Today Matt and I babysat our niece and nephews and I got the bright idea that we should take them all to the zoo. Last night I was terrified that I was going to regret the idea because the kids well outnumber us, but I was very VERY happy to find that it really was quite easy! Granted they may have behaved so well because they weren't with their parents (and we all know kids behave so much better when they are with adults other than their parents), but either way they were wonderful. Here are some highlights.
- We couldn't have done it without Ally. She's so good with her brothers it was like having an extra set of hands with her around. We tried not to rely on her too much so she could have fun too, but her help was definitely greatly appreciated by both of us!
- I got great use out of my new baby carrier. Izzy HATES the stroller, though she'll tolerate it for a little while. She much preferred to be in the carrier and looking around. She even fell asleep in it for quite a while - something I didn't mind in the slightest because she so rarely likes to cuddle.
- When she was sleeping, she started twitching and so I looked down and her and she was clearly dreaming as she had this huge grin on her face that kept coming and going. I would have a picture to share with you, but my phone FREAKED out on me today and I'm hoping it was just being stupid and not due to the new camera strap that I bought. It has a pocket for your phone that has a magnetic closure and while their website says you can put iPhones in it, a part of me is worried that it had to do with the magnet. I'll give it another go and see if it does the same thing.
- We lost James for a few minutes. And let me tell you those were some of the worst minutes of my life! We were done with lunch, had just finished potty break, and we were getting things together so we could move on to see new animals. We had already discussed that we were not going to go down to the playground that was a quick walk away so when Alice out of the blue said, "I wanna go to the playground!" She was being quite snotty all of lunch so I thought it was just a remnant of that. Then she said, "But Jimmy is going!" Two seconds later Ally says, "Where's James?!" and I start running, knowing exactly where he was. When I got to the playground it took me a second to find him in the sea of people (ugh, it was so crowded today), but when I did relief washed over me. He was on his way up the ladder to the slide and I couldn't help but think of my dad and when a young Charles snuck out of the house and went to Duncan park. When dad got to him, Charles was at the top of the slide as happy as can be. James came down the slide, and I grabbed his hand and told him I'm sorry we lost him, but he needed to stay with us from now on. What an experience!
- We spoiled the kids rotten, and enjoyed every minute of it. That's what aunties and uncles for!
- John John truly is awesome, and he can spell it too! Pretty good for a five year old!
- On the way home I thought Ally was going to be the one to fall asleep. I was totally wrong - it was James! At least he won the quiet game.
- We had pancakes and popcorn (thanks, Matt), blew up the inflatable bed (the kids asked for it because the last time they were here it was still up from when we had a guest sleep over and they loved it), and watched The Lion King. A great ending to a fabulous day!!
- We can't wait to do it again, next time when the dolphins are back at the zoo (right, Ally?)!
Today Matt and I babysat our niece and nephews and I got the bright idea that we should take them all to the zoo. Last night I was terrified that I was going to regret the idea because the kids well outnumber us, but I was very VERY happy to find that it really was quite easy! Granted they may have behaved so well because they weren't with their parents (and we all know kids behave so much better when they are with adults other than their parents), but either way they were wonderful. Here are some highlights.
