"If ya ain't Dutch, ya ain't Much"

I have not been to Tulip Time since I was a little kid, but I married "one of those dutch guys from Pella/Osky" and I figured it was about time we went to see what it was all about.

We headed down Friday morning, picked up Shawn's mom, and started our day at the What Cheer fleamarket. (an Awesome flea market that they have twice a year. Lots of antiques for a fairly reasonable price!)

Then we swung back by the house to meet Shawn's Dad and pulled into Pella just in time to catch the 2:30 parade!

Kallen is in that wonderful phase where he insists on walking instead of riding as much as possible:

Apparently one of the best things about Tulip Time is the food
(although it all just seemed like fair food to me)

I am usually not a fan of funnel cake, but my m.i.l. introduced us to this funnel cake topped with fresh strawberries and whipped cream and I have to say it was pretty good!
Kallen has always had a special bond with his "Papa" and he was in heaven all day- having Papa's undivided attention. :)
Lincoln got lots of cuddle time with Grandma! :)

At one point during the parade Kallen looked back, spotted this man, pointed, and said "Uh Oh!"

You can't go to tulip time without getting a picture in front of the tulips!

I'm not sure why I thought this would be possible with a 2 year old and a 6 month old.
Most of our attempts ended up like this:

(Lincoln was mesmerized by the tulips and would not take his eyes off of them)

I guess in Pella there is a $100 fine for each tulip that you break.

In my attempt to get a decent picture, I asked Kallen to give Lincoln a hug.

He, ever so sweetly, hugged his little brother then quickly let go, knocking Lincoln off balance and sending him backwards into the flowers.

Oops! Please don't tell anyone!

After that we high tailed it out of there to go visit Shawn grandparents who live a few blocks away from all of the action.

It has been so cold lately, it was really nice to get out and go for a walk!

Kallen spent most of the time turned around, playing with his brother.

I just LOVE that Lincoln is getting old enough now to interact!

I'd say our first family Tulip Time was a success!

It was SO good to spend time with family, and see a part of Shawn's dutch heritage.

An overall review: it was very crowded, and the parade was close to 2 hours long, but Pella has such neat little shops and the tulips were all beautiful!!!

I'd say, if you are not a fan of big crowds, you could just head to Pella the week before or after and get pretty much the same experience! (plus you can go to Jaarsma without having to stand in a ridiculously long line. And no we did not even bother.)