Day 9, Thursday: A moment in your day (this can be just a photo or both a photo and words)

Today we took the kids to the local aquarium.  It was a good time (it always is), as was the nice Mexican dinner we went to afterward at a little delicious hole-in-the-wall place that we hadn’t been to for years.  Neither of those were the best part of the day though.

After our early dinner, we had to wait around for a call from the shop that was working on Mike’s Land Cruiser, to let him know it was ready.  We’d gone down in two cars in the morning, and dropped it off before we headed to the aquarium.  I guess the kids and I could have gone home without him, and let him wait on his own, but that’s not the way we roll.  Plus, we were way down in Mesa – a good 45 minute drive –  and it seemed a shame to waste so much of his day off by driving apart when we didn’t have to.

So we found a nearby park with a playground, and settled in to wait.  Now, I take the two little ones to the playground all the time, but I can’t remember the last time we were at a playground with all four kids… at least not when the boys weren’t off on their own with friends.  Hanging out at a playground as a family was a treat that didn’t go unappreciated.  Tegan played on the slides and jungle gym till she tired of it, Everett pretended he was doing a “Survivor” style obstacle course on some of the equipment, we all took turns on the swings, and we eventually retired to a shady spot in the sand where we buried the kids and chatted about everything from haircuts to summer vacations to starting your own business.  The shop finally called to tell him the truck was done (and, bonus: at $100 less than estimated!  When does that ever happen??), and we slowly made our way out.  On the way, the kids decided to stop at those bouncy animals, the ones on giant springs, designed for very little kids.  Paxton, who’s nearly 13 and already six feet tall, started riding on one and laughed so hard he almost couldn’t breathe.  Everett joined in on another one, and not being able to resist, I hopped on the last one – a squirrel – to see what the fuss was about.  Instant laughter as I flopped back and forth.  Paxton nearly fell off his dinosaur.

And we headed to get the truck and start for home… tired; happy; with dirty, sandy feet; full bellies; and full hearts.  Now that’s a moment.