Field Day...

Tuesday, May 31st found me zooming to La Grange to attend the Mini's Field Day at school.

Bailey was first at 10am. I arrived in plenty of time. I was told to wait on the benches in the front hall and walk out with her class. I was taking pictures off my cell phone and never saw her class walk past. When it was 10am, I decided to walk on out and find Bailey. They had already started the water games for her class. 

Bailey (on the right) is holding the 2 liter soda bottle and discussing their game plan with Courtney. It was a hot, muggy day and I found Bailey taking every opportunity to get wet.

Bailey took her turn in line for Hula Hoop Tic Tac Toe to strike a fun pose. 

The 3-leg race was hysterical to watch. Bailey was paired with someone a lot shorter than herself. The strap with Velcro they gave them to keep their legs tied together would not stay attached. After a few minutes Bailey said, "Just leave it and let's pretend we are attached." So, they completed the run to where I was taking picture without a strap on their legs but jumping like there was a strap. I yelled to tell Bailey to put her arm around her little partner and they were matched much better that way. When they hopped back past the strap Bailey stopped and picked up the strap and twirled it in the air as they finished the race. Gotta love the ingenuity of the kid. 

Between each of her turns, Bailey was jumping and cheering or dancing but rarely standing still. One of the parents drives their truck onto the field and parks it for the day. In the back they have a big boom box and they play fun rock music really loud all day. Keeps the kids energized and Bailey movin' and shakin'. 

This was the obstacle course which is always set up in the cafeteria. Bailey is scratching Conner's back. He is in heaven. Conner lives in the house behind Bailey. There is no fence between the back yards. These two are just the best friends ever. They really do love each other and have so much fun playing together. I just loved catching this moment.  They were always dancing together between turns.

The kids love the balloon games they have in the gym each year. It is a chance to cool down a bit. They all know to move quickly so they get more turns in the balloon features. 

This was a great moment in time. Each child gets two bean bags to toss at the target sticking out of the PVC pipes. When the target is hit, the bucket of water tilts forward and spills all over the person in the chair. Bailey missed on the first throw but on the second she hit the bar over the bucket and it dumped water all over the kid in the chair. She jumped up and down. The class cheered. Then she turned to the next person and I heard her say, "Don't aim for that little target. It is too small. Aim for the bars and the bucket!" Oh my, such strategy.

More water fun. The balloon toss. Then over and under with the sponge. Another great opportunity for Bailey to get drenched and cooled off.

I sat for a bit with Bailey during her lunch time. Then I visited Hayden during his lunch time. 

Hayden's class was out at 12:20pm. They started with the water balloon toss and over and under with the wet sponge.  The boy in front and the girl at the back for over and under did not understand the principle that kept the kids rotating. The girl at the back should have come to the front when she got the sponge. She brought the sponge to the boy in the front and he didn't let her in to be the front person. Instead he took the sponge and they went through the line again. Eventually a parent helper figured out they had it a bit wrong when he came to add more water to their bucket. He got them going correctly but it didn't seem to phase the kids at all. They were getting wet and happy with that.

 They moved to the basketball courts for the water bottle filling game. Michael arrived for a brief visit. He works in La Grange now so it was easy for him to pop in for a bit for each child.  So happy he could make it for a few minute of each kids events. This would be Hayden's last field day in elementary school and he was very happy his dad was there.

The water was running down Hayden's face. You could tell it was driving him crazy but he patiently endured. He was also very happy for the coolness that water provided. The afternoon was even hotter than the morning with Bailey. Hayden doesn't do hot very well at all.

Loved this Hula Hoop Tic Tac Toe game. You put 9 hula hoops in a Tic Tac Toe board formation. Each team of kids is given three colored disks (one team had yellow and the other had orange). The teams work as relay teams. The first three kids on each team are given a disk. When the adult yells so, the first kid runs and puts their disk inside a hula hoop (square), then they run back, touch the hand of the next kid, then that child runs out and puts their disk in a square. Once all three square are down they keep running and moving their disks until one team has 3 in a row. Lots of fun once the kids learned the routine.

Tug of war has always been one of Hayden's favorites. He has sensory processing issues and is a sensory seeker. Using those big muscles in this manner just feels really good to him. He really gets in there and pulls with all his might. 

Hayden's final game was the last balloon obstacle thing. He loved it. Great way to end his elementary school field day experiences.

I had to leave right after this to get home. Institute lessons to prepare and other things to get done. But the drive home turned out to be interesting. The gas prices in Shelbyville were particularly low. I knew I wanted to stop in Shelbyville on my way home to fill up my car. It seems they took out a bridge while I was at field day on Highway 53. The traffic was re-routed onto Highway 362 and I ended up in Simpsonville a bit further west that I needed to be. Such is the nature of Kentucky back roads. I did stop in Shelbyville and filled up as I drove home from Simpsonville.

Great day in the sun with the Mini's.