So, uhhh … We have a closet now. After seeing Less’, our empty wall was looking extra empty. Once I told Sophia what I saw, it was a wrap. She ordered that thing so fast, and it arrived way too early this morning, but here we are. It’s funny how this room is smaller than the last one, yet we never had so much storage space before. Fewer windows have advantages, I suppose.
Rosie is barking outside our window. Our dogs are always barking, especially when she is playing, but what catches my ear this time is another voice. I look out the window and see Alessia playing with her! This house is doing a number on all of us, I see. I love that she’s not only getting along with our dogs but also seeking them out. I’ve said it a million times, and I’ll say it once more: we’re going to be alright.
The other night, when me and Sophia looked school information after trying to prep Desiree, we learned the school system is on winter break right now, so we have loads more time with her! I was so glad and relieved to find this out. I mean, if she had to go to school, we’d send her, but I felt like we were all unprepared for this next phase of life. It came around so fast! Now we have the time to prepare, and we get to have more fun together. With school out, four kids, and two deserving mothers, I decide to take the kids out and let the moms rest. Also during the school information quest, I stumbled upon the high school’s events page. They host many events that the public can attend, and tonight there’s a football contest. That sounded like a good event for the kids, but it wasn’t until 5 p.m., so I made an impromptu agenda to kill time. We began our adventure early with breakfast in Oasis Springs.
We go to the steak house me and Sophia frequent, but I don’t recognize the host this time. She must be new, but man, does she have an attitude. She acted like me bringing four kids to a restaurant at 9 a.m. is a personal affront to her. Maybe it is early, or maybe I’m just too flabbergasted by her outburst, but I don’t know how to respond. It’s for the best because I probably wouldn’t be nice because I feel the spirit of “I got time” rising up in me again, heh. I need to get into the gym and hit a bag because it is clear I want to fight someone. I blame Alessia’s sperm donor, Jace. We got all hyped up about fighting him and never did. Maybe that urge never left me. Anyway…
The cook had just walked in on her berating me and shook his head at her. If this happens a lot, why don’t they fire her? It can’t be good for business.
“Come on, man,” he said to me. “We’ve got plenty of tables, and I have to walk that way, anyway.”
That was so nice of him. We followed him to a table, and I told ol’ Nasty Nelly to have a good day so the kids could hear, heh. Sure, it was sarcasm, but hopefully they haven’t learned that concept yet. With any luck, they’ll learn to return nastiness with kindness.
When we get to the table, we have a quick family meeting. Because it’s their first time in public, and I am the lone adult, we discuss inside voices, manners, and general public behavior, aka, this is not a playground, aka do not embarrass me, heh. Breanna and Arvin want to play in the rain, so I let them go as long as they are quiet. Desiree and Lex stay with me. She colors the placemat, and he plays quietly with a toy.
When the food came, I collect the other two from outside, and we have a fairly decent time together with minimal incidents…
I’m not naïve enough to think we could go all day without someone acting up. But what I did not anticipate was it would be my child I’d have to call out. She kept farting and laughing about it. I didn’t realize she was the culprit until Breanna had enough and screamed at her.
I told her no one else thinks it’s funny. We’re eating, and no one wants to smell that with food in our mouths, and she should apologize to the table. Her remorseful face almost broke me, and I wondered if I was too harsh. I knew I wasn’t because I didn’t yell, but I just hate seeing her sad. I stayed strong, though.
After breakfast, we still have several more hours before the event, so I take them to Copperdale so we’d already be in town. I remembered a park down the street from the pier, so we go there first. The weather is not conducive to playing in the park. A thick blanket of snow covers the ground, and it’s still falling on top of being extremely cold. I should cancel our plans and go back home because I don’t want anyone getting sick. But the kids scatter before I can stop them. Desi says she has to pee and goes to the bathroom. Breanna makes a beeline for the monkey bars, reminding me so much of her mother. Arvin also goes to the bathroom, which leaves Lex with me again. He’s such a cool little dude with a chill temperament, like me. I noticed his outfit earlier, and he seems to care about his appearance more than the other two.
Some older gentlemen are out taking a stroll for some reason and come over to talk about the weather. Lex doesn’t seem to mind, but I want him to have fun too, so I excuse myself to have some snow fun with him. We have a snowpal building contest with Bre.
We win by default because Bre quit when she saw Desi and Arvin talking outside the bathrooms. We’re still proud of our victory, though.
It seems a shame to come all the way to Copperdale and be a stone’s throw of the pier and not ride the rides, so I check on the kids to see how they’re doing with the weather. It stopped snowing, so the visibility is better, but it’s still freezing. Children have an uncanny knack for being impervious to the weather, however, so they all said they’re fine to stay out. I tell them about the haunted house ride, and they’re all very excited about it. I figure we’d do that one over the Ferris wheel so we can get inside for a bit.
Although I know the cars only have two seats, I still wish we can all go together. I want to ride with Desi, but who would stay and watch the other kids while we ride? She wants to go with Arvin anyway, and Lex wants to go with me. Breanna is a boss just like her mom, and she doesn’t want to sit with anyone. By the time we all take our turns, it’s about 5:30, so we head to the high school.
On the way, I explain how this will be their school when they become teenagers. There’re all kinds of activities they can get into, like the football team, which is what we’ll be doing today, cheerleading, chess club, computer club, and so much more. Realizing they have no frame of reference for school, however, we walk around the classroom building to warm up and see what it’s all about. This isn’t my alma mater, but a school is a school. They’re all basically the same.
Bre got upset about Desi farting again. Just as I begin to express disappointment, I remember something from her infancy. She was gassy a lot and constantly had hiccups. And she belched a lot when we burped her after feedings. Could something still be going on with her stomach? Am I telling her to stop being nasty while she can’t actually help it? I didn’t say anything that time and decide to talk to her about it in the privacy of our home.
