Why do I have the feeling that one of my boys is going to be resentful at the end of next week? Perhaps because that is when his little brothers will finish up their preschool for the year, and the days of "Mommy & Me" will be over for a while!
Connor's school ended a few weeks ago, so we've been having a lot of days together. Sometimes it's just errands like grocery shopping or taking Buster for a walk around the block. Some days it's cleaning the house or the truck (he actually likes to help, so much so that he will even occasionally ask to do one of these things during the day)! Other days we do fun things, like pick up new books from the library (and read a few while we're there, too). Or we spend the afternoon at one of our favorite parks or even the children's museum downtown. Or we do what we did today, we go out for lunch!
Our new favorite has been Chick-fil-a, for a couple of reasons. First, I've had some really good coupons (free kid's meal with purchase of regular meal), so we can do it as cheaply as we could McDonald's, which is the only take-out the twins eat consistently. Second, they have an indoor play area with other kids coming and going that isn't affected by the rain (something the McDonald's on this side of town doesn't have). And last, the staff is friendly and doesn't seem to object to me sitting at a table outside the play area, sipping on my Coke (with free, often brought-to-the-table, refills) and reading my latest book.
And I would love to tell you I'm the mother who takes advantage of the healthy options on the kid's meal, you know, the fruit cup instead of french fries and the milk instead of the Coke. But I'm not. I kind of see it as a treat for both of us, so we get the good stuff. We have fruit and milk at home with every single meal, and we don't do Coke for the kids at the house. (At least not at our house, right Grandma?) But those options are there, if they're important to you.
The one thing I try to remember is to bring a jacket, regardless of the outside temperature. It's usually cool in there if you're just sitting for a while, like I am. Connor, of course, comes out of the play area covered in sweat from running and jumping and playing. No jacket necessary for the kids.
We usually spend two hours for lunch, and that's two hours we're not sitting at home or getting on each others' nerves. It's also only about $6. And if Connor is willing to part with his toy, he can even get an ice cream cone or cup for free (they'll trade you the toy for the dessert). Today he was willing, as it was a book he already had at home.
A good day. One he's going to miss in a few weeks, I'm sure.