Spring Break Shenanigans

Spring Break last year was insanely busy. Jesse and I spent the entire week rearranging furniture, changing Jackson's room from a nursery to a toddler room, and preparing the triplet's nursery. In addition to all the housework, I had to complete units of study for the rest of the school year since I was cutting back to teaching half days after Spring Break.

The agenda for Spring Break this year was to have fun, go on adventures, and relax as a family. We were able to accomplish that for the most part. I've already blogged about the major events (Jackson's birthday party, zoo trip, well checks for all four kids, and Easter). In between the bigger outings, we had a lot of downtime.

We spent a lot of time playing on the floor, singing, and dancing with babies. Can you tell these girls adore their Daddy?

The trio are just funny to watch nowadays. They're constantly taking things out of one another's hands and even mouths. James stole Maddie's bow right off her head. She tried to get it back. Then Amelia rolled over and started tugging, too. These interactions happen multiple times a day.

Jesse insisted that I buy new clothes over break. He's seen me wear the same maternity shirts and yoga pants for over a year now. He gave me his debit card and demanded I not come home without new outfits. After trying on lots of clothes I came home with a few new dresses and leggings.

We headed uptown on Tuesday. I don't typically go uptown with the kids by myself because there's very little do that is free, including parking. Jesse backed into a spot in the parking deck. While putting Maddie in the Ergo, I asked him to hand me the stroller so I could open it up in front of the van. He stubbornly insisted it would fit. I'd by lying if I said I didn't find entertainment in watching him sideways shuffle James and Amelia, then pick them up because the stroller wouldn't fit between the two vans.

We headed to the children's library. Jack played on their up-to-date technology,

while the babies played on one of many large area rugs.

I had entirely too much fun having Jesse hold Amelia up in this bizarre portrait.

We briefly walked around uptown and checked out the trains.

Jackson had his well-check on Thursday. Jesse's mom volunteered to watch the girls while we had a boys date. (The original plan was to leave all three babies at home, but James was having a hard time after his shots the day before.) Upon Jack's request, we ate lunch at IKEA.

After IKEA we headed to the park, then Jackson's 3 year well-check. We took the boys to Sweet Frog afterwards because Jackson was so cooperative at the doctor's office.

The entire time Jesse and I were out with Jackson and James I kept thinking about how easy it would be to have two children. Since James was Baby A, I've always assumed that if the pregnancy was a singleton I would have given birth to James. When we were trying to conceive, we obviously only planned to have one child. It was so easy on Thursday just putting James in the Ergo and walking around with Jackson, then driving away in our Corolla. Of course, as soon as we got home I couldn't stop kissing my girls and thinking about how lucky we are that there was a Baby B and C, too!

Another exciting event over break was Jackson's haircut. Nothing was noteworthy about the haircut itself, but it was the first time Jackson sat in the chair by himself. We always talk about it beforehand but the second the hairdresser puts the scissors in her hands Jackson freaks out. He always ends up in our laps. Not this time. Whoo hoo!

Jesse and I both made sure we had time to do something fun with family/friends. He attended the Bruce Springsteen concert with his mother. I went out for dinner/drinks with my former teammates. It's nice to feel like an adult from time to time. I miss connecting with friends and having non-baby related conversations.

All in all, spring break was pretty busy with two birthday parties, two Easter gatherings, five egg hunts, a zoo trip, and five doctor's appointments. I don't know if we relaxed quite as much as I would have liked to, but we definitely created enjoyable memories together as a family of six.

Now the countdown to summer begins.