Airshow!

My baby is 1.  I'm in denial.

It was a loooooong week filled with a nasty cold for Mommy and late nights crafting for the party. Jude's sleep schedule was all out of whack thanks to our trip to the Jacksonville Airshow and the time change. Despite the sleepiness, we had a terrific celebration of Jude's first year. ....but I'm not gonna talk about that today.  I'll do that later this week, I hope.  With all the party prep, I didn't get around to sharing our trip to the airshow.

This trip idea blossomed back in the summer when we checked out the book Airshow from the library.  Eli was intrigued by it and wanted to go see an airshow.

Around this same time, we implemented a "jewel jar" in our house.  Positive, expected behaviors are rewarded by jewels going into the jar, and jewels are taken out of the jar as a consequence.

We set up family rules, and a checklist of chores and expected behaviors.  

 

It has helped make discipline a bit more consistent around here.  Eli is a spirited kid and still has to work hard, but overall, this reward system has helped.  When I first introduced the idea of the "jewel jar", Eli and I brainstormed what we should do when he earned a specified number of jewels.....and the first thing out of his mouth was, "Go to an airshow!!"  It was the prize of all prizes, and after many months of earning (and losing) jewels, he finally got to spend 150 of his hard earned jewels on an airshow.

It was an awesome experience for all of us.  It was a free event; open to the public.  We traveled over the night before and stayed at a hotel so that we could get up early and park easily.  (side note: the hotel was an awful experience...Jude couldn't sleep with us all in the room, kept Eli up too late, and obviously kept us up too.  We'll have to come up with another plan the next time we need to travel and stay at a hotel....adjoining rooms???) 

There was so much to see and do once we got in there.  The day started off with a truck with two rocket engines on its back tearing down the runway.  What a way to start the day!!  Holy cow!  After that, planes were taking off every 1/2 hour...doing tricks, flying fast, dropping parachuters, all kinds of cool stuff.

 

 

There were planes and helicopters to walk around and look at, and some you could go inside and sit in the cockpit.  Once Eli got over his shyness, he would ask lots and lots of questions to all of the pilots and officers.  They all got a big kick out of him.

 "When do you use your weapons?" 

"When we see bad guys."

"Or like when you want to catch a shark."

Hilarious stuff.  Before we left, the weather had been mild, warm really, so I had pulled out shorts and t-shirts to wear.  I double checked the weather and saw a cold front was coming through, so I swapped it out for clothes appropriate for the forcasted "64 degrees, mostly sunny, and windy."  Ummmmm.  No.  Try completely cloudy, never saw the sun, never broke 60 degrees, and 20 mph winds.  It was ridiculously cold.  Mommy blew it and not one of us was dressed correctly.  Daddy was in shorts and ended up buying a big jacket, but poor Eli was a popsicle.  His lips were purple most of the day.

Glad I brought in a blanket to help keep Jude bundled up.  It was cold, windy, and loud. My boys in protective earmuffs = just too cute for me.  Don't you love how they squished Jude's chubby cheeks?

After walking around the airshow for almost 5 hours in the windy cold, we decided to head back to the car to warm up a bit.  We cranked up the heater and got out of the wind while we waited for the day's main event.....the BLUE ANGELS!

 

None of us had ever seen them perform, and we were totally psyched to see their show.  Eli had been looking forward to it more than anything else.  Unfortunately, the lack of sleep from the night before and the cold had finally taken its toll on the boys.  Especially E.  He was exhausted.  He tried to keep it together for the first part of the show.  It was so loud and so awesome!

Eventually, Eli curled himself up into a ball in Jude's stroller. He would look up every once in a while, but sadly, he was done. For me, the show was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced.  Matt agreed.  I can't seem to find the right words to describe just how amazing the show was. We definitely want to do it again...soon.  Next time, I think we may just show up an hour or so before the Blue Angels fly to be sure we don't overdo it again.

To top off the awesome day, we were able to meet up with some of Matt's family that lives over in Jax.  We had dinner with his aunt, uncle, and cousins, and stayed the night with another cousin's family.  A truly incredible weekend.  .....the only downside was the travel + time change made a mess out of the boys' sleeping patterns.  We are only just now (over a week later) slipping back into a sense of rhythm again.  Sigh.  Still worth it in my book.  Already looking forward to the next time.