looooong day

dad is plowing through to the end of an article. thank goodness. this is the article that has been a thorn in his side for about a year. and it is close. but he was up until 3 am or so working on it last night (and watching a trashy television series about Henry the VIII -- "The Tudors"). Sufficient to say he could not wake up this morning. but no matter as i was on kid duty today. as the center was closed and the kids were in my hands, i had a day chockfull of adventures. so first r and i headed to OT where he did some great gross motor work and some handwriting practice. he was frustrated making Zs but his Xs and Ys were steady. his Ws were definitely messy. Zs are odd in that they are one (if not the only letter) that goes across first and not down.

afterwards, we went and picked up daddy's buddy. dad and daughter had had a leisurely morning and got into dad's work in great spirits. i picked her up and off went dad to wrestle with figures and meet with katie. and i headed off on my quest with the two kids in tow. now mind you, there are plenty of places to go with children. the problem is that we live in a city where everyone goes to things during the weekend so that all venues are packed with families during the summer and especially holiday weekends. well we got to como town and zoo and there was not one parking spot to be found. in fact, there were several dozen cars circling each parking spot and were still find no spots. as i had two little children by myself, i did not relish the idea of parking far away and walking there with both in tow. so mom was persistent and secured one at the edge of tolerability. the lure of rides was enough to get them there. but of course, as we finally arrived inside, hand in hand, the day started heating up and children started wilting. nonetheless, we managed to get everyone in various lines and on various rides. since it is not a huge park, it is rather manageable for the kids. and since we only go about once a year, the kids got to go on about 5 rides. they had a good time and i will try to post pictures soon. what is interesting is how quickly they are growing. the difference between 2&4 and 3&5 is noticeable. yikes. we are entering big kid territory on one end. at the same, i had to hold r back because r could not go by himself on some rides and k could not be left behind by herself. the children were also really really well behaved and great listeners. no one ran off or whined. the only little bit of whining came around lunch time. and the lure of mini-donuts is too much for r to resist.

after lunch and climbing around in the big play structure, we shared some mini donuts (not as good as before) and then headed back to the car. both kids were hot and tired. this led to some quiet and impending crankiness. k was definitely in her missing-nap-time-mode. she was clingy and pissy. we managed to make it to auntie hot hot's house for some replenishment and rest before we headed out to see UP together.

r and k have not been to many films. i believe the last two were Wall-E and horton hears a who. we have been working on having r adjust to conflict and cope with fear when watching films and it has been slowly improving. the premise of UP does not imply much frightening evil. but there are some scary dogs and an obsessive and deadly explorer. both did ok for the most part as the story is quite charming, especially the relationship between the man and the woman in the film. but r really started becoming overwrought towards the end as the chase scenes and "violence" began. he did ok but was definitely crying. auntie hot hot did an excellent job of helping him manage and talk through his emotions. oddly enough, prior to this he kept repeating that he was bored but did not want to leave. it is an interesting response he has. both kids clearly enjoyed the movie and it is apparent that r is getting better at understanding and watching the films. nonetheless, it is also obvious that he is still learning how to cope.

two very tired children came home with mom who had a massive migraine at this point. i lay down while dad heated up dinner and the kids played outside cooperatively together. dinner went more or less smoothly. afterwards the kids were a bit touchy but managed not to breakdown completely. eventually, after some water play (pipes and hoses) and a bath, both settled into reading with a parent. i am hoping that they are exhausted and will sleep deeply tonight.