My nephews are superheros. Little mini brilliant, hilarious, caring, cool, superhero kids. See this video is proof. I took an entire week off last week of July to vacation with this wise beyond his years 7-year old and sweeter than ice cream 5 year old. We kept our adventure in the Houston area hitting Galveston, Palm Beach, Comic Con, Fun City, friends houses and the Space McDonalds (they are still not interested in Nasa-go figure).
Mostly I unplugged the Blackberry and allowed myself to be mindful of each amazing and hilarious moment, not so worried about the outcome or what fires were going on at work, but just open and listening to all the brilliant things they say and do, really there in the moment, and laughing out loud at their creative ideas and bright thoughts.
Being mindful meant getting to see these sweet kiddos for who they are. 5 and 7, seriously fun ages and very different personalities. They won’t be little forever and I will always be grateful for getting to spend this kind of quality time with the 5 year old and 7 year old Sam and Adam.
Trips also take on a new freshness when kids are there. Everything is new and exciting and it is fun to remember feeling that way about the beautiful creation God has given us.
Here is our adventure. You should pick one of these amazingly fun kid activities and do it before Labor Day. It will go a long way in helping you deal with stress, I promise!
Sunday, we met in the middle between Dallas and Houston and had a fun road trip home. They have been here several times, but wanted me to show them all the places they could play, and remind them of the rules too. We jumped in the pool even though it was almost dark. Why not? It’s summer time. Then we wound down with Sunday night movie night. Who knew Monsters vs Aliens was such a great film? I loved it. With my popcorn and Cabernet, Thin mints cookies. What a yummy combination!
Monday, I asked Adam what he’d like to do that day. He said ‘let’s just get in the car and see where the wind blows us.’ He just might be related to me! We ended up at Palm Beach at Moody Gardens in Galveston. We went with my friend Erika and her 4-year old twins. They all loved it and so did I!
And then Adam taught me something.
While we were resting and just before Erika’s kids left, the kids played in the sand. I suppose our 4 year old friend Caleb got excited and he flicked a little sand on another kid sitting nearby who had pulled his chair up very close to the kids and was right in the middle of what they were doing. I was not prepared for what happened next. The kid and his mom lost it. They would not quit complaining about their Slurpee being ruined and their Iphone being ruined and what a bad kid that child was. Erika made Caleb apologize and they all left. Even after they left, the kid and his mom kept complaining. They would not let it go. Suddenly, a tiny seashell got flicked on his toe and this kid really started griping. At this point I had it and I opened up and said “It seems like you guys are pretty cranky today, maybe you should sit in the shade away from the sand for a little while.’ The mom was tense and angry and said ‘oh girl, don’t you even start with us, oh no uh uh.” I started getting really uncomfortable. It was tense.
Then Adam, thinking deeply took it all in and walked over to the little boy who had not said a kind word since he sat down next to us a half hour ago. Adam handed the little boy a shovel and said ‘would you like to play with us?’ The kid jumped up and down and was so excited for the invitation. He played with Adam for another 2 hours.
I was taken aback and ashamed I had not considered this and still selfishly not wanting to talk to the mom because she had done nothing but complain and be rude to us. Finally, I let go and listened to her. She said her son did not have any family in the area or any friends and it really meant a lot for Adam to invite him to play with him. Go Adam! Lesson number 1 of about 100 for the week.
After that kid left, we ended up staying until the place closed down. When was the last time you spent a whole day in a water park? Go. Do.It.Now.
Day 2, a good day to stay home and rest so we don’t get out too much. We mostly played in the pool outside.
Pirates.
Baseball
Just chillin, relaxin -all cool like that.
Cheetos eating contests
and lots of water balloons
It’s summer so why not stay out there all day?! After work, Uncle David, then Erika and kids and her husband PJ all came over to swim and eat dinner.
Have you had enough fun yet? The week is only half way over! Wednesday, we went to Fun House. The kids had asked about this place every day since they arrived on Sunday. Mimi was even able to join us since we were mostly inside all day. When was the last time you spent a day at an arcade? Go.Do.It.Now!
I let Sam dress himself this day since this was his adventure he picked out.
Here, the brothers are making a strategy for Laser Tag against the big boys.
Sam rocked the socks with his flip flops in the mini bowling alley.
After Mimi got tired, we took an ice cream break, took her home and then picked up Uncle David, who was finished with work by now.
