Mall Madness

Fridays are for play dates. Sometimes our friends come to our house, but usually we head over to Daycare Mom's house. The kids play and Daycare Mom and I get some much needed adult conversation. This past Friday, Daycare Mom wanted to get out of the house so we decided to meet at the  mall to let the kids play in the play area and then have lunch. Seemed like a perfect idea. The kids would be able to run and play and we would be able to watch them and chat on comfy benches in the air conditioning.

Simple enough. I loaded up the girls and we were on our way. We met in the parking lot, strapped the babies in the strollers and headed in. Handsome and the Big One were so excited. We walked inside and headed straight for the play area. Imagine our surprise when we found the play area roped off and the play structures dismantled. Daycare Mom and I exchanged  "You've got to be kidding me" looks, as the kids noticed the coin operated ride on toys nearby. We dug for change and came up empty handed. I had a few singles and saw there was a bill changer, so Handsome and the Big One mounted their ride of choice while waiting for me to hand them their change. Guess what? The bill changer was broken.

Daycare Mom and I shared a chuckle, exchanged a "Now what?" glance, and quickly decided to walk the mall and have lunch. Luckily the kids were hungry and easily redirected as we headed to the food court. As we arrived at the food court the kids immediately spotted the fountain. In our earlier search for coins, we had collected a few pennies and gave them to the kids to toss into the fountain while we decided where to eat. After settling on Chick-fil-a, we got our grub and sat down to eat.

The fountain was simply too enticing for Handsome and the Big One to sit still, so they were like pinballs bouncing between their seats and the fountain. Once the pennies ran out, they began playing in the water. After being told to stay out of the water, they started walking around the top of the wall of the fountain. After being scolded for doing that, they decided to try their luck and crawl around it instead. Now the babies were getting fussy, lunch was finished, and the two big kids were getting antsy, so we decided to walk the mall.

We found another group of ride on toys, with another broken bill changer, but luckily had found enough quarters for one ride. After the ride was over, the kids played on the immobile ride on toys. They were having  a great time taking turns pretending to drive one another around. They sat in the ice cream truck pretending to eat ice cream cones and sell ice cream.

Nearby, we spotted a photo booth and thought it would be cute to get photos of the kids. Daycare Mom did hers first and with the exception of the first shot they came  out great. Then I took my turn. Since the kids are small, I had to attempt to adjust the camera angle. I couldn't figure it out. Out of four shots, you can only see both kids in one. Daycare Mom laughed harder each time the booth counted down and snapped another blank photo. Out of desperation on the last shot, (not having figured it out yet) I tried to get Handsome up on his knees in time of the click of the camera. I failed. The last shot does indeed show both kids, as well as my arm and the top of the Little One's head.

Daycare Mom's Photos

My Photos

You would think that this is where the story ends. Nope. In a momentary lapse of judgement we walked into a toy store. With five children total. Two of them are three. The three year olds were not restrained, and able to move about the store freely. Once we got the Big One away from the Dora toys, Handsome was headed to the Cars toys. Finally after several minutes we were walking out of the store with two crying three year olds in tow.

Having had enough of our adventure, Daycare Mom and I decided it was time to head home. After the day of nothing going according to plan, leaving the mall would not be an easy endeavor. While loading up two of her three charges, Daycare Mom got one of the seat belts in her car stuck and was unable to move the seat belt or the seats. The two of us were standing in the parking lot in 90 degree heat, pushing, pulling, tugging, and cursing under our breath, trying to get the seat belt loose. To no avail-it simply would not budge. Dripping with sweat we decided to give up, she rearranged the kids to other seat belts, loaded her stroller into my van (it wouldn't fit in hers with the seat situation) and we headed home.

When Daycare Mom and I are out and about, it's always an adventure. We don't let it stop us though. It makes us laugh and gives me something to blog about!