I think we've done more this weekend than we did all summer!
Friday night Jett spent the night at a friend's house. This was fun for all of us because these friends of ours had us over for dinner first and kept filling our wine glasses and let the kids eat dinner "wherever they wanted" (which the kids took full advantage of and chose to eat on the bathroom...not my house, not my rules!) and let the kids run around almost naked and well....it just set the tone for a very relaxing weekend and we all had way more fun than we would have had at home!
(It was very funny to me though, that Charlie arrived to find the kids eating dinner in the bathroom, and come to think of it Kai might have already been naked. Charlie arrived one glass of wine behind and I watched him slowly figure out that all of the parents knew what was happening with the kids...and none of them were doing anything about it...and it was all actually ok...and he might as well let it go too...). It was entertaining to watch Charlie slowly relax in to it.
Since Jett was at a sleepover Friday night, Saturday was a day of laying around for all of us. We all took a nap almost the whole afternoon, and then we went outside and played football. Saturday is so easy when it's part of a three day weekend!
Today we stepped it up. This afternoon we crossed off some items on our summer bucket list and drove to Chinatown. We took the river taxi up the river and back, played football in the park, ate lunch, and bought candy. There were highs and lows.
Football in the park = high. Buying candy (giant jawbreakers that will take the boys a year to get through, lick by lick) = high. Lunch = high, but only because we threatened the boys that we wouldn't buy them candy if they kept sulking and complaining and not having any fun.
Lunch was pretty fantastic after our threat. The boys sat nicely. They ordered food they had never had before and then they tried it. All of it. Fried sweet potato, chicken satay, broccoli in soy sauce, tofu, white rice (well, they've had white rice before). Kai filled up on the rice. Jett filled up on the chicken. I ate everything else. I was so very proud of them for picking their own items from the menu and trying them. I don't care if your kid eats brussell sprouts and gazpacho. This was a huge leap for my kids and we celebrated with a chocolate ice shake and the best looking sundae you've ever seen.
The most challenging part of the day was my favorite part, the water taxi. I love getting out on the water for a little bit. It's so fun to look at the buildings from the river and there is just something about being on a boat that is relaxing, even if you're still surrounded by traffic, trains, people and your crabby kids. It also seems like something the boys should like.
I'm so optimistic about this every year. But the sun is so hot and the boat goes so slow and sometimes there is exhaust and we won't let the boys play on our phones because they are supposed to be looking around and enjoying the view and appreciating that this big city is theirs. This year I got the extra sassy eye-roll to show me that he did look around, and everything he can see is boring.
Now read all of those words in italics with a whine in your voice and you'll get an idea of how fun the boat ride was.
But then we threatened not to buy them any candy and it all got better!
After Chinatown we met our friends at the beach for a picnic dinner. This was our second annual dinner at the beach. Parking is always wretched but no one complains. The kids play football in the sand and swim in the water and don't argue too much. The parents talk and talk and talk and play with the kids and we all stay as late as we can. It's so nice. We are so lucky to have this group of friends from Jett's pre-school years. Chicago is such a big city and I feel so lucky to have a group to belong to.
Friday night Jett spent the night at a friend's house. This was fun for all of us because these friends of ours had us over for dinner first and kept filling our wine glasses and let the kids eat dinner "wherever they wanted" (which the kids took full advantage of and chose to eat on the bathroom...not my house, not my rules!) and let the kids run around almost naked and well....it just set the tone for a very relaxing weekend and we all had way more fun than we would have had at home!
(It was very funny to me though, that Charlie arrived to find the kids eating dinner in the bathroom, and come to think of it Kai might have already been naked. Charlie arrived one glass of wine behind and I watched him slowly figure out that all of the parents knew what was happening with the kids...and none of them were doing anything about it...and it was all actually ok...and he might as well let it go too...). It was entertaining to watch Charlie slowly relax in to it.
Since Jett was at a sleepover Friday night, Saturday was a day of laying around for all of us. We all took a nap almost the whole afternoon, and then we went outside and played football. Saturday is so easy when it's part of a three day weekend!
Today we stepped it up. This afternoon we crossed off some items on our summer bucket list and drove to Chinatown. We took the river taxi up the river and back, played football in the park, ate lunch, and bought candy. There were highs and lows.
Football in the park = high. Buying candy (giant jawbreakers that will take the boys a year to get through, lick by lick) = high. Lunch = high, but only because we threatened the boys that we wouldn't buy them candy if they kept sulking and complaining and not having any fun.
Lunch was pretty fantastic after our threat. The boys sat nicely. They ordered food they had never had before and then they tried it. All of it. Fried sweet potato, chicken satay, broccoli in soy sauce, tofu, white rice (well, they've had white rice before). Kai filled up on the rice. Jett filled up on the chicken. I ate everything else. I was so very proud of them for picking their own items from the menu and trying them. I don't care if your kid eats brussell sprouts and gazpacho. This was a huge leap for my kids and we celebrated with a chocolate ice shake and the best looking sundae you've ever seen.
The most challenging part of the day was my favorite part, the water taxi. I love getting out on the water for a little bit. It's so fun to look at the buildings from the river and there is just something about being on a boat that is relaxing, even if you're still surrounded by traffic, trains, people and your crabby kids. It also seems like something the boys should like.
Before the sulking.
I'm so optimistic about this every year. But the sun is so hot and the boat goes so slow and sometimes there is exhaust and we won't let the boys play on our phones because they are supposed to be looking around and enjoying the view and appreciating that this big city is theirs. This year I got the extra sassy eye-roll to show me that he did look around, and everything he can see is boring.
Now read all of those words in italics with a whine in your voice and you'll get an idea of how fun the boat ride was.
There was a lot of sulking.
But then we threatened not to buy them any candy and it all got better!
After Chinatown we met our friends at the beach for a picnic dinner. This was our second annual dinner at the beach. Parking is always wretched but no one complains. The kids play football in the sand and swim in the water and don't argue too much. The parents talk and talk and talk and play with the kids and we all stay as late as we can. It's so nice. We are so lucky to have this group of friends from Jett's pre-school years. Chicago is such a big city and I feel so lucky to have a group to belong to.
Happy Labor Day!
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