Friday, July 17, 2009

Swingset Offer





As if the kids didn't get enough camera time this morning, I annoyed them by clicking away at the Arboretum this afternoon while we burned off excess energy. I've become bold - maybe too bold? - by taking the kids sans stroller to these types of parks by myself. The twins are happier, the kids all get exhausted (which, let's face it, is always one of the main goals), but I've got the sometimes stressful job of keeping order among the three kids and keeping them safe. There are parks I wouldn't attempt this alone - Deanna Rose, our petting zoo/park, is one of those - but if the park is basically deserted I figure I can handle it on a good day.

This afternoon was also a reminder that we would have been much better off doing the professional photo shoot later in the day. Molly is not a morning person (note: I take full responsibility for those bad genetics). While unfamiliar surroundings excite her in the afternoon, it is cause for tantrums in the morning. I won't forget this about her the next time I plan photos or any other kind of event.

On an entirely different note, we got a random offer tonight of a free, but utterly massive, used swingset. The thing is over 20 feet in length with all sorts of swings and play stuff. A normal-sized suburban yard in our neck of the woods could handle something this large, but we don't have a normal-sized yard. We have a postage stamp-sized yard which, to our knowledge, is the smallest yard in our neighborhood (where was my brain when I bought this house and yard?). So we have a conundrum tonight. We would love the kid entertainment, and the set is so much better than the neighbor's swingset we share, but where would we put it? Do we somehow place it in our teeny tiny yard? Do we talk to the neighbor whose cruddy swingset we share and discuss a replacement/new sharing deal where we use their yard? Or do we walk away from this free gift? I think we need a night to sleep on this, and I believe Kyle is outside now taking some measurements.

Tomorrow: another kid birthday for Claire to attend, but no other plans for the day or for Sunday. We've got a weekend of amazing weather ahead so I plan to be outside as much as possible.

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