Spring Break

Penny had a whopping seven days off school for Spring Break and we were all packed to head off to visit a friend upstate when we got a call from John. His flight itinerary had changed and he'd now get to spend a whole week with us, starting later that evening (Yay for Dayton hosting March Madness and killing his standby chances!). So...we re-wrote our plans a bit. Uncle John got to tour each of our favorite grocery stores in turn as we prepared for a lovely week of feasting and generally lazing about. He got to read stories most nights and woke up early to two darling kids curiously trying to smother him with his sleeping cap. 

The weather was actually quite cooperative for most of his visit, so we enjoyed some quality time outside. We relished our first backyard picnic for the season. John kindly lugged the kids around in the wagon, sometimes one at a time, though often together. Penny seemed to be especially fond of getting in and out while the wagon was in motion. Paul was slightly frustrated by how difficult it is to climb into our little play structure. He can't quite crawl up the arched ladder in the back. He's used to latching his fingers between floor boards and pulling himself up at the public playground and this is all one solid piece. Maybe with a little more height he'll have it. 

We didn't get out for too many fantastic field trips, but we did manage several hours at the SI Zoo on Wednesday. I finally remembered to bring a good fistful of quarters so we could procure plenty of duck and other animal food. It seemed the keepers were feeding many of the animals while we were there. Good for getting to see all the animals, not so good for getting them to come to us for food. There were some pheasants who weren't caged that provided a bit of fun - who knew a trail of duck food could be so enticing! Uncle John was also able to join Penny and I on her very first trip to see a movie in the theater. She'll be reciting lines from "The Croods" (just like Uncle John does) for some time, I imagine. It's a funny movie and Penny managed to not get too scared by it.

Then, as quickly as he had arrived, John had to leave. He had arrived late at night and disappeared early on Easter morning. There probably would have been greater grief had his warm spot on the couch not been filled with hidden eggs and chocolate bunnies. The downstairs was torn apart as the kids both searched for secret plunder. Paul was remarkably good at finding eggs on his own, almost as skilled as Penny was at convincing him to hand them over to her. So he probably found more than the four eggs in his basket, but Penny was beside herself for jelly beans. Penny continued the search throughout the day, hoping she'd forgotten some corner and even greater bounty lay concealed just beyond sight. 

 We rounded out our last couple of days of break enjoying some play date action. I've been sampling a local Mothers of Pre-Schoolers group recently and they seem pretty nice. We all met at a local indoor playground (a mere $10 per kid for two hours of entertainment). The kids had a blast and were psyched for their next trip there - might be a bit at that steep price. We then picnicked outside again and enjoyed some 60-degree weather for the next three hours in the backyard. We're going to have a nice time back there, I can tell. It could only be improved if we had a door directly onto the yard so I didn't have to prep quite so much before we go out. I don't like leaving them there when they can easily walk out into the street through the gate. I had hoped for some solid napping after such a full day, but no dice. They really are much better at wearing me out than I am at wearing them out.

It was an awesome break and it was still nice getting back to the routine of school today. Just a few more weeks of sanity and routine, then who knows what we'll be in for when our new little bundle arrives!