Carwash

I was very excited about my stay-in-the-dorms plan for Princeton reunions.  And it turned out to be great, in many ways.  Very convenient, we had our own bathroom (super bonus), and the kids thought it was a huge adventure.  The downside?  We were literally right over the dance floor, which was rocking until well after 2:00 am.  And the light streamed in early (see: aforementioned lack of biblical flooding) so they were up at 6:00.  For children who usually get 12 hours of sleep, 4 was a big difference.  This is all a long way of saying we drove home on Saturday night after the post-P Rade celebrations rather than spending the night.  Whit fell asleep before we hit route 1 and slept until 10am on Sunday.

And then Matt went to the office for most of the day on Sunday and Monday.  What to do with a holiday weekend and no plans?  I like these unscheduled days, but had not thought ahead to, perhaps, sign us up for trapeze.  It was very hot – enough that Whit exclaimed, “I feel like we are still in New Jersey!” when we went outside.  So, after some errands, we went to see Pirates of the Caribbean.  This was my first installment of the series, I confess, and my primary reaction is who knew mermaids were so terrifying?  Yikes.

We got home and the kids had punched the 3D lenses out of their glasses.  Grace has not taken them off since.  The big entertainment before dinner?  Washing the car.  And you would think these two went back to Disney for the utter joy that they felt.  I cooked dinner, occasionally drifting to the front windows to watch them, and they sprayed each other and the car, scrubbed with kitchen sponges, and giggled. They were soaked and happy when I finally asked them to come in, 45 minutes later.

One of my clear priorities as a parent is that my children are easily delighted.  I am proudest of myself as a parent – and of them – in the surprising, unexpected moments of wonder.  And this was one.