It's Circus Time!

Last Friday the Circus came to town and I was so excited that we were able to take Gretchen for the very first time! I haven't been since I was little, and if i'm being perfectly honest with myself, I was probably more excited about me seeing it than her seeing it!

We decided that we would try really hard to get there for the pre-show! And, with rush hour downtown traffic on a Friday evening, we did fairly well!
Gretchen was able to get a circus hand tatoo! She stood very still while he was putting it on her.
And, then we headed over to one of the rings, where Gretchen got to learn a dance with one of the circus performers and dance with other little kids! I think after watching her that my dreams of her dancing one day, may be hard to accomplish- we need dance lessons pronto!
She took a break from dancing to watch a few up-close performances! We were lucky enough to be in the very front (even if it was on the side)~ we had a great view, and Gretchen was mesmerized!
They brought out an elephant, which Gretchen had only seen at the zoo and never this up close, and we watched him do a lovely painting! Although, I would not have wanted that paint brush half way up my nose!

And, we finally headed up to our seats so the show could begin! Gretchen received this lovely hat with her cotton candy!

And, by the 2nd half we were on to the popcorn.

Being honest again, these pictures were captured when she was actually being entertained and enjoying herself! But, don't let them fool you. She was not the most well-seated child in the venue. Daddy left to get her a drink and she wanted to go with him, which led to her throwing a fit in her seat after she was gone. She also touched the poor man in front of her- a lot! And, made friends with the two kids behind her. They even shared some of their popcorn, and Gretchen thought she would try to steal a few sips of their drinks. We also did take a little walk and rode the escalator all the way up to the 3rd level, but had to climb the steps to get back down. I think we'll wait until she's at least 5 or older to try the circus again.

Toward the end of the circus, Gretchen decided that I needed to wear her yellow cowboy hat. Any time I took it off, she put it right back on. But, at least she was sitting quietly for another moment!