Our Family "Stay-cation"

Fall break was upon us. The kids had 3 days off school and we were ready for a little family vacation. We tossed around several ideas but all of them involved either too much money, too much time in a car, or too much driving. Then we came up with the perfect solution...a "stay-cation". We wouldn't actually leave the house (or the state) but we would play hard, eat lots of ice-cream, and still sleep in our own beds at night. Husband and I consulted the kids...each one of them got to plan a day and amazingly enough, it was pretty unanimous. All they wanted was one night in a hotel with a swimming pool. Who knew you could satisfy 3 kids for the mere price of a 2-star hotel and a little pool?? That's my kind of economy.

So we started our adventure.

Thursday we began our stay-cation with a bang...hubby made pancakes with all manner of assorted mix-ins...bananas, chocolate chips, chocolate syrup...you name it, he can figure out how to incorporate it into a pancake. We then packed some snacks, made a lunch, and headed off for the zoo! The weather was perfect, the new carousel was open for riding, and the animals were relatively active. Especially the tiger...we sat and watched him chew on a raw femur bone for a long time. What could be more fun or animalistic than that?

After the zoo, we headed home for a little relaxation. Hubby took the 3 kids out to choose some ice-cream for dessert...they came home with 3 different containers. Apparently they couldn't agree on just ONE flavor and since we were on "stay-cation", hubby just let them each get their flavor. I thought the choices were very telling...JC chose lime sherbet, MC chose rootbeer float, and HC chose the pinkest bubble gum you've ever seen. We ate ourselves silly and watched a movie. Perfect. MY kind of vacation.

Next day, we headed out a little further from home. We drove "up north"...the furthest our children have been in this state (Just to clarify...our children have done lots of traveling and have even been OUT of the state...we've just never taken them north before). We stopped to tour Grandma and Grandpa Green's new apartment...my favorite moment was when Grandma asked the 3 kids who liked teddy bears. Well the boys were way too cool to admit they liked something as cute and cuddly as a teddy bear so Grandma calmly took HC's hand and led her in to the next room where she explained that HC could chose a little bear from the basket and take it home with her. The boys watched the whole scene very quietly but with very large eyes. Next thing I know, I hear the boys in the next room desperately trying to apologize to Grandma and explain WHY they had originally said what they did but how she had misunderstood what they meant. I loved listening to the boys beg and grovel and suspected Grandma was enjoying the whole thing as well. Eventually she let them off of the hook and they got to choose a bear as well. Funny thing...they have clutched and cuddled those bears since we left their house. Being cool can be such a conflict!

We continued driving until we reached our next destination...the Aerospace Museum. This is a museum with really cool, really big, really neat airplanes and helicopters and missiles and all manner of "flying" stuff. The kids loved looking at things for about 20 minutes and then I suspect it started to all look the same to them. A little bit of whining ensued until we stumbled upon the gold mine...a whole section filled with hands-on, try-on, play-with things to do! We spent a good chunk of time exploring things in this wing of the museum.

I spent a good deal of time launching the space shuttle. I kept waiting for the little computer to ask who the dummy was trying to figure out the launch sequence but it was very polite and gave me plenty of time to figure things out. I can't tell you the thrill I felt when the shuttle finally launched...not enough of a good feeling to make me want to go back to college and take math and science but satisfying enough to make me feel competent. It was a fun museum.

Next stop...La Quinta Inn. Like I said...nothing but the best (and cheapest possible) for this little family. We quickly got on our swimming suits and headed downstairs to swim and frolic and play. The kids loved it! As soon as we were saturated, we headed back upstairs to bathe, change and head out for some dinner. I couldn't believe how hungry we were. We sat down to a Mexican feast and hubby and I had to laugh at how fast the kids were devouring their food. We actually had to go back for some chips and salsa...and popsicles...and cookies on the way home. Stay-cations sure can make you hungry!

Next morning we dined on the continental breakfast (JC was disappointed because they didn't have any sausage...what is a stay-cation without bacon or sausage!), watched a little Cartoon Network and Disney Channel (real stay-cation treats when all you have at home is basic cable), a little more swimming, and we were off. This time we headed to a fabulous children's museum called the Treehouse. It was so very, very, very fun! One of the best children's museums I have ever been to. We ended up spending about 4 hours there and only left because it closed and they kicked us out. We planted gardens, played school, drove a firetruck, climbed a tree, slid down a slide, played life-size chess, did art projects, went to story time, acted in a play, played with dolls and dress-ups, visited the White House, met Abraham Lincoln...it was some serious fun.













