It's Raining... bummer

Today was supposed to be an adventure. Mom (aka Oma) picked out an excursion and enticed Chi with the idea of being lost in the corn and seeing real cows up close (at a dairy farm). It sounded like a good plan to me, too.

I loaded up the car with the super sized stroller for Ya and the umbrella stroller for Chi who often gets "soooo tired" whenever she has to walk anywhere. I hooked up my GPS and prepared myself to fight with the chatty computer lady who is convinced I am directionally challenged as she says "in point five miles make a left then a right," rings her bell as I pass the turn instead of before it, and then says in what can only be described as frustration "recalculating route."

Mom was convinced that it was only a 30 minute drive, but the minutes ticked on beyond the calculation and the back seat driver announced "If you get lost, I'm never going on another adventure with you." Thank goodness Ya took the opportunity to nap and was not adding to the complaints.

The drive was quite scenic - old fashioned farm houses, silos, horses galloping, cows grazing, and tractor crossing signs flashed past the windows. The major problem I had was the lack of speed limits - - so I was forced to assume that if other cars were on my bumper I was too slow and if I saw flashing lights (gasp) I was too fast.

The rain drops began as a drizzle about five miles from our destination; but as we were already thirty or so miles into the trip, we continued on.

Eventually we saw the dairy farm destination and drove passed it going "There it is!" Lady GPS was convinced we had "point five miles" before our turn, so we hadn't slowed enough to actually arrive when we saw the place. Sometimes I really wonder what map and satellite feed her her information.

We turned into a parking lot (no doubt placed for tour buses to wait for their farm-touring passengers). It was a good place to stop for a few minutes, as we were interested in getting a closer look at several large cows and a trio of donkeys in a fenced area right in front of us. And then the drizzle turned into pelting rain as though God timed it to intensify as soon as Chi and I were out of the car. Ugghhh!

After taking a few pictures of the fearfully retreating donkeys

and the cows that insisted on moving closer to the barbed wire fence that contained them

Chi decided that her umbrella wasn't holding back the rain enough and retreated to the car for shelter.

We pulled out of the parking lot and turned into the farm's lot only to see a simple sign that read "Closed. Please visit us again soon. Thanks." Seriously?

And then Chi announced "I have to go to the bathroom." Of course the country store had "no public restrooms." The gas station with the cafe had "restrooms for staff only." And finally, the pizza joint some 15 miles down the long stretch of road toward home gave us relief. And the pizza? Fresh green peppers, olives, onions, and mushrooms. Thick sliced Italian sausage and un-greasy pepperoni. Sweet sauce. Crispy crust. A delectable slice of culinary heaven just a bit too far from home to be a regular lunch location. Somehow the cheesy pizza made the whole ride worthwhile.