bouncy balls | Team Wonderful

Posts tagged bouncy balls

Last Weekend of Vacation

January 10, 2010 · Filed under Field Trips and Outings, Team Wonderful · Tagged bath, bouncy balls, duct tape, household appliances, park, rubber band ball, world domination

I always have big plans for winter break. Study for the PCAT, organize the pictures on the computer, put all of that crap I’ve been meaning to sell on ebay. I always for get that the first portion of the break is eaten up by Christmas preparations. Then there is Christmas itself, which eats up several days of our time. After that is the weird few days between Christmas and New Year’s where you try to find places for all of the new crap you have. We live in a house strewn with gift boxes for that period of time. It feels as if time is standing still. Then you celebrate New Year’s. Finally, there is one week left before school starts, this one of which I spent dealing with Financial Aid, buying books ($782.43 so far, still a few course packets to buy), convincing Dan that we need to purchase a MyRide65 car seat for Xavier, and rearranging the furniture.

This last weekend before the craziness ensues, I decided to enjoy a little time with the kids. Dan was gone Friday night, so we spent a lovely evening at home, giving Xavier his first bath in the sink, among other activities.

Chloë and Rex-Goliath helped, showing him the best way to play with squirty toys.

Rex-Goliath loves playing with water, so the sink coupled with his baby brother splashing was beyond exciting. I sure am glad we forked over $20 for that baby bathtub that was useful for less than six months.

I couldn’t resist doing this picture, cheesy as it may be.

This may be the type of thing that only a parent finds endearing, but I am going to post about it anyway. For better or for worse, this blog has become the record of the kids’ childhoods, and these are the type of memories that make you smile years down the road when your children are different people, yet the same people. A few weeks ago, when going through pictures on the desktop computer, I came across one where Rex-Goliath had plugged in all manner of electric appliances to a stool from IKEA. I remember when he used to do that! He did that for a good year, there were always things plugged into his crib, or the stove. He was fascinated by fans and would turn them on and off, plug them in and unplug them. My mommy instinct was shrieking “No!” the entire time, but I held back. He was so meticulous about it, so careful. So fascinated.

As most of you know, small household appliances have given way to tank engines. Most boys that play with train sets do things like set up the tracks and run the trains along the tracks. Santa knew Rex-Goliath better than that, and conveniently left a roll of duct tape and a rubber band ball in his stocking. Because Rex-Goliath does things like this with trains:

To be completely accurate, Mama helped with this one. But Rex-Goliath directed the action. I have assisted in attaching many items to trains – trains that are not meant to be part of the train set, cars, baby toys, even a Playmobil carriage meant to be pulled by a plastic horse. Sometimes the carriage contains princesses, sometimes it contains Santa Percy.

On Saturday, we met Melissa and Willy at Edinborough Park, an beautiful indoor playground with a giant play structure, a bounce house, and a room full of scooters and bouncy balls. The “park” has a park feel to it – plenty of trees, pathways and a stream.

For those of you who do not have children – these things did not exist when we were kids. Or maybe my parents were ogres and hid them from my brother and I. I would have adored this sort of thing when I was little. They are so tall – like three McDonald’s Playlands stacked. I was wearing Xavier, so unfortunately, I wasn’t able to do much climbing around, but next time we’ll bring Dan so I can.