Last month was decidedly humdrum compared to most months. I am pretty sure this month (October) will find us back to the break neck speed, living on the edge with no-margin-for-error pace that we are all accustomed too! HA
The month started out slowly enough, but early into the second week we are faced with a four-day weekend with Daddy working. What to do, what to do?! I know! Come on kids, we are going to San Diego!! The entire month of October San Diego has several of their attractions free to kids under 12, so who were we not to take advantage? I had not been to the Zoo since Lilly was just a baby, so we decided that was perfect. Next year - maybe the Safari Zoo or LEGOLAND. This was the trip that almost didn't happen. My stress level the last couple of weeks had elevated and I really needed the kids to work with me instead of against me. I thought this would be perfect. I could show them that even without Daddy we could still go out of town and have a pretty good time. Trying to get them motivated to pack an overnight bag and get in the car was a lot harder then I imagined. In fact several times I just threw in the towel and decided we weren't going. Lilly and I even went so far as to unpack our bags! Finally the other two changed their attitudes and we were in the car heading west!
We made it to the zoo without further incident. We all got a map and figured out what animals we wanted to see and we were off. Why we bothered with the map is beyond me. The map was HORRIBLE!! I am not sure how many times we got lost, or ended up backtracking. There is one section that we could not seem to be able to leave. Ben finally threw his map away. Despite that we somehow found all the animals we came to see, including the Pandas!
The line to see the Pandas was crazy long, but we stuck around and decided to hit it on the way out the door with 30 minutes to closing. That proved to be a great idea because we only had to wait 20 minutes. Ben said the pandas were boring and if he wanted to see animals sleep he could do that at home with Oscar and Wesley. He might have a point.
We hurried back to the hotel and hit up the pool for a bit then decided to re-create our last experience in San Diego by eating at the exact same restaurants for dinner and breakfast (Roy's for dinner and Richard Walker's Pancake House for breakfast)! Jim might have let us do a repeat on breakfast but there was no way he would have signed off on dinner. Good thing he wasn't with us, because it was DELICIOUS!
Upon our return from the zoo, the kids were due for awards for the first quarter report cards. They all did GREAT! Hopefully that can continue for the entire year.
Wesley is growing like a weed! I am hoping he is coming to the end of it however. I am not really interesting in a big dog. I am slowly coming around on this guy, but I am still not there yet. Of course behavior like this may have something to do with that. Here he is on our daily walk around the neighborhood. Or should I say daily drag. There is lots of this. Sigh. Oscar does better on the leash then he does.
WTI is still going strong which means we are seeing less and less of Jim. What to do with all of our time? Well for starters, we went to our local Cub-o-ree. The girls got to see what it is like to be a Border Patrol Guard.
They also did several games and activities including a maze and a fitness challenge.
I have been working on some home "improvements" this month. Mainly I finished Oscar's ramp to this cat door. While it is far from perfect, it is a better set-up then he has had in the past. Of course he hates it. I am hoping that his general laziness wins out over his stubbornness and he starts walking up the middle of the ramp instead of the 1/2" of space between the ladder rail and the board that he is currently using.
The children are much more appreciative of their bookcases. Remember those black monstrosities? Well take a look at them now! The children picked out the colors and we mutually decided on the overall design. Since I was actually doing the painting, I got to tweak the design to fit my ability. Ben was easy, he just wanted some stripes. The girls had wanted to do an ombre effect on their curtains,but until that could happen (if ever) I talked them into doing it on the bookcase. Overall I am thrilled. My favorite part is the fact that ALL of their books fit on them!
The last week of October?! I am not quite ready. Seems like the month just started. First up is Red Ribbon Week. Day One was Crazy Mix-up dress day. I think they nailed it!
We also excelled on Crazy Hair and Hat day. You can't see the color hair spray in their hair, but trust me it is there!
Every (EVERY) year, we are SCRAMBLING to get the pumpkins carved before Halloween. So I have been making an effort to get them completed the day before. Unfortunately, this year it didn't go so well.
My kids picked templates that were super hard! I tried to get them to go simple, but no go. So our jack o'lanterns were not the best. Oh well, maybe next year!
The line to see the Pandas was crazy long, but we stuck around and decided to hit it on the way out the door with 30 minutes to closing. That proved to be a great idea because we only had to wait 20 minutes. Ben said the pandas were boring and if he wanted to see animals sleep he could do that at home with Oscar and Wesley. He might have a point.
We hurried back to the hotel and hit up the pool for a bit then decided to re-create our last experience in San Diego by eating at the exact same restaurants for dinner and breakfast (Roy's for dinner and Richard Walker's Pancake House for breakfast)! Jim might have let us do a repeat on breakfast but there was no way he would have signed off on dinner. Good thing he wasn't with us, because it was DELICIOUS!
Upon our return from the zoo, the kids were due for awards for the first quarter report cards. They all did GREAT! Hopefully that can continue for the entire year.
WTI is still going strong which means we are seeing less and less of Jim. What to do with all of our time? Well for starters, we went to our local Cub-o-ree. The girls got to see what it is like to be a Border Patrol Guard.
They also did several games and activities including a maze and a fitness challenge.
I have been working on some home "improvements" this month. Mainly I finished Oscar's ramp to this cat door. While it is far from perfect, it is a better set-up then he has had in the past. Of course he hates it. I am hoping that his general laziness wins out over his stubbornness and he starts walking up the middle of the ramp instead of the 1/2" of space between the ladder rail and the board that he is currently using.
The children are much more appreciative of their bookcases. Remember those black monstrosities? Well take a look at them now! The children picked out the colors and we mutually decided on the overall design. Since I was actually doing the painting, I got to tweak the design to fit my ability. Ben was easy, he just wanted some stripes. The girls had wanted to do an ombre effect on their curtains,but until that could happen (if ever) I talked them into doing it on the bookcase. Overall I am thrilled. My favorite part is the fact that ALL of their books fit on them!
The last week of October?! I am not quite ready. Seems like the month just started. First up is Red Ribbon Week. Day One was Crazy Mix-up dress day. I think they nailed it!
Every (EVERY) year, we are SCRAMBLING to get the pumpkins carved before Halloween. So I have been making an effort to get them completed the day before. Unfortunately, this year it didn't go so well.
My kids picked templates that were super hard! I tried to get them to go simple, but no go. So our jack o'lanterns were not the best. Oh well, maybe next year!
Wesley is going as a Dragon for his first Halloween. He isn't that excited about it. Oscar also isn't super stoked about his look.
The kids are happy that I have finally let them wear their costumes. We have gone to several costume parties/events this year and I have made them wear outfits from the past. I know, I know, I should let them do whatever they want but I know my kids and they will rip/destroy/annihilate them in seconds (especially Ben). I know one day they will appreciate me and my crazy uncompromising rules. Of course I may be dead by then.
No comments:
Post a Comment