Going to the Zoo

I took Allison to the zoo today because it was going to be a hot, sunny day and I knew that Allison needed some special attention. She hounds me for hours each day to play with her, but after awhile I just can't do it anymore. It's a combination of being bored, being dictated how to play, having other things to do, and just wanting some time to do what I like to do. If I tell her that I'm busy and doing my chores, she will stand at my ankles (like she is doing as I am writing this post) and say, "When you're done will you play with me?" Which sounds cute and all, but it's not. It's phrase she repeats every minute until I'm in near tears.

Unfortunately Allison is not a kid who understands this. She cannot play by herself, no matter how I try to set her up for it. I thought that if I took her to the zoo for 4 hours, she'd tire of me and I could have the afternoon to do the stuff I wanted to do - like cook dinner and do the laundry.

The zoo was a total disaster. It started off well when she met a new friend on the tram (to Africa). It was a five year old girl and her nanny. The nanny was okay but clearly not interested in making a new friend so we just silently followed the girls around. Then when it was clear the nanny wanted to move on, Allison lost her marbles, which included yelling how I was a bad mom and didn't want me to talk to her or look at her.

After two more meltdowns, including an "I hate you!" (a word we are not allowed to say in our house), I told her that she would not be getting her special zoo snack as a consequence and that we would be going home immediately. Then she cried until she threw up at the zoo entrance and we went home.

I put her in my bed to sleep (she fell asleep in the car) but immediately woke up as I was shutting the door, crying and yelling about how she didn't want to sleep in my bed (her sheets were in the dryer from the load of laundry I did this morning).

I then spent the next two hours trying to un-knot my shoulders from the stress and drain of today and got nothing done except looking at a few zoo pictures I managed to take today.

Looking at the pictures showed me that things can look fun but behind social media and blogs, life can be really hard and frustrating. I hope it will get better, but for now, I'm looking forward to heading back to Canada this week to get a change of pace.

 

 

Happy Easter

Today was the first event that Sarah B. and I held as Children's Ministry Leaders of Wornall Road. We have been working non-stop to clean cupboards and closets, reorganize the handbook, deep cleaning the classrooms, and taking stock of and buying new toys for each class.

I've put a lot of pressure on myself to get a lot done because I'm leaving for Canada for a month and Sarah will be on her own and I want it to feel like I've pulled my weight in our partnership.

A new element to our Easter service was the "Children's Moment" when all the kids came up to the front of the church and our pastor read them the Easter story from the Storybook Bible. Allison was more interested in her friends than the reading and mid-story, she turned to me and loudly said, "Mooom! I don't want to listen to this story!"

After the kid's lesson, the kids went back to the childcare rooms and Sarah and I went out to the yard to hide the eggs. We hid over 500 eggs! We divided up the hunts this year so that ages weren't mixed which was a BIG hit with parents who didn't want to have screaming toddlers on the way home.

It was definitely chaotic without Nathan there to help me with Allison but Allison said she would be my special helper and helped me take all the posts and signs down after the hunt.

 After church we walked next door to say Happy Easter to our neighbors and take some pictures in front of their blooming perennials.

 

Nathan finished his work shift early today so we were able to meet up with some friends from church for dinner at Loose Park. We had a picnic while the kids played. Allison was very excited to be included in the big-girl game of "no boys allowed."

Early Easter

Nathan has to work on Easter Sunday so we decided to let Allison have her egg hunt today so that we could enjoy it as a family.

I didn't sleep at all the night before because sometimes Allison wakes in the night to use the bathroom and I didn't want her to pass by the living room and see the eggs. I knew that it would lead to a hunt at 2am so every time she rolled over or called out in her sleep, I wake instantly awake.

We only hid a couple dozen small eggs and chocolate coins but Allison had a really fun time finding them. She's already asking for chocolate for breakfast.

 

Nelson Atkins Sculpture Park

We had beautiful weather all week, so it only made sense that on the day we planned to be outside, it rained.

I wanted to go to the Nelson Atkins Sculpture Park (the grounds around the museum) because I've been to the museum a few times, and been to the grounds for events, but never taken the time to walk around and read the plaques. I thought it would be a good outing for Allison because she could run and be free while we roamed.

Allison has entered a new phase lately - testing. She will scream and stomp for what she wants, then cry and say she wants to go home if she doesn't get it. Today she insisted on being carried but that is an end of activity job, not for when we first get someone (because then you can't put her down). So Nathan said "no", and the first 15 minutes of being at the park were awful.

She had just stopped crying when we entered the "Glass Labyrinth." Nathan stopped to look at something and couldn't stop Allison as she ran into one of the walls (thinking it was an exit). So then he did have to carry her for the rest of the trip.

We managed to explore for an hour before the rain moved in and we headed home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped for a bit and blew bubbles at the front of the museum to give Nathan a break from carrying Allison.