3.14.2011

enjoying the small ones.

last Saturday, Gary cruised to Phoenix with the older kids to visit his brother who was in town.  being that Scarlett was a hair under the weather (slight fever, runny nose, cough), I opted to stay home.  I didn't want her to infect anyone else, especially little Jamison, who has already landed in the hospital twice due to illness, poor guy.  no way did I want to be the one responsible for a third trip.  

and so the five of us spent the day tootling around town instead.

it reminded me of the old days, back when I had a pile of little ones and no "real" help to speak of.  at the time, I just did it-- hauled them here, there, and everywhere without ever giving it a second thought.  then again, my choices were pretty slim.  it was either a.) take them along or b.) become a prisoner of my own home. (duh, what would you choose?) truth was, I needed to get out and see people, to reassure myself that beyond the sticky faces, snot noses and endless dirty diapers, there was indeed life out there.  don't get me wrong, I can ga ga goo goo like no one's business, but after a few days of it, a little intelligent adult conversation provides a much welcomed respite.        

consequently, I have countless stories of herding (or attempting to herd) my miniature beings in and around public places.  these include breaking up hide and seek games among clothing racks, apologizing for overturned shoe displays, dealing with runaway children, babies squalling, toddlers wailing, and kids (that should know better) throwing all-out tantrums, to name a few.  all for the sake of wanting to "get out" of the house.  after a while, you think I'd give up, but no.  instead, I would reassure myself that the next time would be better, although it never was.

by far, the worst episode was the time I had a kid unexpectedly puke in the shopping cart at Target.  not only did the barf splatter all over the items in the cart, it oozed between the cracks and dripped to the floor, eliciting a five-alarm response from Target's team members.  trust me, it's not very relaxing when you've got a handful of employees on your tail, all barking into their walkie-talkies at the same time: "clean up in aisle 12, clean up in aisle 16, oh boy, another in aisle 20," and so on, as you're racing to find the nearest exit.  immediately, thoughts of your former single life come rushing to the surface, and it takes EVERYTHING YOU HAVE not to place the kids on the nearest end cap marked 75% off and run for it.  never once pausing to look back.  phew, that was a busy time.

anyway, now that I have capable babysitters, it's a rare occasion that I dare take the littles out by myself.  and by "out,"I mean anywhere that's not kid friendly.  because to be honest, it's physically exhausting, not to mention the high probability of something going awry.

amazingly enough, they did quite well.  Rowan only shrieked once at Quizno's, and that was because Phoebe stole a Cheeto from him.  to sweeten the pot, I promised them ice cream and a trip to the park if they didn't run away while I shopped.  worked like a charm, so long as I kept a death grip on Rowan's arm.

at Baskin Robin's (Phoebe's into "doing" her own hair):


downtown included a little photo booth fun:


at the park.  Scarlett is sure grooving on the whole walking thing.  she stands up, claps her hands, and then starts walking.  cutest thing ever:


yep, Rowan found the markers.  again.  apparently he had thoughts of converting over to Hinduism, and got a little carried away in the process.


that night, the girls kept asking over and over, "when is dad going to be home?"  I kept telling them that it wouldn't be until after they'd gone to bed. not a half-hour later, I heard Phoebe quietly sobbing in the other room.  I heard Ella ask, "what's wrong?" to which Phoebe replied, " I miss dad! WAAAA!"

and so Ella invented the "Let's Pretend To Be Dad" game, where they each took turns pretending to be "dad" coming home.  whoever was "dad" would go out in the garage, while the other waited anxiously by the door.  when "dad" appeared, much hugging, celebrating and cheering would commence.

see?  told you I was second rate.

-jessica

PS. do you have any horror stories of Outings Gone Bad?  if so, spill it.

13 comments:

Jess said...

cute picture of you and the little kids!! You guys are all so cute! :) they look like they could never do anything naughty for you... :) Is it spring in flagstaff already?!

Paula Hillukka said...

