I don’t want to go sit in the mud!

A neighboring community with a very Norwegian heritage was celebrating Syttende Mai (Norwegian Independence Day) and we went to check out the festival today. Bug wanted to go back to his favorite park again for pink lemonade, trains, and slides, but we kept reassuring him that we would find something fun to do at Syttende Mai. Finally, after several repetitions of this conversation, Bug announced "But I don't want to go sit in the mud." The resistance finally made sense and we explained that "Syttende Mai" wasn't "Sit in the mud," that we didn't want to sit in the mud either, and that there would be lots of fun things to do. The funny pronunciations and misunderstandings go both ways...last night, I couldn't figure out what Bug meant by a "monster in the van," until we finally realized he was talking about the "mustard on his pants" from yesterday's hot dog for lunch!

Some highlights from Syttende Mai include face painting (a heart-shaped Norwegian flag for Bean and a rainbow for Bug), a quilt and hardanger show (more fun for mom and dad), an arts festival where we bought a water balloon yo-yo that made it most of the way home, and lots of yummy food and drink stands. We headed home before the parade...obviously the planners didn't consider Bug and Bean's nap time when they made the schedule. Tired little ones and crankiness abounded by the time we headed back home!