I have a cool, crafty post complete with tutorial that’s all ready to go except for pictures. With any luck, I’ll get ‘em done this weekend. Until then, you get to read all about our trip to the petting zoo.

It’s county fair time here in the South, which was the perfect opportunity for Miss L and her class to head out for their first field trip. The 3- and 4-year-old classes at her school went to the 4-H petting zoo at the fair today, and I went along as a chaperone. I was in good company: I think there was an adult for just about every child there. It definitely made for a lower stress field trip to have those kinds of numbers.

I actually was a little uncertain about the outing when I woke up at 6 a.m. with what felt like a bear trap squeezing my head. I went back to sleep for another 2.5 hours and finally got up, not feeling any better. A dose of Extra-Strength Tylenol Allergy medicine with pseudoephedrine and a grande Frappuccino later and I felt a bit more functional (although that darn headache is still hanging around, if you can believe it — and it’s not even a migraine).

I’m glad I sucked it up and went on the field trip, though, because it was great fun to see my little sweetie checking out all the baby farm animals. She was particularly amused by the pigs, who were the loudest and most active of the bunch. I think she was most enamored by the ducklings, though. She was talking about them (“They’re so cute!”) and just watching them and touching them with utter wonder. My friend Teana actually held one (that’s her hand up there) and the student in the duckling corral was so kind to answer all of our questions.

All the kids had fun with these sawhorse “cows” that had “udders” (latex gloves filled with water) they could “milk.” I had a great laugh watching the bunny squirt water all over her legs. Surprisingly enough, Miss Clean-Me-Up-Now didn’t complain one bit.

While it was fun to sped the time with the kids and chat with some of my friends, I really felt like I needed a shower afer we left. Yeah, not a big fan of smelly farm smells. Still, it was worth it to watch 25 little suburban preschoolers experience a tiny slice of life on the farm for the first time.