After the kicked us out of the museum, we started making our way south again. We stopped for a quick bite to eat at a classy Wendy's restaurant that smelled a little like urine and had some serious customer service issues...like the sweet older lady that would take your order and then shuffle away into the dark corners somewhere and not reappear for a very long time. But who is complaining when it is ANOTHER restaurant you get to eat out at (remember we have relatively young and easy to impress children). We stopped in SLC where we went out to get some delicious, organic yogurt with Mo and Papa. (Forget that we had just had Frosties...when Papa called and asked if they could take us out for ice-cream, I started to explain that unfortunately we had just had Frosties until hubby shushed me from the driver's seat and explained that we were on "Stay-cation" which meant we could eat as much ice-cream as we wanted whenever we wanted...at this point I think the kids just thought this was the greatest stay-cation they had ever had and were raking on the extra toppings and eating with wild abandon!) But alas...even fantastic stay-cations must come to an end. We arrived home very tired, very full of sugary treats, and ready for bed.

It was a fabulous mini-vacation. I learned that you do not have to go very far from home (or even really leave your home!) to have a great, relaxing vacation. Just unplug your phones, get yourselves a few containers of ice-cream, find some new places to explore, and go crazy!

Happy Birthday MC!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Gardner Village 2008

Make a Smilebox slideshow

4th Day of School

OK…so the first day of school was a breeze…a no-brainer. I was really starting to feel pretty arrogant about how well the whole "school" thing was unfolding…and then we hit day 4. Approximately 15 minutes before we were supposed to leave and pick up our carpool kids, I asked MC to go get dressed. He simply looked and me and said, "No." I wasn’t overly concerned until I asked him again 5 minutes later, with 10 minutes until departure time, and he still calmly but firmly answered, "No". I girded my loins, grabbed his clothes and marched into the family room with 5 minutes until take off. He heard me coming and before I could reach the side of the couch, he was crouching defensively on one side of the kitchen island, safely out of reach. "MC, I’m not going to ask you again. It is time to get dressed for school. We are going to be late picking up the other kids. You need to put your clothes on." It may have been my imagination but I swear he growled at me.

Just a side note for those of you who thought having an island in the middle of the kitchen was a pretty slick idea. I’m going to let you in on something. That same island that you thought would be a stunning, convenient addition to your kitchen will prove to be the very thing that will one day back you into a bad place, a dark, lonely, desperate corner. Picture this…your 5-year old son doesn’t want to get dressed and go to kindergarten. He is on one side of the island and you are facing him from the other side. To make things worse, you are wearing socks and it’s a hard wood floor. Your hands are full of clothes and you are eyeing each other like boxers in a ring. You make a move, he moves with you. You attempt to move the other way and he has already anticipated your move…he slides the other direction. You could try to chase him but who are you kidding. He is barefoot AND 5 years old and your body is not what it once was…especially taking those slippery corners. You can threaten him but it doesn’t do any good because you know you can’t catch him. Suddenly you hear the front door open. Your 3-year old is wandering outside but if you change positions, you know that 5-year old will make a break for it and catching him outside is not only tricky but you know this child is not above pulling out all the stops and screaming at the top of his lungs, "Help! Someone please help me!" and you don’t know how many more times you can convince the neighbors next door that he is just a really dramatic child and you aren’t really beating him. He smells the fresh air and eyes the open door. You crouch. You may only have one chance and you have to be ready. He moves and after a slippery start, you’re after him. He makes it out into the grass before you throw the clothes into the air and body slam him on the grass. You’ve got him and you are ready. You grab the screaming 5-year old under your arm, throw open the door to the mini-van, toss him in and yell at your 3-year old to get in or get left behind because you are a grown-up on a mission and getting this child to kindergarten precedes all other things (including whether the 3-year old is actually wearing pants or shoes). You grab his clothes, attempt to fasten the seat belt, slam the door and lock it before he has time to unbuckle and get it open. You pause for a moment…he may be screaming bloody murder, but he’s in and for a moment you taste victory.

