Fall is the time for festivals here in Des Moines and this year they all seemed to happen in one weekend! Every September we make a point to go to the Beaverdale Fall Festival. I lived in Beaverdale growing up and the Fall Fest was always a huge deal. Elizabeth's preschool is in Beaverdale so the last two years we've gone on the preschool's float.
Since the weekend was so busy, we skipped the World Food and Music Festival even though it's one of our faves. Instead we got a start on our Tour of Pumpkin Patches (read aboutWeekend 1 here) and spent an afternoon at the Monarch Festival at the Blank Park Zoo.
The kids love throwing candy out at the parade. They loved it so much that they ran out of candy after first 15 minutes of the parade. We made note to bring even more candy for next year. Max had the waving thing down as he yelled out "hi!" to the crowds of people.
After the parade, the minis and I went to the carnival, ate lunch, grabbed chocolates from Beaverdale Confections (our favorite chocolate store in Des Moines), and walked around the shops. We went home for extra long naps and then made our way to my parents house. My parents live just a few blocks away from all of the Fall Fest action. After dinner we sat on the deck and listened to the bands play at the festival. The boys talked Aunt Jenny into a Disney game before we left. I took my sister's dog and rambunctious littlest mini on a walk.
On Sunday we stopped by the Blank Park Zoo for the Monarch Festival. The kids were able to catch butterflies, tag them, and learn all about nature in Iowa. Their favorite part of the Festival was the mariachi band playing while they ate a snack.
Elizabeth spent a good hour dancing to the band.
It was a great and very busy weekend! I really wish we had the time to go to the World Food and Music Festival as it's one of our favorite Fests in Des Moines, but we're counting on attending next year!