For two weeks, we had planned on taking the kids to Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show. Our son is obsessed with big machines, farming equipment in particular, and we knew they would enjoy the field trip -especially since Brad had booked the afternoon off of work to come with us!
The big day arrived and we piled into the van. The sky was looking pretty grey, but we had checked the forecast before we left and were assured that no rain would fall until 9:00 pm. Perfect!
Halfway there, a few big, fat raindrops splattered on our windshield. No matter, we still had half the drive left. Things could clear up by the time we arrived.
But they didn’t. It poured buckets; the hardest rain we’d had in weeks. The wipers were in overdrive and we finally conceded that there was no way our trip was going to work.
We turned around and headed back home. Not wanting to disappoint the kids, Brad and I racked our brains trying to come up with a different activity to do together.
I spotted a sign for a pet store along the road. A pet store! Usually they have animals to look at, right? Our kids love animals, maybe that would work.
We entered the store and the kids were immediately enthralled. Bunnies, parrots, hamsters, fish, reptiles, mice, a puppy, and two cats! They moved from cage to cage, watching each little critter with greatest of interest.
We walked down the aisles and discovered what each of the animals liked to eat, what they liked to play with, how they needed to be cared for, and where they liked to live.
So, while our original field trip didn’t go as planned, we still learned plenty…about animals instead of farm equipment.
Our original field trip included two expensive adult admissions, but this one was free!
Sometimes, the best opportunities for learning occur precisely when field trips don’t go as planned. Moral of the story? Education happens everywhere.
On rainy days.
In pet stores.
For free.