Freedom

I have to say, I am loving age two so far...temper tantrums and all.  I think someone told my sweet Addison about the terrible twos, because she has learned to pitch a fit like nothing I would ever having imagined just a few weeks ago.  We're talking hands flailing, gasping for air, flat-out anger here, people.  It's crazy!  We are following the "ignore it, and do NOT give in" method, which seems to wear her down faster than trying to figure out how to make her stop.  Mackenzie just sort of stands back and watches right now, and gives us a look that says, "What is her problem?!"

While I don't particularly love the fits (although they are quite amusing sometimes, and I find myself turning away to hide a smile), I do love the little bit of freedom we have been embracing lately.  Over the past several weeks, we have taken a few opportunities to do things that would have seemed impossible a year ago.  We have delayed naptime, allowed the girls to stay up past their bedtime, and taken off on an afternoon adventure with little notice and even less preparation.  And guess what?  We have all survived.  Even after staying up late a night or two, A & M still sleep about eleven hours a night.  They still go to bed around 8:00 on a normal basis.  Even with the delayed nap schedule for busy weekend days, they have no problem taking their regular afternoon naps as usual.  After nearly two years of living on a schedule and analyzing every little trip for its compatibility with our routine, it feels SO GOOD to loosen up!

Last weekend, we loaded up the car and headed to Noccalula Falls, a park my family visited often when I was a kid.  I hadn't been in several years, so when my aunt told us they were having a BBQ festival, we decided it was a good opportunity to get the girls out for a new adventure.  Since I knew we would be gone most of the day, I did some preparation and loaded us down with snacks, drinks, PBJs, and other necessary supplies.  I knew we would likely be pushing naptime back a bit, and I was just praying they would be tired enough to sleep solidly the whole way home (a little over an hour trip).

Family photo...even if two of the four of us aren't looking at the camera.

I am so glad we took the opportunity and enjoyed the day!  We all had a great time watching the girls soak in all the new surroundings.  It didn't hurt that it was a beautiful spring day, just perfect for a day outside. We walked around enjoying the scenery, feeding ducks (including one with only one foot, poor thing!), snacking on goldfish, hanging out in the petting zoo, and of course, riding the "choo-choo" that goes around the park.  The choo-choo definitely topped A & M's list for the day.  They talked about it for days.  Can you see the excitement?

I feel I should mention that the girls are not sunburned in these pictures.  They inherited their daddy's skin that tans very quickly and easily, but they also inherited my propensity to flushing bright red in the heat.  I did use sunscreen and though they were left with their first farmer's tan from the day in the sun, neither Addison or Mackenzie was overly exposed.

"Wait--you want me to put my hand in there?  Are you crazy?!"

 

 

My two very hot, very tired girls fell asleep almost as soon as we left the parking lot (at nearly 3:00 pm...nearly three hours past the normal naptime!).  They slept for the entire drive home and for quite awhile after we got home.  The day was most definitely a success, and I look forward to sharing many more days like this making memories with my favorite people.