OK…so I’m not saying I’m sure that’s how it is for people but I’ve just heard.

We pick up the other 2 kids and MC stops crying. I figure he has it out of his system and he will have a chance to cool down before we get to school. All is well…until we pull up to the kindergarten doors. Before I even stop the car, he is flattened against the seat in the back where not only can I not reach, but I have difficulty "fitting". The other 2 kids get out and back away slowly, unwilling to look away but too frightened to stay close. I gently try to coerce MC to the front. I flatter him, bribe him, threaten him, and finally reach in with my super human stretchy arms, grab him by the back of the shirt and drag him around to the door. I then have to completely undress him and redress him in something akin to "Sunday" clothes (blasted school uniform…which I actually love but hate trying to get on a coiled, angry kindergartener). Other parents are pulling up to drop off their children and mine is literally on the sidewalk with me on top, my knee pinned on top of his chest to keep him down while I try to force on a pair of socks. I’m sweating, he’s screaming, and people really don’t want to get involved but they can’t look away. It is a bad car accident happening right on the sidewalk in front of the kindergarten door. I’m afraid someone is going to call Child Protective Services so I keep trying to wave my hands and roll my eyes and say, "Ha. Kids! Aren’t they great?" but no one is buying my forced complacency and they’re dying to see who is going to win the battle. HB is sitting in her car seat singing to her herself. It has become her defense mechanism.

Finally, it is over. MC is standing there in a uniform and I look a little flushed and disheveled but we are ready. I walk him into his classroom where he takes one look at his teacher and the whole class sitting serenely on the rug for "circle time" and he grabs my leg and screams, "Please don’t leave me! Mom, please don’t leave me!" Suddenly this child that I wanted to string up a minute ago is tugging at my heart strings so hard that I’m afraid I’m going to grab him and make a run for the door. What am I doing? I can’t leave him here. He is sad. He wants his mom. He has great big, blue eyes and delicious cheeks and he needs me to rescue him from kindergarten. I’m frozen in place. I can’t move. Finally his teacher gently takes MC and tells me to go. She can handle it and he will be fine. I back out of the classroom reluctantly. Will he really be fine? He is screaming my name. He wants me. I can’t leave him here.

I wander out to the car bewildered. What just happened here? I drive away slowly with a heavy heart and really wild hair. No one warned me a mother could feel 2 opposing extreme emotions in such a short amount of time. I fret for 3 hours.

And then he bounds home as if nothing has happened. Life is good and he earned a green card and he loves school and I’m wondering if my child is bi-polar and needs medication. While I wonder about him, I feel pretty certain about me. If this is kindergarten with MC, I’m going to need to be medicated. Heavily. I head in to my room and to take a long nap. I’m going to need all my strength to face day 5.

First Day of School...2 Months Ago

Ah…the first day of school. Crisp, unstained shirts, pants with the knees intact, shoes without scuff marks or giant holes in the toes, brilliant white socks, and unbridled enthusiasm for the adventure that lies ahead. I love the new backpacks and lunchboxes, boxes of pointy crayons, and the opportunity to go grocery shopping without rustling a herd of cattle alongside the cart. It is a day of mixed emotions…happy, excited, nervous, anxious…you name it and someone in the house has felt it. The first day of school, while terribly exciting in some ways, also has the feel of starting a great big race. You line up at the starting line and when that car pulls away on the first day of school you know you are going to be running and racing until it brings the kids home on the last day of school and you have a little bit of time to catch your breath before the next big race starts. Don’t get me wrong…the race has its exhilarating, wonderful moments but it is also hard and requires endurance. For example…

