It's a lot more work to enjoy #springbreak when you have two #kids that are 5 years or more apart #parenting #motherhood #SAHM #toddlers
Emily, my nearly eight year old second grader is accustomed to a very fast-paced, engaging, physically and mentally challenging day while Nolan is accustomed to our weekly routine of going to our local play places, having lunch and then, taking a nap.
It's not easy to keep them active and happy for an entire week by myself while Emily was on Spring Break from school but I did it and we had a great week.
In order to best accommodate them both I had to do some prep work and planning ahead of time:
1. My game plan began with making the decision to stay home one day, go to a morning play place and take the afternoon off for two days, and take the kids on an all day adventure the other two days. This is just the five weekdays when school was out. We did things together as a family over the weekends.
2. I decided to use our memberships around the Bay Area to save money, take BART and the Ferry to save gas and drive time, and have Nolan skip his afternoon nap {gasp!} to maximize the day.
So, where did we go?
Monday was our stay at home day though we didn't exactly stay at home! We ran errands most of the morning, Nolan took his nap, and then we spent the rest of the day outside enjoying the warmth and sunshine as we knew the rain was coming on Tuesday. We played with every toy in every room, chased bubbles, tried to hula hoop, danced to music, used PlayDoh, jumped on the bed then jumped on the trampoline, played in the sandbox, rode our scooters around the block, and watched Frozen. Again.
Tuesday we showed up at Pump It Up before the doors even opened and had to wait in line due to it's popularity on rainy school holidays. I knew it would be crowded but we just couldn't be trapped indoors all day. We jumped for three hours before going home to have lunch and Emily and I enjoyed making bracelets in the quiet as Nolan napped for three hours! That afternoon we did puzzles and read books and watched the big, fat, noisy rain drops pummel the windows until bedtime.
Wednesday we went to Habitot as we have a membership so it cost us nothing. Emily loved it and begged to go back before we had even left for the day. She loved dressing up as an Astronaut and climbing along the wiggle wall. She hadn't been since she was about three years old! It's old hat for Nolan so he became bored quickly thus, we left just before they closed at 12:30pm. After his nap, we played outside, shooting baskets and drawing with our new sidewalk chalk.
Thursday was our big trek into San Francisco via the ferry to renew our Aquarium of the Bay membership. I purposely chose to do an indoor activity on a day we had gorgeous weather because I knew everyone else would be outside, at the local parks. And I was correct, the aquarium was nearly empty! The kids LOVED the ferry and couldn't get enough of the aquarium. We walked the entire length of Pier 39, stopping at all the shops, to see the Sea Lions and to have a latte and miniature cupcakes. We beat the commuter rush by leaving before 4:00pm and almost beat the rain; it started pouring as we exited the ferry boat! We were prepared with umbrellas and jackets, though. Nolan did really well without a nap, though he hit a rough patch around 1:00pm where he was rubbing his eyes, crying anytime anyone brushed past him, and seeming to no longer enjoy the aquarium; however, he came out on the other side, got his second wind, and we went on about the day!
Friday we drove the hour to Sausalito to enjoy a gorgeous day at The Bay Area Discovery Museum, which we have always loved. The traffic on Fridays is awful no matter the time - note to self: don't go anywhere on Fridays! - but the kids hung in there and didn't complain half as much as I did! We spent all day 10am-3:30pm at the museum and the kids had a blast. Emily didn't remember her last trip there (she was four years old) and Nolan had never been so, we visited every exhibit at least twice, enjoyed lunch under the Golden Gate bridge, and ran ourselves ragged on the outdoor play ground. Nolan never slowed down so it didn't seem skipping his nap this day bothered him at all.
Then, on Saturday, we had plans with friends to spend the entire day at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, another place we have annual passes. I have to say, I was exhausted mid-day on Thursday but I pushed through and we had a great time, as usual. We had lunch before entering the park, spent all day riding rides and watching shows, stopped briefly for a snack, and had dinner once we left the park. Emily is 52" tall and can officially ride everything and boy did she! She even rode Boomerang which I refused to go on because I hate rollercoasters in general but truly loathe those that go upside down. Heck no! You can see her in this photo about 5 rows up in a lavender shirt sitting next to my friend Shannon who's wearing a black shirt.
