High Maintenance Mom

This year we stayed home for Thanksgiving and had the day all to ourselves. Not having to "celebrate" or cook all day made the day special and relaxing. I made cranberry jello instead of cranberry sauce and a potato leek soup the night before. We played with ink and stamps, read books, and hung out. I went for a run, which I used to do in high school. It was my first run in a very long time and it felt great (for my head, the rest of me was a little sore). In the evening we had a nice meal as a family...

With four days at home, we realized we needed to schedule a few activities. Although it's difficult to get out of the house, I've found the alternative to be even harder. On Friday we went to the Cal Academy of Sciences to see the fish (giant sea bass) and the new California HOTSPOT exhibit. The new exhibit was well worth the trip and included a bear and rocks. Baby Entropy was very excited to touch everything in the exhibit and to watch the fish and snakes. Many of the tanks are low to the ground so he can see the giant fish. It's fun to watch the boys interact with the museum. B talks about the different types of fish and what they do while Baby E is working on "what is a fish". He points and says something that we understand to mean "fish? fish?". It's also fun to be somewhere the kids can touch new things - a large slices of a tree, an ammonite fossil, and a variety of rocks were among the favorites.

The only thing that would have made the morning better is if I had returned from Old Navy earlier and avoided the silent treatment. On a happier note, I saved a significant amount of money on new winter clothes for the kids.

On Saturday B swam for two hours in the kiddie pool. I was hoping to read during his lesson but it was cancelled. Baby Entropy didn't come with us because his cough was sounding too much like a bark and we were hoping he wasn't getting croup like several other children in his class. Luckily, he's been able to sleep well (with the help of a night-time Triaminic) and we're hoping he gets better soon.

This morning we put the kids in their costumes (B was a cow and Baby Entropy a frog) for the annual Run to the Far Side. Baby Entropy's cough was better and he was great in the jogger. The activity at the race was exciting for both kids. We're hoping B can run it in a few years and I really have to thank both B and my husband for letting me run. Afterwards we bought bagels, cream cheese, and whitefish - another favorite meal.

After a long weekend, our day ended with the kids picking on each other. They fought over toys and then came to us to complain about each other. Baby E would climb onto a chair and then dive onto B. B would take him down with his boy wrestling moves (I'm pretty sure I didn't have the same moves as a young girl). To distract them, we all made muffins. The Pocket Physicist washed the kids' whisks three times before I was finally ready for them to mix. It was a perfect ending to a great family weekend. I think the secret was a mix of one activity a day, no holiday expectations, and a healthy dose of endorphins from the race.