Sunday, we ended up taking the kids to see Ratatouille. They really enjoyed it. I wish more very kid-friendly movies like it would come out. Our family really enjoys going to the movies together. =)
Yesterday, was a day of errands. My driver's license expired on August 6th so I had to go get a new picture taken. Lucky for us, we walked into the driver's center and there was only one other person there. I got to immediately go over to one of the clerks and get my picture taken. All in all, the whole procedure took about 5 minutes from entering to leaving. Tristyn sorely needed a haircut and Maia wanted hers done too, so that was our next stop.
Maia wanted to try hers pretty short. Payless Shoes were next door and Maia loves to try on shoes so we stopped in there next so she could try them on. She found a pink sparkly pair that she really liked but they only had them in sizes too big or too small. She wants me to put 'pink, sparkly shoes' on the list of Things We Need to Buy for School.
(Tristyn's haircut can be attributed to a little too much squirming and wiggling)
We tend to have lunch with Missy on Mondays but since we weren't home, we met her at Panera. The kids and I all ordered our usual: Maia-peanut butter on a bagel with chocolate milk, Tristyn-broccoli cheese soup with sourdough roll and HiC, and me-chicken noodle soup with sourdough roll and a diet pepsi. As usual, Maia ate about half of my roll. She's a bread nut just like me.
From here, we went to the bookstore and the kids got to look at books. Tristyn disappeared (not really) down an aisle and immersed himself in various books, while Maia brought me every (I think!) book off the 'Off to Kindergarten' display to read to her. I ended up finding a great cookbook on the clearance table on the way out which of course I had to turn around and go buy. It was 400+ recipes from around the world. I picked one out straightaway to try making with dinner.
The kids played in the Eagle's Nest while I grabbed a few things from Giant Eagle including the few spices I didn't have that I would need for dinner. The Eagle's Nest really is a great addition to GE because there is such a wide variety of things for the kids to do there while mommys are shopping. Everyone leaves the store happy because no one got bored or frustrated. Tristyn and Maia always do the daily (weekly?) project when they are in there and this time they made alligators.
At home, we spent some time relaxing and playing after a busy morning/early afternoon. We also tried Tristyn's 'experiment' which consisted of seeing what type of liquid would break up/dissolve goldfish crackers the quickest.
Here it is! My second attempt at an Indian Dish: Basmati Rice with Potatoes. Some of the spices in it included --cinnamon stick, cardamon pods, cumin, bay leaves, tumeric and I think at least one other that I am forgetting. It turned out really good though of course the kids weren't too sure of it. =( They are newly convinced pea eaters though, because they really enjoy eating fresh peas. This time we got about 2.5 lbs of them to shell for dinner and had a good time doing it.
After dinner was cleaned up, the kids went off to play in their rooms while Rick went to lift weights and I jumped on the treadmill. I got a good 35 minutes in on the 10% incline.
The kids and I looked at old baby pictures in our old albums before bedtime instead of our usual couple of stories. They were both fascinated at how tiny they were, but every time Tristyn saw the obligatory cute naked baby butt picture of himself he was really upset and embarrassed. I wonder if those emotions will carry through to when he's a teenager in regards to those pictures! Hahahaha.
Big Love was on at 9 pm and the kids were tucked in and the lights turned out with about 10 minutes to spare. Rick and I spent the rest of the evening watching the show and relaxing. =)
