Life as a Ham: 105 Degree Park Adventures

Saturday, July 13, 2013

105 Degree Park Adventures

I have some catching up to do, but I'm just going to get this out of the way so it doesn't get more out of control. Today is a Friday. The kids went to school, I worked from home as I normally do, usually attempting to throw in some laundry or clean the kitchen in the process, but today wasn't one of those days. My work load was large, the kids were at daycare all day, and Shannon had a work event to attend that went way into the evening. I went with him to drop of the kids, came home, worked steadily all day long, picked them up, grabbed fast food:

Me: "Do you want Wendy's or Burger King?"
Adam: "No. I want donuts."
Me: "We can't have donuts, but we can have something else."
Adam: "I want Wind Cake."
Me: "You mean Wendy's?"
Adam: "No, Wind Cake."
Me: "But... umm. Adam, I don't know where Wind Cake is..."
Adam: "Don't worry, Mom. You'll find it!"

I didn't find Wind Cake and he was not pleased that getting fast food did not mean McDonald's playground. Adam does not really like McDonald's, but he can spot a McDonald's a mile away because they have playgrounds full of tunnels to explore. His favorite food is McAllister's Deli -- fruit and macaroni and cheese and sweet tea. But good job McDonald's. Nice branding.

Also on the ride he told me that his new school "made his tummy feel better."

"We don't go to my old school, Mom. NO, NO, My old school hurts my tummy. My NEW school makes my tummy feel better. And it makes Mommy's tummy feel better too."

"It does?"

"YES, MA'AM! IT DOES. I don't go to my old school"

This was after school on a Friday evening. I think that's confirmation that we made the right decision, as hard as it was. And I think that finally tells us that he really felt like he was swallowing a van every time we dropped him off at school. I have also been told that it was not that he didn't like his new teacher... it was that she let his friends hurt him. And now, at his new school, he gets to do centers and his friends don't hurt him... although, to be honest, there's no best friend like your first best friend, and that's Max. We met up with Max earlier in the week so they could play together and ride bikes at the park, and he's been talking about it ever since. He doesn't have many close friends at the new school, but he's happy, and sometimes, if it works out... he gets to play with Max too. Life is good, for this little boy.

He went off the path. Max came to help him get back on track.

But back to today... Shannon was doing a work event and I picked the kids up, got them Wendy's chicken nuggets (the twins each ate their own kid's meal and Adam ate all of his, plus an extra 4 nuggets that I heated up in the microwave when that didn't suffice), changed, then got back in the car and went to the park, just me and the kids... in 105 degree weather.

We got there, parked, I got the bike out and was going for the wagon for the twins, when Adam said, "Uh, I can poop in the grass?"

"Uh, no. We poop in the potty. At home. Do we need to go home?"

"Yes, I need to go home and poop in the potty."

I loaded the bike back in the car, we went home, did the deed, and came back to the park. I told him how pleased I was that he told me then, instead of waiting until everyone was unloaded before announcing his dilemma. He's really... REALLY a great kid.

But we had fun at the park, and that's really the end of the story, other than some pictures...