The day before we left I took Gage to the library for a little while after school. We hadn't been in ages and I forgot how much we both love it there.
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The back neighbors invited us to a BBQ at the neighborhood park the evening before we left. Matt was already gone. At first I thought, "There's no way we can make the park tonight-I haven't even started to pack". Then I realized that the cleaning lady had just come and going to the park was an opportunity for my house to stay clean just a few more hours......and Alyssa was at the house with the little ones.......if I had her stay to help me at least start packing up we could probably make the park, have dinner there, get back at bedtime and the house might actually stay clean. So while I fed the twins Alyssa helped Gage and Gracie get packed for the trip, then I packed up the stroller and took the kids to the park. Gracie was the hardest part.....Gage had friends and I didn't feel like I had to watch him every second but Gracie is stealth. One second she's there and the next she's gone. Luckily she found a spot on a blanket with some friends.......with a few Fritos she was content to stay there all evening.
The next morning Alyssa came back to help me pack up the car and get the big kids breakfast since I hoped to be on the road by 8:30am. See-I'm not supermom......if she hadn't been there to help we may have never left. As I fed the twins she was packing up our luggage into the car as I'd asked. When I walked out to the garage I realized I'd forgotten that we needed to pack the big stroller. Start over. We pulled everything out so the stroller could go in first and we packed again. Only 30 minutes late for our estimated departure time we pulled out.....that is REALLY good for me because I was always late BEFORE I had kids. I started a movie for Gage, Gracie was up early so I knew she'd fall asleep and the twins had full bellies. I took a deep breath, I was feeling good. As I drove down Friant my mind wandered, "......it's a challenge to pack for five people.....there's so much to remember......good thing I made that list....I would have totally forgotten my nursing pillow......I used to spend so much time making sure I had all MY stuff.......now I don't even worry about my clothes.......OH MY GOD I forgot my clothes!!" I had left behind my hanging clothes. I would have had nothing but pajamas and a pair of cropped jeans. Thankfully I was only five minutes from home so I turned back.
We were off again and the trip was rather smooth. No potty stops and no major crying. Success. We arrived at our hotel and as Matt unpacked I fed the babies. I was starving so we set out to Cannery Row for some lunch. We took out the big stroller, laid the twins down in it and put Gracie up front. We went to FishHopper to sit on the patio. I would never expect to take a stroller inside. So I asked the host, "May we sit outside on your patio with our stroller." His response- "I'm sorry ma'am, we have a strict no stroller policy". Okay. I go back outside to tell Matt and I see a corner table where we could just park the stroller next to us and it wouldn't technically be on their patio. Matt and I were very gracious in asking if we could sit there.....because I get it. I understand that a stroller takes up space and can be a burden.......but I was starving and I didn't want to have to go somewhere else and be told the same thing. They weren't happy about it and made it clear that they were making an exception but they did let us sit there. I didn't realize our family would be so hard to accommodate......
That night we had a dinner to attend and Matt's cousin April came to watch the kids in our room. Gracie was ROTTEN as we were getting ready. She hadn't had a nap and it was obvious she needed one. There was just nowhere for her to take one without the distraction of seeing us. At least one of the kids was crying the whole time we were trying to get ready. April arrived and I was feeling so bad for her. I told her-"I really have no expectations, Gracie is being awful, this room is tiny, and as long as they're all alive when we get back I'll be happy". I was dead serious. I didn't care what she fed them, whether or not their teeth got brushed, or if the room was in shambles when we returned. I told Matt I was afraid she wouldn't come back for the second night. When we got back Gracie and the twins were asleep and she swore they were great. I just didn't realize how stuffed it would feel with all of us in one room.....
The next day we took the kids to the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz. It was......okay. The thing is I don't want having kids to keep me from life and I don't want Gage to miss out because we have the little ones. So we went. I set my expectations pretty low and I wasn't disappointed! I didn't realize that until summer on weekdays half of the rides are closed. It was fine. Gage had fun. He was two inches short of being able to ride the Giant Dipper :(
Ashlyn and Jay ready for the Boardwalk...
Gage had this look the whole time he was on the swings.....he insisted he loved it but it certainly didn't look like it.......
She loves the boardwalk
I took Gracie on the carousel. I strapped her to the horse and decided to stand beside her. Before the ride started Gage turned to me and said, "MOM!! Hold on to her!!' He was so concerned about her. I thought she would love it because she loves to ride her rocking horse and get thrown into the air. I was wrong. She hated it. She yelled at me the whole time.....I would say she cried but there were no tears-just screaming and yelling.
My family.....
Here's an overview-Jay cried most of the time-I finally just put him in the carrier and he was happy, Gracie was grouchy because she doesn't sleep well when we travel and the rides just weren't her thing, Ashlyn pretty much slept in the stroller the whole time, and Gage thought we ALL had a great time because he did. That was all we'd hoped for.....that's why we went. Matt and I realized that we survived-nobody got in trouble, nobody got hurt, nobody got lost, and that's a success.
That night April returned and we enjoyed dinner at The Sardine Factory just the two of us. Matt ordered abalone. I thought it was odd because he'd never had it that I knew of. The server walked away and he said, "I hope I like it.....I hope I'm not allergic to it". He didn't like it. The good news was the rest of the meal was fabulous and he didn't HATE it. The kids were alive again when we returned thanks to April.
The next morning we went to MY Museum. I opted for this instead of the aquarium. If you've done the aquarium and not MY museum you should try it next time.
Gracie liked this.....
Gage liked this.....
This was another of Gracie's favorites.......a little coastal area with a slide and a boat
Gracie in a bubble......
Matt trying to coax Gracie out of the tunnel......
Someone has to man the stroller.....
Jay and Ashlyn at MY Museum
Take the evening at the park for example. I wanted to take them all with me. I would have felt like some type of failure if I didn't.....as though I can't even manage all of my kids. But the fact is-since had all four.....I didn't PLAY with any of them. I was just trying to keep it together and make sure I didn't lose anyone. I need to get over myself and my pride......to accept that quality time with one or two of them is probably been better spent than trying to juggle them all. This is why Tuesday afternoons are now library days with Gage. Just the two of us. A sitter for all the littles. We can complete homework in peace and pick out some great reads as a reward. It's okay to leave the littles with the sitter. In fact, it's GOOD to leave them.
We're learning.......this trip taught me that no matter how small they are 6 bodies really is too many for a standard hotel room........that a family of six with three little ones can be really hard for a restaurant to accommodate......that babies and the Boardwalk don't mix......and that every time we take the kids we'll need a vacation from our vacation when we get home. Next time we line a sitter up for Sunday...and we're off to Vino for a glass of wine sans children.
That's the great thing about life-you can live and learn......
Love.
P. S. To all of you readers-thank you. Some of you have sent sweet messages to me and I want you to know that I'm so grateful for the kind words. I don't always take the time to respond because I'm afraid if I did-I wouldn't have time to write any posts! Thanks again, hope you enjoy watching us grow......
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