Day of Adventure

We had quite a day today! We found our way to our friends' house in Mossville, which is enough adventure for me for one day, but that was just the beginning. We held their baby chicks, and the kids all played together nicely. When it was time to leave, I started backing out of their driveway and noticed that something was very wrong. I got out to investigate and discovered that my front tire was completely flat.

As I started getting out the jack and the owner's manual and wondering where the spare tire was stored, an angel appeared (OK, it was just my friend's husband coming home for lunch, but he sure looked angelic to me!). Not only was I blocking his spot in the driveway, but he also had to spend his lunch break changing my tire. He had it done in no time at all. In fact, it took me and my friend longer to get the spare. I had to locate a screw in the floor, then locate and assemble a tool to unscrew it and lower the tire, which was in a case that was nearly impossible to separate from the tire.

So we got back on the road again and headed over to Forest Park Nature Preserve, which is right on the way home. Fortunately I had packed snacks, jackets, and hiking shoes, because we used them all. It was perfect weather for exploring the woods. We had a picnic, and I had everyone use the facilities before we hit the trails. Nonetheless, both kids left plenty of scat in the woods and meadows. Something about the great outdoors always makes them have to go.

Next, we went to the Tire & Lube Center at Walmart to get the tire fixed. They said it was unfixable and wanted to sell me a new tire. It's a fairly new tire with lots of good tread left on it, so I said I would see if a mechanic could fix it. Took it to my favorite mechanic, and he said he could fix it, so that will get done tomorrow.

So we were gone all day, and things didn't go as I planned, but the kids learned a lot, and we had fun.