Busch Gardens... Part 1
So basically, I'm giving myself the 'Mother of the Year' award for this one. A day at Busch Gardens with my friend Marissa Noon, her 3 kiddos, Auntie Rea Rea and my kids.
(pause for round of applause)... thank you.
It all started with Marissa calling Reaghan on sunday evening and asking if we were up for the adventure. Marissa knows me well enough to assume that it wouldn't work out... but I told her I'd see how I felt in the morning and let her know.
I wake up the next morning... 2:45, 6:30 and eventually up for good at 7:30 with two energetic children. I survey my atrocious house. No, I'm not exaggerating... dishes piled in the sink, piles of laundry everywhere, every horizontal surface covered in snowdrifts of papers and random things that I put up so Evangeline couldn't destroy them. My house is usually pretty well managed, but I had a horrible few days with my back... so I just let things go completely.
As I gear up to tackle this mess. I am reminded of the many times my mother has encouraged me to "just enjoy your kids"... so I picked up my phone and texted Marissa 'let's do it'.
Now... I must introduce you to my dear friend Marissa, before you can fully appreciate the magnitude of this event. She is barely 100 lbs. of total energy, northern attitude (as we southerners like to call it) and high blood pressure. "It's totally hereditary." she'll remind you, as she yells for all her kids to "Cut it out! Do you think I'm 'tawlkin' cause I like the sound of my own voice?!"
She grew up in New York... and I'm told ,from a source who shall remain nameless, that she was quite 'ghetto fabulous' back in the 90's. Gold rings on every finger... a pair of 'fresh Tims' for each day of the week. But now she's quite refined, although I'm convinced that she keeps a few spare velour jumpsuits in her closet 'just in case'.
Marissa manages to squeeze an average of 'Jessica's annual activities' into one week.
"So... Marissa, what are you up to today?" I'll ask nonchalantly.
"Oh not much..." she'll reply.
"I was at Harris Teeter at 7:00 for triple coupons, then we stopped by the zoo and 'the Y' to let the kids get some energy out... we'll probably hit up botanical gardens after naps, then swing by the Marine Science Museum on the way home."
Marissa will offer to babysit or have the entire family over for dinner at the drop of a hat. She will make sure to make it to your child's 2nd birthday party even if it's the fourth party they've been to that day.
If her daughter doesn't have the perfect bow to correspond with the outfit of the day, Marissa has no further to go than her craft closet, where she whips together a pair of matching bows on the way out the door for school. She and I are nothing alike... but that's what I love about her. She and her husband, Josh, are dear friends of ours... but unlikely friends... and that's the best kind.
Anyway, I guess now you understand the level of braveness that it took for me to text those three words... "Let's do it!"
I pull up to Marissa's house at about 10:00 that morning. She proceeds to tell me how surprised she is that I'm actually getting out of my house for the day. (she knows me too well). Her three kids are already in the car, plugged into their 'individual electronic devices'... there is complete peace and quiet in her car... so she calls her mom to chat for the 1 hr. trek to Busch Gardens.
(Pan over to my car)
Reaghan and I basically have to stand on our heads and sing every silly song known to man, just to keep Evangeline from screaming the entire time and waking Elliot. It was an exhausting trip just to get to the godforsaken amusement park... I could even feel my own blood pressure reaching a record breaking high.
We finally get there and park. Wait in lines for the tram... wait in lines to even get inside the park. Reaghan immediately takes Marissa's oldest son, Byron, off to ride a roller coaster. So I'm off to Elmo's world where I bravely let Doodle out of her stroller. Marissa decides to take Jaelyn, her 'demanding diva'... and Paxton, her adorable 3 year old, to ride on the kid's coaster. She also has the daunting task of strategically avoiding all mascots on Paxton's behalf while in Elmo's world... which is obviously not a simple feat.
Once I look around, and come to terms with the fact that I am, indeed, in tourist stricken Elmo's World by myself with my two children... slight panic sets in. I give Evangeline a little freedom by letting her venture into the water fountains while I sit nearby with Elliot in his stroller. She's a little timid with water... so it didn't seem like a big deal. She wasn't crazy about the water... so I suggested that she get in the stroller and we go 'find Paxton'. Well, that didn't go over so well. She immediately bolts across the play area like a bat out of... 'a cage'... by her self.
"Ahh! Do I chase her or turn around and grab the stroller?!"
Of coarse, I grab the stroller, but it is too crowded to chase Doodle through the crowded park with a double stroller. I calmly keep my eye on her giant, white bow as it moves further away... and secretly vow to myself "I'm NEVER doing this again"... and "NOTE TO SELF: NEVER make fun of those parents with leashes." (they are definitely one step ahead of me).
I finally catch up with Doodle, who immediately starts flailing around yelling "NO SPANK! NO SPANK!". I'm sure I ended up bribing her with some sort of snack food in order to get her buckled into her stroller. I sit back, notice that I have quite an audience, take a breath and and wipe the sweat from my upper lip.
Elliot starts crying. He's hungry. Thankfully he's just started taking a bottle, otherwise, I probably would've given my audience a different kind of show... not at all appropriate for Elmo's World.
At some point Evangeline met Abby Cadabby and Big-a-bird... as Marissa hid behind the bushes with poor Pax. And, soon after, Auntie Rea Rea returned and took her on something fun... as I had a brief 'Come to Jesus' talk with myself.
