Picnics used to be simpler

Remember the days, before kids, when a picnic consisted of jumping in the car (maybe throwing in a frisbee and a blanket), stopping at 7-11 for snacks and drinks and going to the park? We'd spend the whole day at the park and come home when we were sun-burned and tired.

Well that was before kids.

forward to today... WITH kids.

So Kristy calls at about 4:00 - "Hey do you want to come to the beach for a picnic?"

Me "sure I'll meet you there in about an hour"

I spend the next hour packing the car - double stroller, large towel to sit on, towel to dry children off with, extra big girl pants, extra shorts (just in case), extra t-shirt, sweat shirts for both kids (in case it gets cool), plums, fish crackers, bananas, water, baby "star" snacks, cherrios, swimming diapers for sebastian, swim suit for kenzie, two bottles with formula powder, thermos with hot water (Seb only drinks WARM bottles), hats for both kids, beach ball, shovel/pail/sand stuff, water wings.

Then I get the kids ready - new diaper for sebastian, sunscreen all over both kids, new clean clothes for both kids, sandals on kenzie... kenzie goes pee pee, I change my shirt (I'm covered in sunscreen). Pop a bottle of formula in microwave to take with us (promptly forget formula in microwave).

Get car keys, cell phone, camera.

Pack everything into car.

Go back into house to get a sippy cup with water for kenzie and kenzie's bears and blankets for the car ride. go back into house to get binkie and toys for sebastian.

Get in car - EXHAUSTED - and drive to park. Kenzie talks the whole way about playing in the sand and water.

Get to park and find out that Kristy has found a beautiful spot in the shade about 1.5 miles from the sandy beach. (accccckkkk!)

Have some snacks. Realize the we've forgotten seb's bottles in the car. Walk 1/2 mile (with both kids, because God forbid i leave one of them for more than 2 seconds) to retrieve said bottles.

Walk back 1/2 mile with both kids.

Make seb a bottle - find out I never heated the water in the thermos (apparently I put water in the microwave, set it, but never pressed the start button.,. and then proceeded to pour cold water into the thermos). Seb won' drink it because it's not warm.

Seb gets cranky.

Kenzie has to pee.

I pick up Kenzie and run the 1/2 mile to the bathrooms so she can go pee.

Run back before seb goes balistic with Kristy.

Kenzie wants to go to the beach. So we pack up all our crap and start walking.

Head towards beach - seb is cranky because he's hungry. We pass a playground and kenzie wants to play. I ask her if she wants to go to the beach "NO MOM.. i want to go down slide"

okay...

Kenzie plays on slide... sebastian is getting really pissed off.

I tell Kenzie we have to go home.

She throws a temper tantrum because we didn't go to the beach.

Walk to car with two crying children in the stroller while carrying a bunch of sand toys. Get a couple sympathetic looks. get a couple pissed off looks.

Get two kids in car without Kenzie getting run over by a car.

Drive home. feed sebastian. change sebastian. Get kenzie ready for bed. Put sebastian to bed. Read kenzie books, put kenzie to bed. Clean up the downstairs (apparently a bomb went off there sometime this afternoon).

fast forward to now!..... I'm in bed going to go to sleep and rest up for tomorrow.

Guess where we're going tomorrow morning.... yup the beach. i promised the boo!

Here we are (kenzie had just finished a bunch of blueberries and a piece of brownie)



Kristy and Jackson (why does she look so relaxed and together?)