Some of you know this and some of you don't, but other than Fringe I really try hard to avoid crowds. I am never comfortable in a big group of anonymous people. That's cool. I know some people love it, but as a result of my anxiety I try to minimize my exposure to them! So what we did this year was instead of going to Heritage Days we went to Fort Edmonton Park. There were still quite a few people there, but I imagine compared to the packed Hawrelak Park, we were in good shape. We also went early in the day so the morning was delightful! 
I really like Fort Edmonton Park, and so do the boys. We started at the Mid-Way. Oliver was keen to hit the Ferris Wheel and Gibson was tall enough to go on without a parent so the two of them rode it together. Gibson's cries of "Let me off! It's too high!" were a bit of a surprise, but he actually went back for a second ride later so it obviously wasn't too traumatizing. They played the midway games and won some cool prizes. The staff were lots of fun, chatting in a newsies-like accent and being extra generous with the prizes. After spending a few tickets we boarded the train and rode out to the Fort. It's interesting to see the boys at different ages at Fort Edmonton Park. Oliver has been on some school field trips out there and he clearly retained the knowledge explaining a few of the activities and locating the public bathrooms quickly when needed. They also have their favorite things to do so we took in some mini-golf and giant checkers followed by ice cream. Gibson was particularly interested in watching the interpreters make Rabbit Stew. I think he was hoping to get to be a taster but it wasn't ready for that! We also got to take in the new Capitol Theatre. It's something else! I have seen a play there before so I knew about some of the bells and whistles but the boys were new to it so that was very fun to see. I really liked the demonstration movie and felt that it suited the Park as well as showing off the Theatre. I am going to keep an eye out for the movies they show in hopes there will be one that the boys will be interested in seeing there. Before we left, Oliver needed one last Ferris Wheel ride so Gibson and I went window shopping in the gift shop while Dad waited for Ollie. We were there for about five and a half hours and there was lots to do and keep the boys engaged and entertained. Lots of walking and lots of seeing. All in all a great Heritage Day weekend outing.
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