Uncle David was determined to win at putt-putt.
This day really wore out Sam, the whole week and all its adventures did!
Thursday, was another stick close to home day. We had a picnic with Mimi.
We took some inside breaks for puzzles, games and rest.
Some games even got new rules.
We even made sure to practice our letters before Kindergarten starts, in just a few days now!! Those are spaghetti noodles.
Then, we decided to bake fun Go Fish cupcakes for our playdate with Caleb and Rebecca (again) that night. Sam wanted to help. So precious!
While the cupcakes baked, the boys rested and then wanted to taste the frosting. You should really be careful what you ask Tia Heather for. You really never know what she will do next.
The blue was too much fun!
We had Smurf Sam!
Then we had Choctaw Indian Chief Warrior Adam!
Then, they made their own Blue Man Group skit. It is amazing how creative kids can get when you let go and let them play and be little for a minute! Surely this is how the Las Vegas superstars got their start….
Go Fish cupcakes done!
At the play date, Caleb and Adam were in heaven with a couple cardboard boxes and some duct tape. Who needs toys when you are a mini Engineer anyway (Texas A&M, Texas A&M, Texas A&M, Texas A&M, cute robot box, Texas A&M, Texas A&M-hope they get the message).
Friday morning came and the event we had been excited about all week. Space City Comic Con! The reality to me was that the kids would probably not like it and only last an hour, but in any case they were excited about getting to put on their costumes and look for fellow superheros. Before we left, they dug out my costumes and created their own.
I am glad these kids got a chance to learn about their Louisiana heritage!
We finally settled on Supergirl, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle and Scorpion from Mortal Combat. Adam was not interested in a mask, but Sam was all in.
At Comic Con, we got to meet fascinating nerds from all over town.
Uncle David even got to visit with Tracy Scoggins. Her mom taught him at Dickinson High School. Tracy was older than David and his brothers, but every boys crush in those days.
We also got to play all the video games we could stand.
After Comic Con, we went to dinner and David made me change. Adam also changed, but Sam decided to stay in Donatello character. I am not going to lie. Going into a restaurant with Donatello Ninja Turtle made me feel like the coolest lady in the restaurant!
Saturday, we stuck to the house and made all the water balloons we could stand. The kids found lots of things to do with them, like putting them in their shorts and sitting on them until they burst, biting them, throwing them against the fence, at each other.
And the best of all, water balloon baseball!
Then, Uncle David taught them how to mow the yard. They loved this! Can you remember when you got excited to mow the yard? I am telling you these kids can teach us so much.
Look how confident Adam got!
Sam was not about to sit this adventure out either.
He got confident too!
That night, the boys tried with all their might to catch lizards and froggie. Sam, the scientist explains here how to catch frogs.
Sunday after church, I had to squeeze in one last adventure to Galveston Beach where we had a picnic, fed the birds (or trained them as Adam described) and caught some waves.
Then, a rush bath, cleanup, kiss mimi goodbye and on the road to see mom and dad.
After all that fun with Uncle David, Tia Heather and Mimi -and all that fun that their mom and dad had getting to sleep in and go out without a babysitter at night, there is still nothing like that homecoming hug. Sam hugged his daddy and said “I am so tired Daddy.”
And when I got home, look who was waiting on me. Such a tease.
My mom did need an extra steroid each day to cope with all the extra activity and stress on her chronic illness, but the memories we made will last forever and so will the lessons we learned.
These kids are not worried about what other people think, KPIs, budgets, schedules, emails. They just want to love, be loved and have some fun.
They get joy from looking at clouds, watching seagulls, listening to the waves, filling up a water balloon, running through the grass, riding the lawn mower with their Uncle, stirring cupcake batter, checking on Mimi to make sure she feels okay and telling her it is okay to rest. So much beauty surrounds us everyday. If we’d just take the time to look at it and acknowledge it and thank the Lord for it. My nephews helped me see just how much joy there is all around us that I keep overlooking in my busy life.
They also helped me learn a lot about loving others. They love unconditionally, without pretense. I did not think I’d learn so much from a 5 year old and a 7 year old. God knows just what we need, when we need it. The break and the fun was great for all of us.
They are beautiful. If I could just harness that innocence, that kindness, that joy from looking at clouds -imagine how much easier it would to deal with my stress. I’ll see what I can do.