Emily will tell you it was "awesome", that spring break was so much fun. That makes me happy.
It was so much work and physically taxing to entertain two kids all day who have a different set of needs at any given time. The most chill times were meal times, to be honest. :)
It's not easy to keep them active and happy for an entire week by myself while Emily was on Spring Break from school but I did it and we had a great week.
In order to best accommodate them both I had to do some prep work and planning ahead of time:
1. My game plan began with making the decision to stay home one day, go to a morning play place and take the afternoon off for two days, and take the kids on an all day adventure the other two days. This is just the five weekdays when school was out. We did things together as a family over the weekends.
2. I decided to use our memberships around the Bay Area to save money, take BART and the Ferry to save gas and drive time, and have Nolan skip his afternoon nap {gasp!} to maximize the day.
So, where did we go?
Monday was our stay at home day though we didn't exactly stay at home! We ran errands most of the morning, Nolan took his nap, and then we spent the rest of the day outside enjoying the warmth and sunshine as we knew the rain was coming on Tuesday. We played with every toy in every room, chased bubbles, tried to hula hoop, danced to music, used PlayDoh, jumped on the bed then jumped on the trampoline, played in the sandbox, rode our scooters around the block, and watched Frozen. Again.
Tuesday we showed up at Pump It Up before the doors even opened and had to wait in line due to it's popularity on rainy school holidays. I knew it would be crowded but we just couldn't be trapped indoors all day. We jumped for three hours before going home to have lunch and Emily and I enjoyed making bracelets in the quiet as Nolan napped for three hours! That afternoon we did puzzles and read books and watched the big, fat, noisy rain drops pummel the windows until bedtime.
Wednesday we went to Habitot as we have a membership so it cost us nothing. Emily loved it and begged to go back before we had even left for the day. She loved dressing up as an Astronaut and climbing along the wiggle wall. She hadn't been since she was about three years old! It's old hat for Nolan so he became bored quickly thus, we left just before they closed at 12:30pm. After his nap, we played outside, shooting baskets and drawing with our new sidewalk chalk.
Thursday was our big trek into San Francisco via the ferry to renew our Aquarium of the Bay membership. I purposely chose to do an indoor activity on a day we had gorgeous weather because I knew everyone else would be outside, at the local parks. And I was correct, the aquarium was nearly empty! The kids LOVED the ferry and couldn't get enough of the aquarium. We walked the entire length of Pier 39, stopping at all the shops, to see the Sea Lions and to have a latte and miniature cupcakes. We beat the commuter rush by leaving before 4:00pm and almost beat the rain; it started pouring as we exited the ferry boat! We were prepared with umbrellas and jackets, though. Nolan did really well without a nap, though he hit a rough patch around 1:00pm where he was rubbing his eyes, crying anytime anyone brushed past him, and seeming to no longer enjoy the aquarium; however, he came out on the other side, got his second wind, and we went on about the day!
Friday we drove the hour to Sausalito to enjoy a gorgeous day at The Bay Area Discovery Museum, which we have always loved. The traffic on Fridays is awful no matter the time - note to self: don't go anywhere on Fridays! - but the kids hung in there and didn't complain half as much as I did! We spent all day 10am-3:30pm at the museum and the kids had a blast. Emily didn't remember her last trip there (she was four years old) and Nolan had never been so, we visited every exhibit at least twice, enjoyed lunch under the Golden Gate bridge, and ran ourselves ragged on the outdoor play ground. Nolan never slowed down so it didn't seem skipping his nap this day bothered him at all.
Then, on Saturday, we had plans with friends to spend the entire day at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, another place we have annual passes. I have to say, I was exhausted mid-day on Thursday but I pushed through and we had a great time, as usual. We had lunch before entering the park, spent all day riding rides and watching shows, stopped briefly for a snack, and had dinner once we left the park. Emily is 52" tall and can officially ride everything and boy did she! She even rode Boomerang which I refused to go on because I hate rollercoasters in general but truly loathe those that go upside down. Heck no! You can see her in this photo about 5 rows up in a lavender shirt sitting next to my friend Shannon who's wearing a black shirt.
Emily will tell you it was "awesome", that spring break was so much fun. That makes me happy.
It was so much work and physically taxing to entertain two kids all day who have a different set of needs at any given time. The most chill times were meal times, to be honest. :)
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