Thanks for the laugh! I agree--cute pictures! Too many bad outings to count, glad I'm not alone! :D

jessica said...

yes Jess, it is! temps have been hovering around 60 and we've been enjoying it to the max-- trips to the park, hiking, etc. then again, we could very well get more snow...

Anonymous said...

ack the markers-Help! But it's so funny when it's not your kid!! but the pictures are just adorable!!! brianna b

1crown3tiaras said...

LOL... Loved this post! Laughed out loud when I saw Rowan got attacked by the marker again! btw... FLY sandals! :)

Ramona Johnson said...

I just love Rowan. Who wouldn't? When you have to take the young ones everywhere, it makes you appreciate the older ones a little more and realize how much you depend on them, doesn't it? Scarlett is just adorable too!

Selma said...

I'm still grinning...Mr. Rowan is quite the character. He could not have picked a better color. Someone already mentioned - it's only funny if it's someone else's kid that got run over by a giant marker....Someone's gotta do something about those giant markers that get loose...

Becca said...

You made me laugh out loud at the pictures of Rowan sporting a pink forehead. I'm sure you got plenty of people staring !

Brenda said...

By the looks of the outfits you are guys are having the beautiful weather I can only dream about right now! I'll share a terrible story... For some reason I think it's okay to take the whole kit and kaboodle to the drs. and I always leave in a huff and much steam coming from all over my body! But anyway this one specific time I'm not even sure what it was for but I had all five kids and a double stroller (try fit that in a drs. room) What a joke! So I had found a bag of cherrios in my diaper bag to keep the littles happy and my six year old decided to have an all blown out temper tantrum on the floor because he couldn't have the whole bag himself- nurse in room and all! Trip was just chaotic anyway and of course again I left crabby wondering why I ever do such thing and promising myself I will never do that again! On the way home the seven year old pipes up from the back... Hey mom?! Yeah? I say, still grumpy! "Do you like being a Mom?" Seriously?!?! I wonder what prompted this question! I reassured him that yes I do! And he asked if I think there is anything the drs. could do to make him stay a kid because he is pretty sure he would like to be a kid forever! It all ended good tho because it led to discussion on how important it is that they help me out so my job can be more fun and enjoyable :)

Briita said...

Isn't it amazing how taking a greater number of bigs is easier than having a smaller amount of smalls. went camping w/6 oldest a few years back. Piece of cake and we had a ball!

Meghan said...

AAAAHHH!!! YOU MADE IT TO THE PHOTOBOOTH??!?!???! sigh. I've tried the last 3 times I was in flag- during operational hours, mind you- and was denied. I thought they just up and left town. I'll try again. (love the stories though!)

Anita K said...

My kids are pretty good in public (not trying to brag!) so when they do act up, I panic a bit (a lot). No exciting stories really, just a crying baby and two toddlers running around screaming and wrestling at Target while waiting for the sloooowest deli counter man to slice my turkey! Maybe he was in shock from trying to watch me wrangle my out of control kids! Definitely left in tears that time... Oh yeah, and on an airplane, sitting in a row with two old ladies and a dog, and my and my baby. Baby started screaming on the descent, and two old ladies proceeded to tell me loudly how to calm him. REally? REALLY? thanks for the advice, I already TRIED IT ALL!! :)

Ramona Johnson said...

I just was thinking about your post again and thought I would tell you a trick I like to use. I tell my kids that if they get a compliment while we are "out and about" about how good they are and how nicely mannered they are, they get to pick out a treat at the checkout. It works (most of the time). For the most part, they try hard to be good and they have received a few compliments. They feel good, I feel good and they leave happy because they also got to pick out a treat! One day I was in the store grocery shopping and as I am busy contemplating what to put in the cart and keep kids herded up and helping me, I start to feel that maybe it is getting out of hand. Then in the checkout line, a lady gets in line behind me and promptly tells me that I have the best behaved kids she has every seen. She said she saw me multiple times in the store with my lineup of kids and she never saw them begging, crying for stuff, throwing a tantrum. She was impressed. I was impressed. And the kids were really proud of themselves for getting such a nice compliment!