Lunch was not made - there simply wasn't time after the blueberry debacle. I finished getting the kids ready and off the five of us headed to the big city. Everyone was in a good mood and I am extremely happy to report that we stayed that way for the entire day!
We made it to the museum in record time and the fun quickly began. Thankfully we had a free pass to get so that saved us close to $50!! We went right to the fun stuff. I had wanted to bring the stroller in and Daddy vetoed that idea in favor of keeping up with J. I think that was the only negative because I had to keep with my diaper bag and all the coats. Next time - bring a stroller. Right away there was a tricycle car wash area where the kids were able to ride their trikes through a pretend carwash. S tried to pull L but she was way too heavy for him. L loaded J on her trike, S rode alone - all was good. They got a rush out of riding through there. The giggles and fun started there and didn't end until we left 2 hours later. Next up there was an art studio where the kids made gingerbread men, painted on a castle and played in a real gingerbread house. J played on the sand table while all the fun creative play was going on. From there we headed up another level where there was a 3 and under room. I stayed there with J while Daddy took the other 2 off to explore the rest of the museum. J LOVED this room. Everything was his level and he had a ball. He climbed the stairs and headed over to this fenced part where he stood and giggled and laughed for a solid five minutes. It was absolutely wonderful to have this time to play with J. I think it might have been one of the first times he has played with kids his own size. We don't have anyone close by that his kids his age. The closest is 2 years old. J went from one to the other playing in that room. He pushed the button to play the bell, crawled underneath the crawl space, went down the slide and played in the play kitchen. I went right along with him, enjoying every second of it. We left there after an half hour or so to find the rest of our family. We found them at the race car exhibit. The kids would push the cars and the cars would race down and end up at the bottom. L & S enjoyed this one the most. S could have stayed there for hours sending those cars racing to the end. L ditched it for something more exciting though - driving a pretend motorcycle! There was a pretend race car and motorcycle. J was upset because I had to hold him in this area = he was getting ran over by the bigger kids. Daddy Piper took J through the noodles and he didn't enjoy that one bit. I took J back to the 3 and under room. On the way, we passed through the noodle thing and I wanted to try it. YIKES - I was totally having an anxiety attack and J was crying. I was hyperventilating because I felt claustrophobic. And I think my mini me felt the same way. Boy aren't we quite the pair. Back to the 3 and under room we went - safety :-) J and I finished up our museum trip in that room while Daddy Piper and the kids enjoyed the rest of the exhibits.
We were hungry at this point so it was off to find some grub. On the drive in, L remembered a Barrel kind of place was somewhere around here. She couldn't quite remember the name of the whole place but it was some kind of barrel (Cracker Barrel). She eventually saw a sign for it and was delighted when we chose that place for lunch.
Lunch went off without a hitch. Everyone ate great. J was the destructive monster, like usual. He just isn't the kid to sit still without having something to occupy him. He was taking his plate and holding it up to his mouth and eating lunch off it that way. He is just a way different child than L or S ever was. I know a parent isn't supposed to compare but it happens sometimes. As we were almost done with our lunch, an older gentleman came over and said "Picture perfect family" and complimented us on our family and in particular, the children's behavior. Gosh - that felt awesome! I did say though that he must not have seen Destructo in the corner : -)
We snagged some candy sticks and headed out. Naps were next up on the agenda. We did have to make a quick stop at the library for S to go #2. He had to go baaaaaaddddd and couldn't hold it one more second and the library was the closest stop. Back in the van, headed to the house. We got everyone settled down after more kids went #2 (what is up with that - they all had to go!!). Daddy Piper, J and myself napped while L & S just rested for their required hour.
After naps, S and I ran to Target to get the gingerbread house I forgot last night (when I totally rocked at coupon shopping - got $164 worth of stuff for $32 and that includes the last of my Christmas shopping. To date Christmas has cost us less than $200!!). S was buckled in the van and mentioned that the next Target trip, he wanted to bring his shopping cart. I surprised him by pulling back in the drive and grabbing it quick. The quick shopping trip was so bonding for us. I like having time alone with the kids like that. I think some of the best conversations we have are in the car.
Dinner was chicken and noodles, per S request. My chicken and black bean concoction I put in the crockpot this morning was a flop :-(
After dinner, the kids played and then had their bath where they were super wild. They watched Shrek the Halls and I nursed J to sleep then we decorated the gingerbread train with the big kids. I tried not to be obsessive about what goes where (SHOCKER!!) and just have fun and it worked - we had fun!!
The day went so well. No nasty exchanges or snide comments, well behaved children - all combined made for a very nice day!!!
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