The Magic of the Circus

I got the privilege of sharing in yet another right of passage of childhood...taking my sons to see the circus for the first time. I knew they would love it, but I was not prepared for some of the excited reactions. It is true...when you witness the look of sheer pleasure, excitement, and wonder on the faces of your own children, the feeling is indescribable. Thank you Ringling Bros. You were amazing when I was a child, but even more amazing as I shared you with my own children.

These next two pics are poor representations of the spectacular finish. Color, confetti, acrobats, animals, clowns, the whole bit out on the floor in a grand finale of fun.

Since we were enjoying the show from our wonderful private box (like Disney on Ice), some of my camera shots aren't the best. These were some acrobats doing all kinds of cool stunts on these long poles. Ethan thought it was cool because they were dressed as bugs and the poles were supposed to be grass. He caught the symbolism which was really cool for me.

One of my favorite features have always been the elephants and the tigers. The giddiness I felt was quite nostalgic. The kids were in awe that 1)animals as big as elephants could do tricks and not squish each other, 2) elephants would hold each other's tails and 3) that man in the cage with the tigers was so brave.

The only bad part about the box was the trapeze...the artists were behind the scaffolding most of the time. Otherwise the box gave you a more complete view of everything happening. Here is one of the only pics I was able to get...

I distinctly remember this bit from my own childhood - the round cage in which several motorcycles drive in circles without crashing. Of course, when I was a kid, I remember a man walking along the outside of the cage as it spinned through the air as well. My boys thought this was the coolest thing they've ever seen - even cooler than monster trucks!

Of course, running a close second in "coolness" was the guy who drove the motorcycle on the high wire with a girl swinging below...then they proceeded to spin around the wire without falling off.

These guys did all kinds of fun tricks on these big, bouncy inner tubes - a lot of flipping. Ethan said he wanted to try it. Mom envisioned busted heads... :)

And, of course, colorful costumes and horses are a staple. Noah thought most of the horses looked like unicorns, because of the big feathery thing they wear on the top of their heads. Course, the only pic I managed to get DID NOT have a feathery thing...oh, well.
Here are 2 very satisfied circus customers. I'd ask them what their favorite part was. It kept changing about every 5 minutes. "the motorcycles! No, wait...the tigers! No, my mostest favorite was the elephants!..."