Bella under the Big Top!

We recently took Bella and Sam to see their first circus, the Shriner's Circus. We were pleasantly surprised that the show had elephants and lions as oppose to the worlds biggest midget or the bearded mermaid. We just were not sure what to expect with a smaller circus, I mean we all know that Ringling Brothers is a big show but I had never been to the Shriner's Circus. It was a little long, three hours to be exact, but the kids held up well. And what made the show so long was the fact that they invited all the kids down to the floor during intermission to ride on the elephants, horses, camels, and lions. Just kidding, no lion rides;) So Bella was able to ride on Elphie! Boy, was she excited! I was a bit conflicted about it because I'm not a huge circus fan, I always wonder how well the animals are really treated, but on the other hand this was her one chance to get this close to her beloved elephants. So I sucked it up & we took her down to the ring. She was a little apprehensive at first but as soon as she saw us standing on the sidelines waving to her she was then all smiles. If the Shriner's Circus comes to town it's worth the cheap tickets, free parking, and $8 animal rides. Plus proceeds help the Shriner's kids.