Another Go Go Go Day

Today was another full day. At least I managed to have the kids home earlier in the afternoon for some quiet time. Since we're hitting the road to Cowtown tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that at least Bean had a proper nap, as I doubt he'll have a good one in the car tomorrow. It's a long day, driving to Cowtown and I anticipate lots of stopping to manage the needs of the four children that will be in the van.




The kids were up early again this morning. Schmoo's regular 6:45am visit has become a 5:45am visit this week. Bean was quiet until close to 7am, when he started his usual calling. We got ourselves organized and headed off to preschool to drop Schmoo off. Bean and I went to gymnastics. It was another fun filled session, except for the full face collision that he had with Cousin I right at the end. A bunch of kids were running around the floor mat and neither of them was watching where they were going. They ran right into each other, with a crack of their heads echoing through the room. Cousin I was more upset than Bean, so she obviously took the harder hit, but she recovered fairly quickly. Neither of them seemed concussed or bruised.


Bean and I returned to the preschool to be the special helpers. We got back in time for craft and snack. Bean managed to have a monster meltdown right at the end of the class time, so we made our way outside to keep the screaming to a minimum. We get into these confrontations, which end up escalating because he lashes out at me with his little fist, so then I have to discipline him for hitting on top of whatever he wasn't listening for in the first place. It took a few minutes in the van, but he settled down eventually.



We drove across the bridge and out to a friend's house for a lunchtime playdate. It was with a little boy Schmoo's age that we haven't played with in a long time. Auntie E brought her kids too, so it was a real party. The kids had fun playing with J's toys and then they all ran around outside in the sunshine for a bit before we had a pumpkin muffin and then headed home for quiet time. Bean and Cousin I had fun practicing their balancing on their curb. So cute to watch Cousin I following Bean around.



Both kids ended up having a nap, which was great as I had lots to do. Most of my time was spent reorganizing the van to fit everyone in tomorrow. It meant removing seats and repositioning the car seats for Schmoo and Bean. I think this set up will work best for having all four kids in the van. I also managed to vacuum up the winter's worth of gravel that had accumulated on the floor of the van. I was just starting to make the banana muffins for the trip when a groggy Schmoo emerged from her bedroom. Bean was up shortly afterwards so we piled in the van at the last minute to run into town to activate Papa's old cell phone. After two flat tires this winter and my side of the road in the dark experience, I suddenly feel more inclined to travel with a cell phone. It was a quick process and after a quick stop to get some sushi we came home for a picnic supper to watch Babar.



Bedtime was a long time coming tonight, since both kids had slept today. I got them bathed and our clothes organized so we'll be ready in the morning. I headed out around 7pm to a meeting in town, leaving Papa to finish up with bedtime. The hockey playoffs have started tonight, so that was a key priority for Papa. I returned around 8:30pm and Schmoo is still rummaging around in her room. Having a nap, together with the excitement of going to Cowtown tomorrow is making it difficult for her to fall asleep.

Side note - Papa's team won tonight....thank goodness

I won't be on the computer until Sunday now so I'll have a big update when we get back. It's going to be an interesting adventure, but already I'm glad we're going to make the effort. I'm also looking forward to sneaking in some quick visits with a few friends in Cowtown en route. I know the shopping mall will be a tempting stop too, especially with our holiday coming up.