Some Days Are Better Than Others...And Today Was Pretty Great

I feel super productive.

For the first time, the kids and I went to the grocery store alone. Don't give me any crap. Grocery shopping with two very curious and mobile toddlers is not high on my to-do list. I won't put them in one of those carriages with the TVs, and the other carriages - the ones that look like race cars - have a basket that would hold about half of what I'd need on any given shopping expedition and that just seems kind of pointless. (Plus, my kids are really amazing at reaching anything in sight. Seriously.) Anyway. On to today. I was planning on making lasagne for dinner and needed ground turkey for the sauce and the only way to get it was to go to the store. So off we went.

I saw one of those race car carts in the parking lot and though I'd give it a try (and it was parked at the faaaar end of the parking lot, but I didn't mind the walk). Well, when I approached it I saw that one of the play steering wheels was missing and there was just a big bolt or something potentially dangerous there (and, #1 would take great delight in trying to suck on it) so I ruled out the race car idea. I didn't want to repark and we were actually in a low-traffic part of the lot, so I plopped the kids in their double stroller and headed for the store. I only needed a few items, so I grabbed one of the handheld baskets and pushed the stroller through the store. I know about the push-the-stroller-pull-the-carriage trick and it works great at Target (a place I've been to several times by myself with the Muffins, thank you), but there just doesn't seem to be as much room to negotiate around the grocery store while employing said method. #2 loves loves loves to try and escape from the stroller and both kids are fantastic reachers, but I deftly maneuvered through the aisles, carefully selecting my few groceries with neither a complaint from the babes, nor a random item pulled from any of the shelves. I was thrilled.

Once home, I settled the kids in the living room and popped downstairs to do laundry. Yes, you read correctly. Now that I've cleaned the unfinished part of the basement, I'm actually motivated to do laundry. 3 loads today alone. Woohoo for me.

M stopped over for a quick bit, bringing with her the requisite price of admission (a large Diet Coke w/o ice from McDonalds, naturally - but, yes, I am still being very good about cutting back!). She played with the kids, I showed off the basement, I emptied the dishwasher, M left and I got the kids up for their nap. I started on the homemade sauce for the lasange, mixed up the cheese mixture and still managed to relax a bit before the kids woke up.

I had invited Mom for dinner and she arrived just as J was getting home from work. It was a lovely time; the kids enjoyed the double surprise of Nana and Daddy coming into the house at the same time and then A stopped in on her way home to Vermont. (She'd been in Seattle for the past week visiting friends and was driving home from the airport.) So many people to play with! I managed to tidy the house, make a great dinner (we ate at the table like civilized adults, always a plus!) and, later, J bathed the kids. All in all, we had a nice evening.

Tomorrow we go to the doctor for a check-up for the kids. Wednesday, we're off to Dartmouth for my head. Hopefuly, we'll have a better idea of where things stand so that we can progress with the future baby making discussions (I go to the OB/GYN on September 12th and I'd like to be able to tell her what are plans/thoughts are).

On a kind of sucky note, we've finally decided that we might want to go away for our anniversary (our 11th, thanks for asking) in October (read: we think we are in a place where we could leave the kids for more than a few hours). C's already put in for time at work so that she can watch the kids (that C, she's swell), but every place that I've looked into so far...already booked! We're still looking, but I'm a little bummed thus far.