Year 2, Day 234, Davis Farmland

Throughout our couplehood together, I was most often the one who wanted to get up early and go somewhere, most often Brunch. I often compromised with Emily, letting her go to Starbucks on the way to a brunch place, or just going to a high-end coffee shop like Beans or Joe's in Allston. So it's no surprise that I was desperately excited to get Ruby and the family out to Davis Farms in Sterling, MA. I was initially attracted by tales of the corn maze, in which talented operators of farm equipment create brain-teasing paths throughout massive acres of real corn. While it sounds like great fun for adults, upon closer inspection, it did not seem age appropriate for my kids. There were other issues— the unknown effect of a claustrophobic environment and the cost ($12.95 per visitor). For various reasons, including the suggestion of our hosts (friends who live nearby in Princeton, MA) we decided to go the Davis Farmland Petting Zoo, a pretty cool setup where your kids can buy feed and feed real, uncaged animals as they stroll around a farm-like setting. Ruby and Magnolia literally were like pigs in slop as they went around touching and feeding and patting goats, pigs and deer. At the end of the Farmland there was a setup of little play houses that Ruby wanted to move into forever. For lunch we went to the Herd Rock Calfe, an ingenious spot that serves all of America's kid-friendly dishes, so I made do with what was there. It wasn't too bad since I had loaded up on nuts and joy sticks prior to going to the park. It was a great time even though it was a little on the cold side. At the last minute, Ruby asked me to get face-painted and I dusted off my skills and made her into a cat, which she remained as all day until the dreaded shower made it come off.

Breakfast
Heritage Flakes
Kashi Go Lean
Blueberries
Banana
Coffee

Snack
1 Joy Stick
3 oz Almonds Cashews
1 Spartan Apple
2 Dark Rye Vita Crackers
2 oz. 50% Jalapeno Cheddar

Lunch
2 Slices of Ham & Cheese as a rollup
3 Spoonfuls of Chili

Dinner
Breast of Chicken Slices
Broccoli
Pickles

Magnolia loves pickles. Why, we don't know. We know that when sees something she likes, she will scream it's name "pickles! pickles!" which is not unusual for a two year old. It's not unusual to want to try everything everyone else is eating either. But it is very unusual for a two year old to like full sour garlic pickles, and to eat more than one of them at a sitting. They are low in carbs, but to tell the truth, they aren't really bursting with nutrition, and are very high in sodium. I'm afraid to see what happens on the day she meets her first corned beef sandwich.