"Whew-hew, it's the weekend. No more work. Two days to lay by the pool, go out, do nothing..."
These days the only difference between Saturday and, let's say Tuesday, it that my husband is home (which is very exciting) and people expect us to do stuff with them. Otherwise, my days pretty much run together. Especially since I tend to live life one play date at a time...
There are a few other instances of things of which I've become blissfully oblivious. For instance, last week, I was driving home from my parents' house and going along the highway at an even clip, until traffic came to a complete and total STANDSTILL.
What?! There was no construction. No accidents. No emergency vehicles speeding by.
I eyed the clock on the dash, which read 4:30. It was a bright and sunny Friday afternoon and the standstill was from the thousands of cars suddenly flooding the freeways. It was RUSH HOUR...
"Oh yeah," I thought to myself, "I forgot all about rush hour!"
That's what happens when you never really have to leave the suburbs... or your house, for that matter. An hour and a half and three detours later, I made it home from a trip that usually takes about 45 minutes non-stop.
Then, there are the things that I've sadly forgotten, like the luxury of the business lunch. Earlier this week, Self-Made Mom touched on one of the downsides to lunching with colleagues (one word: "Crackberry"). I admit that I once found business lunches with the likes of media reps and publishers to be tedious and an infringement on my precious time, too. Well, I'm here to tell you about the alternative... lunching with your toddler and his colleagues.
This week, my friends and I took our 1-year-olds to the Wiggly Play Center. (What? I TOLD you I was going...) After a very exciting and exhausting morning of "shaking our sillies out", we decide to forgo dining at the "Yummy Yummy Cafe" and grab lunch at one of the many, many other dining establishments nearby.
We chose a suitable location, called ahead for a table for "four adults and three highchairs", and took our mommy-mobile caravan on the road. When we arrived, we found that they had placed us in the very back corner (very smart). We situated ourselves and the kids immediately began taking turns going postal.
After receiving plenty of compliments on how well he ate his table food, my son thought, "I'll show them" (ha-ha) and proceeded to throw his food every which way but in his mouth. Little People were also flying in the air. (I should clarify they were Fisher-Price Little People, not actual people) Nearing nap time, the kids were restless and wanting to be anywhere besides the confines of a highchair.
Shortly thereafter, my friend's husband who works nearby joined our group. Fresh from some very important business meeting with "the consultants", he was completely taken aback by the sight that greeted him... Three disheveled moms and three little boys making baby small talk with one another at the top of their little lungs.
While I tried to distract one of the other kids with a game of Peek-a-Boo, my son took a spoon off of my plate and used it to eat some food off of the poor guy's plate. Then, my son became quite fascinated with the cell phone hanging from his belt and tried to STEAL it from him... and all this man wanted was a quiet, peaceful lunch with his wife and his kid. He hardly expected their buddies to tag along.
Did I mention that we were completely surrounded by large groups of business-attired folks, making uninterrupted adult small talk and nibbling daintily on their food. No one was looking for a speedy escape or begging the waiter to make theirs "to go" and the check, PLEASE!!! No messy bibs. No toys in tow. No noses to wipe. Just nice people taking their time and trying not to disapprovingly gawk at us.
I would gladly fight rush hour traffic on a Monday to get an hour or two in the middle of the day to lunch at the "big kids" table...even if it is with a media rep.
Photo 1 by traveller2020
Photo 2 by Jenblossom
There are a few other instances of things of which I've become blissfully oblivious. For instance, last week, I was driving home from my parents' house and going along the highway at an even clip, until traffic came to a complete and total STANDSTILL.What?! There was no construction. No accidents. No emergency vehicles speeding by.
I eyed the clock on the dash, which read 4:30. It was a bright and sunny Friday afternoon and the standstill was from the thousands of cars suddenly flooding the freeways. It was RUSH HOUR...
"Oh yeah," I thought to myself, "I forgot all about rush hour!"
That's what happens when you never really have to leave the suburbs... or your house, for that matter. An hour and a half and three detours later, I made it home from a trip that usually takes about 45 minutes non-stop.
Then, there are the things that I've sadly forgotten, like the luxury of the business lunch. Earlier this week, Self-Made Mom touched on one of the downsides to lunching with colleagues (one word: "Crackberry"). I admit that I once found business lunches with the likes of media reps and publishers to be tedious and an infringement on my precious time, too. Well, I'm here to tell you about the alternative... lunching with your toddler and his colleagues.This week, my friends and I took our 1-year-olds to the Wiggly Play Center. (What? I TOLD you I was going...) After a very exciting and exhausting morning of "shaking our sillies out", we decide to forgo dining at the "Yummy Yummy Cafe" and grab lunch at one of the many, many other dining establishments nearby.
We chose a suitable location, called ahead for a table for "four adults and three highchairs", and took our mommy-mobile caravan on the road. When we arrived, we found that they had placed us in the very back corner (very smart). We situated ourselves and the kids immediately began taking turns going postal.
After receiving plenty of compliments on how well he ate his table food, my son thought, "I'll show them" (ha-ha) and proceeded to throw his food every which way but in his mouth. Little People were also flying in the air. (I should clarify they were Fisher-Price Little People, not actual people) Nearing nap time, the kids were restless and wanting to be anywhere besides the confines of a highchair.
Shortly thereafter, my friend's husband who works nearby joined our group. Fresh from some very important business meeting with "the consultants", he was completely taken aback by the sight that greeted him... Three disheveled moms and three little boys making baby small talk with one another at the top of their little lungs.
While I tried to distract one of the other kids with a game of Peek-a-Boo, my son took a spoon off of my plate and used it to eat some food off of the poor guy's plate. Then, my son became quite fascinated with the cell phone hanging from his belt and tried to STEAL it from him... and all this man wanted was a quiet, peaceful lunch with his wife and his kid. He hardly expected their buddies to tag along.
Did I mention that we were completely surrounded by large groups of business-attired folks, making uninterrupted adult small talk and nibbling daintily on their food. No one was looking for a speedy escape or begging the waiter to make theirs "to go" and the check, PLEASE!!! No messy bibs. No toys in tow. No noses to wipe. Just nice people taking their time and trying not to disapprovingly gawk at us.
I would gladly fight rush hour traffic on a Monday to get an hour or two in the middle of the day to lunch at the "big kids" table...even if it is with a media rep.
Photo 1 by traveller2020
Photo 2 by Jenblossom
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