Shrine Circus 2010

If you are not one of my siblings you will likely not understand the significance of circuses, much less THE Shrine Circus...  I have not been to the circus since Cara and I were dating, and while I seemed to believe it was in a bit of a slump in terms of attendance, I never was worried for what seemed to be an institution in Winnipeg...  This year though was the first time the circus moved away from the MTS Centre and actually moved closer to our house at the Red River Ex Grounds by the Assiniboia Downs, with the advance tickets being sold by a local insurance company and myself only finding out about it due to to internet searching...

We went with Ray & Myrna, not knowing what to expect.  It turns out that the circus was being held in a large building on the Ex Grounds, that could probably hold about 2000 - 4000 patrons if all the seats were full.  We waited in line to get the rush seats and as I walked in it was apparent this was not the Shrine Circus of my childhood.  The seats were portable bleachers, and the souvenirs were not like I recall having as a child.  There were no programs for kids to have signed by clowns, and no Shrine specific merchandise...  We got Teresa a clown head pen and I bought a raffle ticket along with the snacks we bought.  I should also add that a very generous Shriner gave us some food tickets so we got a free popcorn.  I am sure that Teresa did not think this a small circus, but it just felt smaller to me, without the elephants and lions of old...

Teresa's Pen

The circus itself had some major highlights with a great clown bit from a diving board and a really enjoyable balancing act...  I love the circus and I know that Teresa and Frances really seemed to enjoy it...

Waiting in line on the way in...

Keeping calm by picking dandelions...

Pony rides?  $8?  It's the circus, so of course! (I just wish it were still elephants...)

My favorite (and least PC part) of the Shriner procession, the oriental band.  Sadly they were down to 6 members.

The clowns!  If I were ever to be a Shriner, this is what I would be...  Of course it has nothing to do with Andrea being scared of them, just that they were awesome (ps for those wondering I did NOT see Popcorn there)

Teresa told Cara that Rowdy could do all the tricks because he was a very good dog.

Sitting on the bleachers with mommy

Grandma & Frances - the girls did well but were done after 2.5 hours, and the show went for 3.  Thanks also go out to Ray & Myrna for buying the tickets,

Did I mention I love the circus?  There are few times that I reminisce and think back to my childhood.  The circus is one of them, and I truly cherish the memories.  I miss those days where we visited the green house and then had treats and souvenirs then get autographs from the clowns...

The funny & enjoyable 'diving' act...

I thought for sure he was going to fall...

Perhaps I am getting overly sentimental and over-thinking such things but my dad tells me of the days when the Shriners parade was eons long and nowadays it was at most 100 people (my count was 65-70ish).  It worries me that service organizations are slowly disappearing...

ps: Congrats go out to Warren & Lindsay along with Kris & Susan who both had beautiful baby girls over the weekend (Ingrid & Anika respectively :).  Yay to friends having kids!  Next up: Ryan & Lisanne in June!!

Wanted

A friend or family member who is willing to teach a three year old the following skills involving make up:

1. Correct colour choice
2. Restraint
3. How to not look like a circus clown

I would do it, but I am too busy laughing and taking pictures, plus I know so very little when it comes to the womanly art of painting oneself.

Rainy Days

Rainy weekday mornings are perfect for:

Reading

Cuddles

Cracker Making.....

.....And Consuming.

In large quantities.

Then making a mess until nap time.

There are some days when the rain can make everything perfect.

Cruelty, Thy Name is Mommy

I will be the first to admit that I am amused by the predicaments my children can get themselves into. Frances is especially susceptible to this, seeing as she is a dare devil who knows no fear and all. So, when she gets herself into a jam because of this personality trait, my tendency is to first laugh, then take pictures, then rescue her. Some may be horrified by this attitude, but, no matter. I laugh more than most of them, and with Frances, laughter equals not suffering constant heart attacks. Because if you have met Frances, you will know that before her second birthday she will have fashioned herself a parachute and jumped off the roof, laughing the entire time. If I don't laugh with her, her actions will either rapidly turn my hair gray, or kill me, the jury is still out on which will come first.

Oh oh, looks like somebody tried to climb into a box that was much too tall

Yay, way to figure it out Frances!

Apparently, the sweet smell of success was not enough to make her happy

All better! All she needed was a hug from Mommy.

Teresa & Frances - 2 Clowns in the Making

So, Teresa and Frances are for the majority of the time each other's best friends and at least once a day each other's worst enemies...  The girls love making each laugh.  Most days begin with Teresa coming to our room for a cuddle until Frances wakes up and then she sprints to the crib, climbs up it so she is above Frances and then Frances plays what I call "flopping fish".  Basically, Frances stands up, then falls over and laughs, then Teresa laughs.

Next Frances stands back up.  Guess what comes next?

If you guessed "Frances flops the other way and laughs, then Teresa laughs", you were correct.   This game can continue ad nauseam until either Cara or I pluck Frances from her crib.

Beyond that, Teresa is constantly concerned for her sister chasing her down, dragging her around and screaming at mommy and daddy if she is at all concerned.  This of course sometimes back fires, like when Teresa tries to make Frances 'safe' when she is crouched on a perch she can get down from.  This normally involves putting Frances off-balance and then some tears, either from Teresa of Frances...

Beyond that, the girls play so well together.  When one or the other is not around, they are sad and look for the other one...  Teresa pulls Frances into her boat to play where they laugh and smile together...  I could spend all day just watching them play.  Of course this ignores those moments I will, like all good Yost men, eventually forget like the day I was fixing my bike and I stepped out of the garage to check on the girls, just as Teresa was giving Frances a 2-handed shove in the back to the ground...

Beyond that both girls find ways to constantly amuse us.  Frances is a climber who will stop our hearts and make us laugh at her insanity.  A couple of days ago I caught her trying to climb into the bathroom sink, all you can do is laugh.  I guess this would be a good time to mention that she can also climb up and down stairs...

As for Teresa, here is her most recent ridiculously funny moment.  I could never have thought of this with my silly [ed note: quasi-]mature mind.  Teresa wears "monkey toes".  Here are the pics:

Finally, a use for those silly gloves the previous owners left for us!