On The Go

Before I had children I pictured myself with kids.   I saw myself taking them to the zoo and the parks and museums and restaurants.  I imagined spontaneous trips to the city and road trips and family vacations.  It was the very picture of blissful family life.

After having kids I realize now that those images rarely play out in real life as they did in my head.  Spontaneous trips with four children just don't happen often.  And when you do manage to take the kids on a fun trip there are usually still a fair amount of less than blissful moments.  With four kids someone can always be grumpy, or sassy, or whiny, or sick, or needy, or angry (or, or, or) at any given moment.  I have learned to accept that our family trips aren't always the picture I had in my mind.  But I still try.

It was 10:00 on Saturday morning when Todd and I decided it was time to get out of town.  We had been thinking about taking the kids up north again this weekend for another ski trip, but I just didn't have the energy for that. So there we were on Saturday morning with no plans for the day, but a desperate need to do something fun.  Something different.  We opted to go to the Milwaukee County Museum.  The kids had never been there before and I haven't been in such a long time I thought perhaps we were due.

We got everyone ready in record time and took the one hour road trip to Milwaukee to see how this spontaneous decision would pan out.

I can honestly tell you that it was an absolutely magical day.       

The boys eyes just about popped out of their heads as they walked through the museum.  It was one thing after the next and they just couldn't decide where to look.  I was oohing and aahing right along with them, our excitement bouncing off each other.  I felt like a little kid again as I ran from exhibit to exhibit calling the kids to me to, "Look, look, look!"

They saw all of their favorites.  Dinosaurs, a giant squid, all kinds of animals, all different lands and places, a rainforest, an igloo, a teepee.

It was so much fun the boys didn't even realize just how much they were learning.  It doesn't get better than that!

One of the highlights of the museum was the butterfly exhibit.  Hundreds of butterflies flying around all over, landing on your head and shoulder and sometimes in your hand. 

The minute we walked into the room we were in awe.

We were all so excited to see such beautiful butterflies up close.

I love how Grace and I mimic each other's expression in this picture.  It made me laugh when I saw it.   

Gracie really wanted to hold that butterfly.

And so did I.  Butterflies are my absolute favorite so I was squealing and laughing just as much (probably more) than the kids. 

If it wouldn't have been 300 degrees in that butterfly room I think I would have stayed there for the remainder of the day.  Alas, we moved on. 

We all had our favorites.  Joey, of course, was thrilled to find a hammerhead, one of his current and longest obsessions.

Tommy loved the moose and the tigers.

Ben agreed with me and loved the butterflies the best, but I know he really liked the candy shop in Old World Wisconsin too.

Finally, after almost four hours of nonstop walking we decided to head out.  The kids were so perfectly behaved and well mannered the entire time we were there.  It was a no brainer to Todd and I that they deserved a treat.  We took them to the gift shop and let them pick out a souvenir for being such great kids.  They each picked out a small stuffed animal, and after we ate at our favorite Mexican restaurant in Milwaukee they all passed out in the car for the ride home, still clutching their animals.

It was a perfect day.  The same exact kind of day I dreamed of before I knew what it meant to have children.  It was a gift. 

The rest of the weekend was lovely too.  We switched the boys rooms around once again so that my oldest boy (Joe) is now sharing a room with the youngest (Ben).  This because the two younger boys did nothing but get each other in trouble at bedtime when they were sharing the room.  Now the oldest (and by far my best sleeper) is able to keep his youngest brother in line and my middle boy (Tommy) is able to fall asleep faster in his own room without any distractions.  And everyone is happy (even Joey, who I didn't think would want to give up his own room but was excited to sleep on the top bunk again.  Wow)! Ahhh. More success! 

Yes.  It was a truly fabulous weekend.  And I'm still trying to get into the swing of things as the week (and March!) begins.  Running here and there. Grocery shopping, shopping for art supplies for a project for Joey, doctor's appointments, laundry, meetings.  And today Joey came home from school a bit early because he felt sick.  Poor kiddo.  He even skipped dinner, so I know he really wasn't feeling good.  And now tomorrow I have jury duty.  Gah!  What next!  I have jury duty all month, actually, and have been summoned to appear tomorrow.  Good grief. 

Life keeps going.  Faster and faster.  We are always on the go. 

It makes me especially glad for the spontaneous excursion we had.  For a little while time seemed to stand still. And I will always remember that day.