Daddy when we passed.



We finished off the perfect evening with ice cream at the local shop across the street. I predict many more trips to this park.