Saturday in Pullen Park

Before we get to the great Beach Recap, I'd like to share some events in real time. We had some gorgeous weather in Raleigh this weekend, starting with slightly cooler and less humid temperatures Friday that turned to mid-70's and sunny today and yesterday. We managed to spend the bulk of our weekend outside. In the drier conditions that we haven't seen in awhile, the kids, particularly Clara, seemed to rediscover their love for the outdoors.

On Friday morning after running several errands, we stopped at the park before heading home for lunch. In classic fashion Meghan would not smile at me.

Saturday morning we ventured over to Pullen Park, along with the rest of families in the city. We arrived near 10:30 am and happened upon a man pulling a giant bird, that turned out to be a steppe eagle, out of his car, so we followed him and found out that a new series called Discovery Days was running this fall at 10:30 am, aimed at pre-school and elementary school aged kids. Check and check. The feature this Saturday was all about Birds of Prey. It was awesome; the people came from the American Wildlife Refuge and exhibited the steppe eagle, a black vulture, a red-tailed hawk, a kestrel, a barn owl, and a screech owl. No pictures (though you can check out the birds here), but we thoroughly enjoyed the show.

Next we fed the ducks and then took a stroll around the lake. Jack waited at the bottom of the bridge on a rock in the sun while Clara opted for the shade.

 

 

Meghan lagged a little ways behind, distracted by some balloons at a birthday party venue but was determined not to be left in the dust!

 

Next we took a turn on the carousel. It was Meghan's first experience. Though you might not be able to tell by her stoic expression that remained so throughout the ride, she really liked it as was apparent by her dismay (i.e., kicking and screaming) when it was time to exit the ride.

 

Clara of course loved it too. If you look at the window to the right, you can see Jack on Daddy's shoulders outside of the venue. Jack still is not keen about the whole idea, though given his penchant for things that spin, maybe he should rethink his stance on merry-go-rounds.

 

We finished off the outing with a stop at Locopos, yummy!