JC attends all day school so he needs to be out the door by 7:50 a.m. but does not come home until 3:15 p.m. or 1:15 p.m. on early out days. MC has afternoon kindergarten which starts at 12:15 p.m. and ends at 3:15 p.m. HB has preschool 2 days a week in the morning from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Now throw into the mix the fact that MC has to go to school an hour earlier on early out days and both boys get out early on those days and some days I have to drive to kindergarten but on other days I have to pick up all the kids from school. I volunteer in MC’s classrooms on Tuesdays but not the LAST Tues of each month because someone else does that day and every 5 weeks I teach HB’s preschool for 2 days and on Mondays and Fridays I do the Home Reading Program but I don’t put the books away I just have to load the books because someone else wants to put the books away. Each month I do a special "curriculum enhancement" activity in JC’s classroom but only every other month in MC’s classroom. I watch Cynthia’s kids on Wednesday morning while she works in her child’s classroom and she watches HB on Tuesdays when I work in MC’s classroom. I have to do MC’s 20 minute reading in the morning because he melts down in the afternoon but we do JC’s reading in the afternoon as well as any homework. I’ll stop but you get the point. I’m not telling anyone anything new and matter of fact, some of you are shaking your heads and dreaming about the good ole’ days when life was as simple as mine. I know it just gets more complicated as you get more children and they get older but right now it feels like I’m struggling through algebra and wondering how on earth I’ll ever survive statistics. Having kids in school is CRAZY…I love, absolutely love, working in their classrooms and at their school but it really does complicate things when there is more than one child. And maybe it’s just me but it might be time to start a new paragraph.



So…back to the details. JC started 2nd grade this year and is not bashful about telling people that his least favorite days of the week are a) Friday (because it is the last day of school for the week), b) Saturday (because there is no school) and c) Sunday (because there STILL is no school AND he has to sit still for 3 hours). I have to try every week and not take it personally although I’m grateful he enjoys school so much.
MC started afternoon kindergarten. It is hard to believe that he is that old but off he went in his shiny new uniform, anxious but at least willing. He climbed out the car on the first day of school gripping my hand so hard that I honestly started to go numb but telling me he could do it himself. I walked him into his classroom where he reluctantly let go of my hand and told me to go while gazing longingly at me with those enormous blue eyes that screamed, "You aren’t going to LEAVE me here are you?" I made things a little easier for him by insisting on taking his picture in front of all the students with him sitting at his new desk in the front row and by then he was so mortified that he wouldn’t even make eye contact with me. It actually went smoother than I had anticipated.
HB had to wait a 2 whole weeks to start her preschool which truly seemed like an eternity for her. I am doing a little preschool "coop" with 4 other mothers that takes place in my basement. There are 4 little boys and HB, the lone wolf representing the female side of things. We each take a turn teaching 2 days of preschool every five weeks and it has been fantastic so far. I haven’t had my turn yet but I’m thoroughly intimidated by the creativity and genius of all the other moms so it should be good motivation for my turn coming up. HB adores going to school and would honestly do all day, 5 days a week preschool if I could find such a thing. Seriously…should I be offended?
We are off and running on our 2008-2009 school year and it is shaping up to be stressful, fun, interesting, exciting and exhausting. I really wouldn’t have it any other way.
Let the games begin!

Speed Racer Moves In

I don't know how literally your children adopt fictional characters into their lives and very beings, but it seems to happen quite frequently here. I don't know whether to see this as a great character strength or indication of future schizophrenia but at least if they start hearing voices, I'll have some idea whose voices their hearing.


After watching Spiderwick Chronicles last summer, I found this in the backyard one morning.

In case it isn't immediately apparent, it is a griffith...note the stuffed horse head, wooden plank wings and I don't know if you can see it, but there is a tail made out of some other wood like object. Seeing stones were made out of pieces of cardboard box. Not bad for a quick little activity before breakfast.

Then there was the morning I walked out of my bedroom and found Indiana Jones and his sidekick parading around the kitchen.

We frequently have visits from a variety of Nephites and/or Lamanites passing through. They like to battle outside under the big tree in the front yard. It's always a little embarassing when the next door neighbors pull up and you don't know if you could even explain what was happening if you wanted to. We usually just smile and wave and act like having ancient Americans battling for control is a normal thing here. Be careful if you come to visit unannounced.




The funny thing is that a couple of weeks ago we went to the firestation on a preschool field trip and MC and HL were very hesitant about going near the fireman's gear when they had a chance to try it on. I thought that was a little strange for 2 children that spend most of their time dressed up as someone else. Maybe trying on "real" clothes was a little too close to reality. They finally consented...in limited doses.

So yesterday, quite unannounced, Speed Racer moved in. We find him to be a gracious guest with loads of personality. This morning he served me breakfast in bed and I decided upon an immediate adoption. Any good looking race car driver that insists I stay in bed while he serves me breakfast can live at my house anytime. And his Moch 5 doesn't take up alot of room. We're happy to have a new visitor.