Another Great Weekend

Mark another fun, productive and exciting weekend down in the books for us.  The kids are at great ages right now for getting out and doing, and we are taking full advantage!  Saturday started with a birthday party for one of Bean’s friends at the Orlando Science Center.  We don’t go often to the Science Center because admission is outrageous ($27 for adults; $20 for kids).  The birthday party was a lot of fun, though, and included free admission to the Science Center for all party guests.  Bean’s best friend, Elle, came and so her mom and I decided that since our husbands were out playing golf together, we’d stay for a few extra hours after the party and let the kids explore (and, I’ll admit, to get them good and tired for big naps!).

After the Science Center, we came home and I gave the kids baths. I’m not a germ freak, but everything at that museum is hands-on and interactive, and all I could think about were how many other kids had touched everything Bean and Gracie were touching. Plus, they smelled like a science lab with a side of syrup from breakfast. Glack! So, we had baths and played with glow sticks and bath crayons. By this point, the kids were so tired they were about to fall asleep in the tub.

One of my most vivid childhood memories was coming in from playing outside somewhere and my mom giving us a bath in the middle of the afternoon (is there anything more luxurious? even for a kid?). Then, she’d put us in clean clothes or even jammies, and lay us down for naps in our beds. I remember so clearly how good that felt and how soundly I slept. My own kids must feel the same way because give them an active, dirty morning and a big afternoon nap, and those babes will sleep for HOURS!

During which time, I cleaned our entire house. Although, I don’t know why because by the time we had people over for dinner that night, the kids turned the house completely upside down! But at least under the mess, it was clean! We had Elle’s parents and our friend, Gary, over for a casual dinner that night. We made individual French bread pizzas, which might be my new favorite food for a crowd. So easy and everyone gets to be involved in the cooking.

I bought four loaves of Cuban bread (though for five of us, I only used three), a jar of spicy marinara sauce, a couple bags of shredded mozzarella cheese, and then some assorted pizza toppings: turkey pepperoni, green bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, onions, tomatoes, and I had basil leaves, but forgot to put it out. Then, I cut the loaves in half lengthwise and then in width, so that everyone had a fourth of a loaf. I went ahead and put them on a baking sheet with marinara on them, and then I set out the toppings in little bowls so people could fix their own pizzas with their own toppings. Throw those bad boys in the oven at 400 for about 15 minutes and – VOILA! I cut each loaf into thirds so it was easier for people to eat, and then served it with a side salad.

(I made the kids loaf ahead of time so they could eat first. They just had sauce and cheese on theirs. After they baked, I cut them into small little strips that were easier for them to handle.)

We sat out by the pool to eat while the kids ran around inside and out. We sat out on the deck until about 9:30, and by then the wee ones were exhausted from their big day. And so were the adults!

Also, do you like my make-shift candle holders on the back deck? They are glass beer steins that we never use!

Our family slept in on Sunday morning and skipped church (sorry, God…) so we could all lay around and eat toast and watch Cinderella. Later, we got up and worked on Gracie new room while I did the laundry. It was a pretty relaxing Sunday, actually.

Weekends are awesome. The End.