A trip to the Royal Show

As a kid I very rarely went to the show and I can't remember going with my Mum. So when I saw that kids were free this year I really wanted to take all 3. Andrew and I talked about it for a few days and then decided it was a go He takes a more casual, laid back approach whereas I start planning. Having 3 kids who can get lose or wander easily I started thinking about safety. As it was a one off I made a lanyard with our details. On the front was my photo and on the back a little blurb:
ie My name is Sam and my Mum on the front is Vanessa. If lost please call....or my Dad Andrew on....
For Miss A I also included a small note saying she has special needs but nothing more. These were tucked into their shirts so they were hidden until needed. We also talked about safety and stranger danger. Miss A doesn't understand why she can't walk away and will talk to anyone. I explained that if lost they were to stay still and wait. If a policeman came up to them they would show their tag and give their details. Under no circumstance were they to walk away or find us.

We had a single pram for Miss L and the other 2 were walking. As soon as we arrived I took a photo of them on my phone. If they got lost we could show what they looked like and what they were wearing. We walked in a side gate which was a bit quieter and it meant we didn't get lost in the crowds. It was nearly 12pm so time for lunch. To save money we took water and lunch so we could eat when we wanted. First off we walked around a bit and saw the horses. Both kids wanted to have a ride and the ponies were a favourite. When Mr J went on I walked next to him carrying Miss L so she could pat the pony and have a cuddle.

When we sat down for lunch I said we should put more suncream on. Andrew had packed while I took J to swimming so when he pulled the cream out I had a laugh. It was tinted moisturizer with zinc!! Miss A and Miss L are a bit darker so it didn't look too bad when I slathered them in foundation but Mr J would have looked ridiculous. Note to self check all bags before we leave in the future.

We then went to the kids rides section where both big kids had a few rides when all of a sudden Miss L decided she wanted to join in. All 3 kids went on the car ride and Miss L had a ball. She definitely shares her sisters love of adventure. Mr J at that age would have screamed the place down.

Next off was the Peppa Pig show. Sadly they got full early so Miss A missed out. Straight away she was screaming and crying and heading into a meltdown. A few minutes and she was getting worse not better. The lady on the door came over and offered to open the side door even if we couldn't see well just to calm her down. I was so happy that someone wanted to help instead of judging or being rude. In the end we went to the side door and had an amazing view. Nothing calms Miss A down like watching Peppa Pig.

 

 

Next step was show bag choices. Oh my God have they gotten better over the years. There were Barbie bags for $25 and and novelty chocolate bags over $40. In the end the kids couldn't decide so we picked 2 lolly bags and mixed them up for the kids. The best of both worlds. We were at the 4 hour mark now and while we hadn't see everything we all were getting tired and Miss L desperately wanted to walk. We sat down at the arena for a rest and the big kids loved watching the horses showing off. At this point I was tired of watching them so closely and worrying about leaving one behind. We had only spent about $150 so our budgeting had worked well and the kids had a blast.

Time to head home and have a rest.