Saturday, August 28, 2010

The Greatest Show on Earth

This week the circus rolled into town. Not just any circus - Ringling Bros. Circus! I've always wanted to take the girls to the circus, and I just couldn't pass up the Ringling Bros. So I bought some tickets and away we went!


Lexington is one of the few cities that offers a "behind the scenes" animal display. We were able to get up close and personal with the horses, zebras, elephants, and tigers. Of course, the pachyderms were the biggest hit! While we were there they used a leaf blower to clean the dirt off the elephants' backs and then began strapping their circus goodies on their heads!




Inside Rupp Arena, we got to walk the floor and meet performers and see Asia the elephant paint a few pictures.

The actual circus was....amazing! They definitely do put on "the greatest show on Earth" - or at the very least, something close to it! Anna was completely spellbound and Libby sat completely still for the first hour (then we got cotton candy which inspired much wiggling and squirming).

We saw high jumping tumbling...

...and also jumping through the flaming hoop!

Lots of elephants standing on stools...
...and a few sitting on stools...
Even some elephants dancing on stools!
A Tiger Tamer teaching tigers some tricks...

...and I wonder what the fire extinguisher is for. There was no fire in this routine. Hmmmm.... =)
The ending show was also impressive (although not nearly as much as the beginning). Notice the wheel in the background. The performer on the wheel kept slipping while attempting to jump rope and run around the outside of the wheel. I thought for sure we'd have a flattened circus man before the end of the show. Fortunately, we did not!
If you get a chance, don't miss the circus! I'm already looking forward to the next time the Ringling Bros. Circus descends on Lexington!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Drumroll, please.......

...Introducing...

...the newest set of wheels in the Smith family...

A Toyota Camry!

Yeah, I know. Not the most exciting choice by a long shot. But, a good, solid, dependable car that's comfortable and welcoming, and most notably - practically made in my backyard, by my neighbors. Can't beat that!


A backstory for those who didn't hear - my old, beloved blue Camry started leaking oil and after taking it to a few mechanics, the insurance adjuster came to pay it a visit and decided that the leak was due to a cracked engine - a result of my accident last fall. So, our Camry is no more...

Then the hunt began.

I researched, and test drove, and talked with salesmen, and read reviews, had more test drives, bought a Mazda CX-7, returned a Mazda CX-7, talked with more ssalesmen, test drove some more, then landed on this pretty Barcelona Red Metallic Camry and couldn't pass it up. As a fun bonus, it comes equipped with a fancy stereo, alloy wheels (I don't get them?), and what I'm most excited about - a sun roof!


I love it!