Family Week-end

Remarkably, Jax is left and Dex is right in all these photos. Both the boys are still very much into climbing... on this afternoon, Jax was convinced it was his mission to climb that gate (I think he just wanted to go for a dip!) and Dex insisted on climbing up all those stairs like a big boy. Whew!

A few weeks ago, after D.R. completed his physics boards, we decided to have a little at-home family vacation. We spent three days centering our lives around being a family, enjoying day-trips and playing, playing, playing. It was great. We kicked it off with a trip to the Mall of America, where we let the boys pick three rides to go on. I had no idea how they would respond to such a proposition and am somewhat not surprised that we have two little thrill seekers on our hands!! Of all the rides they're tall enough to go on, they chose the fastest one they could find (a little racetrack) and loved every second of it. I rode with Jaxon and everytime we spin around a corner (and I mean SPIN!) he'd squeal with delight. Then he's let out a deep breath and sigh, "All done." Of course, seconds later, we'd spin around another corner and the cycle would continue. I'm not sure if the "all done" was an attempt to remind himself that he survived the crazy corner or if it was disappointment that the thrill was gone... but, regardless, he was asking for more race-cars all day long. Dex, on the other hand, introduced us to our first public tantrum. Yikes!! He absolutely refused to leave one of the rides, clinging to the inside door of his beloved semi-truck shouting, "My truck!!" It took two of us to pry his little fingers off the door and much humor and smile from nearby parents to remind us that this was certainly not the first time a child had refused to leave a ride. Let the public humiliation begin...

Anyway, our week-end ended with a fun afternoon at a local park. They have these fantastic family bikes and the boys have frequently BEGGED to climb onto them. Of course, as soon as we made the decision to actually rent one of them for a half hour, the boys absolutely refused to go for a ride. We had two sobbing boys as we strapped them into their little seat. Of course, as soon as we started moving, they were united in their opinion that it was about the coolest thing EVER!

As I reflect on that week-end, I marvel at how much a person can change. A few years ago, I would have scoffed at the idea of going to a mall amusement park or renting a cheesy family bike. Now, however, when I see the wonder and amazement in the boys' eyes as they get to try all these new things WITH their parents (yes, I'm going to savor THAT as long as I possibly can)... it causes a reshifted of priorities... an instantaneous redefining of "what's fun".... because it was... fun. And I can't wait until the next time that we can take a little family get-away, even if it's just for dinner at a local family restaurant... complete with hokey music, balloons and a menu with pictures. LOVE IT.