We were due to pick up the rental car at 9 AM. Because we don't have a credit card (by choice), we had to use a debit card, utility bill, and pay stub. I had all these things and headed up to the counter.
She opens the utility bill...it's a shut off notice...can't use it. I scrounge the car for the comcast bill, and it works.
Then we move on to my pay stub...it's from more than 30 days ago...can't use it. Now I have to call Steve at work to fax a copy of one of his pay stubs...it takes two tries before it goes through.
Get in the car...can't figure out where to put the key...it's a push button start.
Pull out of the parking lot...car lurching...car to the store...didn't change gears the right way.
At 10:16...we are FINALLY on the road.
3 hour drive was thankfully uneventful.
Played with cousins for a few hours after we got there. I got my baby fix by playing with baby Ronin.
Kira playing "Robot"
Noah was bouncing off the wall after awhile...he just couldn't handle the noise level and the excitement so we decided it's time to head over to the hotel for a swim. So frazzled mommy, two psycho boys, sister-in-law with three kids of her own in tow, bags for her, luggage, blankets, pillows, and inflatable beds all slink into the hotel to check in and relax in the pool. Odin (my nephew) gets stuck in the spinny door...Aaron is already climbing on the luggage carts...I go to check in.
"We don't have your reservation"
OH COME ON!
Apparently, our reservation is at the OTHER Comfort Suites on the other end of the city. I still don't see why
they couldn't just let us stay there.
So, back to the car with everything. Mommy loses it in the parking lot, yelling at a child (one of mine) who was running in a busy street , saying a "bad" word (stupid) in reference to the hotel policiy, which Odin is in shock that Aunt Kristi said.
We FINALLY get to the right hotel and check in. Swimming was fun and relaxing.
I tried to take some pictures but the cameras both fogged up. We did get a shot of the boys (tummy and above that is) when we got back to the room.
Aaron, Odin, Noah
Thankfully, dinner out with 5 kids and slow service at Chili's was calm and successful. It was the only time we got to see Uncle Matt the entire visit.
The weather actually looked pretty good the next morning so we decided to make the zoo a go. But first, Aunt Kristi had to get her "girly fix" by playing with Kira's hair. Kira had just gotten it cut with really cute bangs but she wanted "pretties" anyway so up to her room we went. After some fun, we ended up with goofy...
but we forgot to take it out and it stayed in most of the day. Good thing I'm raising boys, huh?
The zoo was fun. The kids were happy to just be outside running. Well, actually, running at the beginning, DRAGGING by the end. We did get a couple of cute shots of the group...
in front of the buffalo,
Odin, Kira, Aaron, Noah
and during a snack break.
Aaron, Kira, Odin, Noah, Ronin, Aunt Jenny
A fun but short visit. The boys were as sad as I was when we returned the car this morning.
On the tap for today, naps all around and possibly Open Swim for Noah.
While writing this, I have broken up at least a dozen fights. I AM SO SICK OF THE FIGHTING!!!!!!!!!! I am thinking of just letting them start fighting it out and not putting so much effort into actually getting them to be nice to each other. It seems as if I am the only one who cares about how everyone treats each other. (sorry...venting moment)
Back to reality now.
Have a nice weekend.
5 comments:
Wow - a whirlwind trip for sure! But, at least it was fun.
I've never seen a push button start on a car. That sounds pretty cool.
When my two fight, I send them up to their rooms for 10 min. and then I make them play nicely in one room for 15 min. If they can't play nicely, the time starts over. I have never had to start the time over... And when the time was up they always wanted to spend more time together.
I thought it was cool technique and it worked every single time.
YMMV
LBC
I"m so glad you had a good visit. I'm trying to stay out of my boys fights and let them learn to work it out on their own. Sometimes it works, sometimes not so much.
Wow! What fun pictures! It looks like you had a great time. I hope you have a great rest-of-the-weekend too! :)
Sounds like you guys had fun, despite all the headaches.
I hear you on the fighting thing...sometimes I wonder if it really would turn into extreme fighting if I did nothing.
Welcome home!
You had a little rough start, but things got better. Sounds like in spite of it all, you had a good time.
I know that my kids used to drive me crazy with the fighting thing, too. Somewhere I finally learned about hug breaks, and when I got desperate, they would get one.
Both kids who were fighting would get a hug break, which meant they had to hug each other for five minutes without being mean (no sneaky things of hurting each other). When they were smaller, it would be like two or three minutes.
They didn't get to do anything else until they were ready to have a hug break. Sometimes it took half the day. But they didn't get snacks or treats when the other kids did, or get to play outside, or get lunch...you get the idea. They had to choose to do it. That was their consequence, and the only thing I had to do was stick to my guns.
It settled things down after they figured out I wasn't giving up. I liked it because it wasn't a malicious thing, but they had to participate in their discipline. (When I was little, I got to participate, too, but not in a hug break. I had to go break off my own switch from the spirea bush. Very old school, my mom was.) This is much better. You're not hurting them, but they still aren't crazy about it.
I've threatened to give my adult kids a hug break a time or two, and they just laugh at me now, but they still settle down.
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