Run for the Roses

Q: What's the greatest two minutes of sports?

Hint:  It's this Saturday.

A: The Kentucky Derby - it's a thoroughbred horse race that began in 1875.  It is the first race of the Triple Crown, the other races are the Belmont Stakes and the Preakness.

Wanting to teach my son about his ancestral roots (though I've never been!), we began talking about the KY Derby today.  We began by printing roses using the end of celery.  The roses are symbolic because the winning horse eventually wears a garland of red roses.

Each of the boys had a picture of a horse and we quickly went over a it's anatomy.  Specifically stopping to talk about the animal's large nostrils which allows them to breath the massive amounts of air needed to run.  And, other random facts like: horses sleep standing up unless they feel safe enough to lie down (lay down? somebody help my grammar!) 

He and a friend were encouraged to print in the horseshoe, the shape of the horse's garland.  I was able to sneak in a geography lesson.  Mr. Intensity is pointing to KY.
Our friend, G, using the squeeze 'n brush paints for his popsicle horseshoe.
Later, we used the popsicle horseshoes to play a game, that was safe for two intense boys.  Mr. Intensity and G are similar in personalities.
Then we went to the creek across the street.

I'd planned for the boys to make sock horses to race, but they were too interested in playing outside.  "Go play!"  I say.

Other Derby Day fun:
Counting by 1s - I rescaled to 90% so that it would all fit on one page.

Horse dot to dot

Horse tail bookmark

Derby Party ideas and games.

On Saturday, friends are coming over and we'll be eating Hot Browns and quite possibly a Derby pie.  Mine will be a knock off, of course, b.c I'm not ordering the real thing.

So, what are you doing to celebrate the greatest two minutes in sports?