Top Ten Thoughts from a Long Weekend

Hope everyone had a great long weekend! I know that I did… who doesn’t enjoy kicking off a three-day weekend with their birthday on the Friday?

I neglected to have anything prepared for yesterday so let’s just pretend I posted something for Music Monday – it was this video of my youngest dancing to his Wiggles book… he loves his Wiggles, just like his brother did before him.

Clearly he will not be a part of America’s Best Dance Crew, but what he lacks in true talent he makes up for in intensity and finger pointing.

We packed a lot into the weekend and I’m so glad this is a short week because I don’t know that I could do five days in the office, or five days of week-day reality. And I’m equally glad we are going out of town next weekend and leaving the kids with my parents because they have been in rare form lately.

But without further ado, here’s my top ten list:

1. Being on a diet really makes me appreciate the food I do eat and makes me not want to eat crap and waste calories on things that aren’t worth it. If I take a bite of something and I don’t LOVE it, I just won’t eat any more of it. I also won’t finish my kid’s sandwiches just so the food doesn’t go to waste (instead I feed it to the dog).
2. To go along with #1, when it is your birthday weekend, you can indulge and not feel guilty (at least not too guilty). It also helps if you take a walk with your kids in 90 degree, super humid weather, because you will still lose weight that week – yeah for sweating buckets before even leaving the house. Today it’s back to veggies, water, whole grains and lean proteins.
3. Facebook + your birthday = awesome! Also awesome, husbands who meet you for lunch, friends who go out for dinner, in-laws who call from Australia and children who tell you happy bird-day at least 20 times and insist it’s your birthday all weekend long.
4. Homemade pizza is delightful, especially when made with crust from the farmer’s market and garlic scape pesto in the sauce.
5. There are few things better than grilling dinner and eating out on the deck with friends.
6. Though it’s also fun to leave the kids home with a sitter and go out with adults for good food, conversation and many laughs (added bonus when all food is 50% off because they are trying to fill up the restaurant on a normally very slow night). [Note: We realized that the last time we went out with friends WITHOUT children was maybe when I was pregnant with Liam (seriously five years ago). That is just sad.]
7. When we told Liam we were going to church Sunday morning, he actually cheered – that made my heart so happy.
8. Just because your kids are super excited to see a parade, doesn’t mean they will behave well (note the grip I have on Jack just to get this photo taken, below). Shortly after the photo was taken, Simon took Jack back to my office, leaving Liam and I to enjoy the “best parade ever, mom!” in relative peace. There’s always next year…

We will take a happy photo and you will like it!

9. There is almost two hour’s worth of entertainment to be found in playing with water and sidewalk chalk (and a watering can, don’t worry, I didn’t let him drown himself with water).

This is pretty much what all photos look like when I try to get one of the two of them together. Sigh.

10. Your kids will be thrilled with a box of poppers, colored smoke balls and sparklers and never know they went to bed before the real fun of fireworks started. Even going so far as to declare it the best 4th of July ever! And it was pretty great, but I smile just knowing it will get even better in coming years.

This post is linked to Oh Amanda’s Top Ten Tuesday.