So Tuesday started out kind of sucky, partly due to waking up when the first number on the clock was a six and partly because Brian spent a few days organizing all of our paperwork for the DMV so that the hell we had to go through wouldn't be quite as hot as it could be. When we got there, we realized that the DMV/nyc.gov website is either outdated, or just a bunch of phony baloney. (Yes, I know it's bologna, but every time I read "bologna" my mind says "BO-LOG-NA" and that doesn't rhyme with phony.) Instead of getting 2 drivers licenses, 2 new vehicle registrations, and 4 new license plates, we ended up getting one temporary driver's license. Not great, but I was determined to have a great day anyway.
The kids and I pretended we were animals and made funny noises and crawled around the playroom. That got boring after a while, so we headed outside with Mackenzie's big pink step2 car and Jackson's ride-on toy. The plan was to play around right in front of the house. I should know better than to plan things...
"Mommy, I go this way?" Mackenzie asked when we got downstairs. "Sure, sweetie," I replied, "let's just go around the block." Somehow, we missed the turn and ended up going the 2 blocks to the long park that runs the length of the shoreline. There is a playground (one of many in the neighborhood) at the far end of the park, about ten blocks from our house. We took our time walking, picking up sticks and pretty leaves along the way. We even crossed over a pedestrian bridge and threw our sticks into the harbor. When we got to the playground (this was our first time at this particular one), the kids immediately ditched their toys and became monkeys, climbing on everything in sight.
It had become WAY too late in the day to take a nap, so I just let them play... hard. After a couple of hours, Jackson was dozing off in the swing, in my arms, and basically anytime he wasn't on his feet. "Time to go guys!" I needed to start dinner. Roasting a chicken takes an hour or two, so I needed plenty of time. We left the playground, located at 79th street at 4:30.
4:31- Jackson decided he couldn't walk anymore. I picked up my chunky monkey and his ride-on toy.
4:32- Mackenzie refuses to "drive" her car home. "Ok," I say to myself, "I can do this." Luckily, Jackson's car fits inside of Mackenzie's car. I'm doing well. I have Mackenzie walking, Jackson in one arm, and I'm using my other arm to push the cars.
4:42- We made it to 80th street. We stopped for a second to admire a house that Mackenzie thought was a princess castle. "We gotta go, guys. I need to cook supper!"
4:44- "Mommy, carry PLEASE!" whines Mackenzie. Oh crap! What do I do now??? "Ok, Jackson, you sit in Mackenzie's car. Put your feet up, I'll push you."
4:44- (yeah, still) Jackson makes a fun (for him) game of putting his feet on the pavement so that I can't push the car.
4:45- I decided that carrying a 43lb two year old the next 9 blocks wasn't going to work for me!
I'm not going to bore you with the entire play-by-play. There were lots of switcheroos to different cars, and lots of refusing to put feet up so that I could just push them home. Mackenzie had a meltdown because we lost a red leaf and Jackson had a meltdown because I wouldn't let him play with my iPhone. Then, they both had meltdowns because I said 5 minutes of playing at water fountains was enough, and I almost had a meltdown at 5:25 when Mackenzie yelled "I need pee-pee potty!!!"
It took an hour and a half and every ounce of my patience to walk 10 blocks. We arrived home at 6:00pm and our anticipated dinner of baked chicken turned out to be grilled cheese, a story, and "the blanket show" for the kids. I called my favorite neighborhood Italian place (they deliver) and had wine, ravioli, wine, garlic knots, wine, zeppoli, zeppoli, zeppoli, zeppoli, zeppoli (Ummmmm, Brian, could you please eat the last zeppoli so I don't feel like a fat pig??? What do you mean "no"?!?!?!). Since I ate the first 5 zeppoli without help, I figured, what the hell. I gulped down the last one, poured another glass, and made a toast to my childrens' 7pm bedtime!