O.k... I survived the first hour.
(pause for round of applause)... thank you.
It all started with Marissa calling Reaghan on sunday evening and asking if we were up for the adventure. Marissa knows me well enough to assume that it wouldn't work out... but I told her I'd see how I felt in the morning and let her know.
I wake up the next morning... 2:45, 6:30 and eventually up for good at 7:30 with two energetic children. I survey my atrocious house. No, I'm not exaggerating... dishes piled in the sink, piles of laundry everywhere, every horizontal surface covered in snowdrifts of papers and random things that I put up so Evangeline couldn't destroy them. My house is usually pretty well managed, but I had a horrible few days with my back... so I just let things go completely.
As I gear up to tackle this mess. I am reminded of the many times my mother has encouraged me to "just enjoy your kids"... so I picked up my phone and texted Marissa 'let's do it'.
Now... I must introduce you to my dear friend Marissa, before you can fully appreciate the magnitude of this event. She is barely 100 lbs. of total energy, northern attitude (as we southerners like to call it) and high blood pressure. "It's totally hereditary." she'll remind you, as she yells for all her kids to "Cut it out! Do you think I'm 'tawlkin' cause I like the sound of my own voice?!"
She grew up in New York... and I'm told ,from a source who shall remain nameless, that she was quite 'ghetto fabulous' back in the 90's. Gold rings on every finger... a pair of 'fresh Tims' for each day of the week. But now she's quite refined, although I'm convinced that she keeps a few spare velour jumpsuits in her closet 'just in case'.
Marissa manages to squeeze an average of 'Jessica's annual activities' into one week.
"So... Marissa, what are you up to today?" I'll ask nonchalantly.
"Oh not much..." she'll reply.
"I was at Harris Teeter at 7:00 for triple coupons, then we stopped by the zoo and 'the Y' to let the kids get some energy out... we'll probably hit up botanical gardens after naps, then swing by the Marine Science Museum on the way home."
Marissa will offer to babysit or have the entire family over for dinner at the drop of a hat. She will make sure to make it to your child's 2nd birthday party even if it's the fourth party they've been to that day.
If her daughter doesn't have the perfect bow to correspond with the outfit of the day, Marissa has no further to go than her craft closet, where she whips together a pair of matching bows on the way out the door for school. She and I are nothing alike... but that's what I love about her. She and her husband, Josh, are dear friends of ours... but unlikely friends... and that's the best kind.
Anyway, I guess now you understand the level of braveness that it took for me to text those three words... "Let's do it!"
I pull up to Marissa's house at about 10:00 that morning. She proceeds to tell me how surprised she is that I'm actually getting out of my house for the day. (she knows me too well). Her three kids are already in the car, plugged into their 'individual electronic devices'... there is complete peace and quiet in her car... so she calls her mom to chat for the 1 hr. trek to Busch Gardens.
(Pan over to my car)
Reaghan and I basically have to stand on our heads and sing every silly song known to man, just to keep Evangeline from screaming the entire time and waking Elliot. It was an exhausting trip just to get to the godforsaken amusement park... I could even feel my own blood pressure reaching a record breaking high.
We finally get there and park. Wait in lines for the tram... wait in lines to even get inside the park. Reaghan immediately takes Marissa's oldest son, Byron, off to ride a roller coaster. So I'm off to Elmo's world where I bravely let Doodle out of her stroller. Marissa decides to take Jaelyn, her 'demanding diva'... and Paxton, her adorable 3 year old, to ride on the kid's coaster. She also has the daunting task of strategically avoiding all mascots on Paxton's behalf while in Elmo's world... which is obviously not a simple feat.
Once I look around, and come to terms with the fact that I am, indeed, in tourist stricken Elmo's World by myself with my two children... slight panic sets in. I give Evangeline a little freedom by letting her venture into the water fountains while I sit nearby with Elliot in his stroller. She's a little timid with water... so it didn't seem like a big deal. She wasn't crazy about the water... so I suggested that she get in the stroller and we go 'find Paxton'. Well, that didn't go over so well. She immediately bolts across the play area like a bat out of... 'a cage'... by her self.
"Ahh! Do I chase her or turn around and grab the stroller?!"
Of coarse, I grab the stroller, but it is too crowded to chase Doodle through the crowded park with a double stroller. I calmly keep my eye on her giant, white bow as it moves further away... and secretly vow to myself "I'm NEVER doing this again"... and "NOTE TO SELF: NEVER make fun of those parents with leashes." (they are definitely one step ahead of me).
I finally catch up with Doodle, who immediately starts flailing around yelling "NO SPANK! NO SPANK!". I'm sure I ended up bribing her with some sort of snack food in order to get her buckled into her stroller. I sit back, notice that I have quite an audience, take a breath and and wipe the sweat from my upper lip.
Elliot starts crying. He's hungry. Thankfully he's just started taking a bottle, otherwise, I probably would've given my audience a different kind of show... not at all appropriate for Elmo's World.
At some point Evangeline met Abby Cadabby and Big-a-bird... as Marissa hid behind the bushes with poor Pax. And, soon after, Auntie Rea Rea returned and took her on something fun... as I had a brief 'Come to Jesus' talk with myself.
O.k... I survived the first hour.
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