We Belong In The Circus!

In May of each year, the Shriners (yes, these are the men that wear the funny hats and collect money at intersections, in front of stores, etc.) host a Shrine Circus to raise money to keep their Temple open and running. My dad (the boys' Didi) is a Shriner and really holds close to his heart the basis for which the Shrine was started in the first place. The Shrine is a not-for-profit fraternity of sorts that raises money for Shrine Hospitals. Shriners Hospitals for Children is a one-of-a-kind international health care system of 22 hospitals dedicated to improving the lives of children by providing specialty pediatric care, innovative research and outstanding teaching programs. Children up to the age of 18 with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries and cleft lip and palate are eligible for admission and receive all care in a family-centered environment at no charge regardless of financial need.
Going to the Shrine Circus has become a tradition for my boys. They love the rides, food, and circus animals that they have there. This year Todd was not able to go with us, so Carter, Jackson and I loaded up and headed to Jim R. Miller Park in Marietta for a fun-filled evening! The boys had a great time while we were there! Here are some pictures of our wonderful evening!

Oh, one more thing...you will notice that there is "someone" very special in some of the pictures. This is Corduroy, the class mascot in Carter's class. He got to go home with each of the boys and girls in the class several times this year. On this particular night, it was Carter's turn to have Corduroy! Because we had to write about their adventures, Corduroy had to come along with us! He was a very sweet bear and listened very well!

Carter, Jackson and Corduroy getting ready to go into the circus!

Carter plays the duck game and picks a winner!

Jackson had a hard time choosing which duck he wanted. He finally settled on one and won big!

Jackson waits patiently to ride the Shriner train!

Carter and Corduroy are ready to ride!

Carter strikes a pose on his motorcycle while Jackson is too focused to smile...he was just ready to ride!

The Dizzy Strawberry...mommy had to ride this with them (I was SO not happy as I do not love spinning around fast!)

Carter and Jackson get ready to ride the Chinese Dragon roller coaster!

Here we go! Carter and Jackson loved the roller coaster! If you look closely, you can see that Jackson has his hands raised!

Carter wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel so Mommy rode it with him! He loved it!