Wake up and have breakfast...Daddy takes Risa to school.... Nate and Mommy get ready and go to the Ann Arbor Hands On Museum http://www.aahom.org/ ... go get some lunch... take a nap (for both of us :-) then make some cupcakes... go get Nate's haircut... pick up Marisa.
I know a hefty list of things for one small day.
Here's how it actually went.
Daddy and Marisa leave a little late, which makes getting ready a little late for us. Nate is unbelievably agreeable today. (Really odd) so he is in the garage before I can even get my shoes on. Once we get in the car we are on our way. Of course once we start to leave the real Nate shows up in my backseat. First he doesn't like the direction we are driving out of the neighborhood. Then he yells at me for how loud my car is during acceleration onto busy Geddes. Then he really hates that we have to wait at a red light, because "red is not his favorite color, he doesn't love it." Once we get downtown, he continues to ask me every time I turn onto a new street, why we are on this street? and my favorite? "Why are we going this way?
Then we get to the parking ramp, park the car and get out. Let the meltdown begin. Totally chaos over leaving the car. "why can't we take our car with us?" "Why do we have to leave our car here?" Now this is NOT the first time we have parked in a parking lot, although you'd think it is, nor is it the first time in a parking ramp. 1/8 of the walk to the museum from the parking ramp and I hear sobbing coming from the child clutching my hand.
"Nate, what is wrong? Why are you sad?"
"It's too cold, I want to go home!"
So I picked him up and walked the 1/2 mile carrying a 50lb child, while we were passed by every toddler walking with her mommy. Chanting over and over in my head... "he WILL have a good time, this is totally worth it".
When we finally got there, all we had to do was walk down the musical steps and he was in 3 year old heaven. Here are photos of some of his favorite activities.
Driving the Ambulance
Making a giant bubble!
Rock Climbing
Water Table
Then, nap time came. After 5 minutes in his room he came out and said, "I sleeped... I'm all done!" Ummm no. After nap and with no time to bake cupcakes we headed off to get his haircut. Now if you know my child, we haven't had the greatest experiences with ummmm anything. Haircutting is actually the worst (because it happens so often) my sweet, loving, somewhat agreeable child turns into demon child. I seriously expect his head to spin around. He started crying (and chanting) about a mile away. The chant went like this. "I don't want to get my haircut, you are not my best friend!, I'm sad at you momma! (repeat cycle)" He almost walked in the building all by himself. Side note... This is a children's haircut place the inside looks like an arcade, there is a TV at every station, and he gets to pick his DVD. There is a huge slide and when he's done he gets a sucker and a balloon.
But no.
As I dragged him through the open door, (the chant continued) and tried to pretend it wasn't a big deal that my 3 1/2 year old child was sobbing hysterically. I hung my coat up, went over and wrestled his coat off him. Other mommy's looked at me not even sympathetically, more like pathetically. I'm sure thinking, I somehow could control this. (This is the child that has to wear a straight-jacket at the dentist-seriously!) I had to hold him on my lap through the entire ordeal, literally restraining him, and he's so much stronger than he used to be! Of course Alicia who cuts his hair, never remembers this demon child, and tells me every time, he wasn't like this last time... OH YES HE WAS, although he's bigger, and stronger now, I tipped her half the cost of the cut and ran out of there. I'm starting to think that 70's hippie hair look, might work for Nate.
When all is said and done, we really did have a great day. Moments with him young and so loving are dwindling I know, I must take all I can get now.
But no.
As I dragged him through the open door, (the chant continued) and tried to pretend it wasn't a big deal that my 3 1/2 year old child was sobbing hysterically. I hung my coat up, went over and wrestled his coat off him. Other mommy's looked at me not even sympathetically, more like pathetically. I'm sure thinking, I somehow could control this. (This is the child that has to wear a straight-jacket at the dentist-seriously!) I had to hold him on my lap through the entire ordeal, literally restraining him, and he's so much stronger than he used to be! Of course Alicia who cuts his hair, never remembers this demon child, and tells me every time, he wasn't like this last time... OH YES HE WAS, although he's bigger, and stronger now, I tipped her half the cost of the cut and ran out of there. I'm starting to think that 70's hippie hair look, might work for Nate.
When all is said and done, we really did have a great day. Moments with him young and so loving are dwindling I know, I must take all I can get now.
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