Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Chuck-A-Rama
For those of you who don't live in Utah, you may not believe me - but Chuck-A-Rama is a restaurant. It's an unfortunate name, don't you think? It's a buffet, and we've been to the one near our house twice I think.
It sounded good today, so we took the kids. Here are the top 10 reasons why buffets can be great.
10. When you have three kids, it's a good deal. They only charge for the adults but we feed the kids too. Buying meals for us and a few kids meals is getting expensive!
9. You get to eat salad, roast beef, chinese food, and three kinds of dessert all in one meal.
8. You can throw french fries, goldfish crackers, mac & cheese, chocolate pudding, rolls, and other varieties of food at your kids to keep them happy for an hour.
7. Every time you get up to get food your 3 year old can follow you.
6. You can feel at one with the "old folks" who frequently eat at buffets.
5. No need to finish your plate, just have them clear it and get a new one. Wasting food at its finest.
4. You don't have to cook. Of course, that is a great benefit of going anywhere to eat.
3. Buffets are the only place you can get desserts like bread pudding and rice pudding. Oh, and don't ever get either of those items - they aren't good at a buffet.
2. The choice is yours at Chuck-A-Rama. Oh, that's their jingle.
1. You can look around for the "buffeteers" as my Dad calls them. These are people who stay at the buffet for 3 hours, resting in between meals. They really maximize their $10 investment by eating as much as possible. Seriously, next time you go to a buffet look around - you'll see them.
So, we are all full and happy and no one seems to have mixed the wrong foods together. Thanks Chuck-A-Rama!
It sounded good today, so we took the kids. Here are the top 10 reasons why buffets can be great.
10. When you have three kids, it's a good deal. They only charge for the adults but we feed the kids too. Buying meals for us and a few kids meals is getting expensive!
9. You get to eat salad, roast beef, chinese food, and three kinds of dessert all in one meal.
8. You can throw french fries, goldfish crackers, mac & cheese, chocolate pudding, rolls, and other varieties of food at your kids to keep them happy for an hour.
7. Every time you get up to get food your 3 year old can follow you.
6. You can feel at one with the "old folks" who frequently eat at buffets.
5. No need to finish your plate, just have them clear it and get a new one. Wasting food at its finest.
4. You don't have to cook. Of course, that is a great benefit of going anywhere to eat.
3. Buffets are the only place you can get desserts like bread pudding and rice pudding. Oh, and don't ever get either of those items - they aren't good at a buffet.
2. The choice is yours at Chuck-A-Rama. Oh, that's their jingle.
1. You can look around for the "buffeteers" as my Dad calls them. These are people who stay at the buffet for 3 hours, resting in between meals. They really maximize their $10 investment by eating as much as possible. Seriously, next time you go to a buffet look around - you'll see them.
So, we are all full and happy and no one seems to have mixed the wrong foods together. Thanks Chuck-A-Rama!
Monday, August 20, 2007
Learning to Share
Sharing goes directly against the natural tendencies of small children. I thought we had more time. I thought we had at least another six months of peace until it began...
"NO! Stop, that's MINE!"
"HEY! I'm playing with that!"
"WAHHHHHHHH"
Since we returned from vacation, our children have discovered all of their old toys. This used to mean at least one week of nice, quiet play time. Now it means they have to SHARE. Oh, the horror.
I thought the twins would be good at sharing since they've always had to share everything, even my womb. Nope, not true. Isabel and Adam have a knack for wanting to play with the same toy at the same time, and both are pretty good at running away, twisting, and turning to keep something away from the other. Many times a day you'll hear the wail of a toy or sippy cup being taken away by the other baby. My current tactic is to tell them they need to share, and pick one of them up to try to distract them to move on to another toy.
Then, there's Anna. Sweet, adorable Anna. It might be a lack of sleep from trying to get used to being at home again, but she has not been good at sharing this week. No joke, she probably freaks out about a baby taking something at least 10 times a day. I tell her if she really doesn't want them to get something, she has to put it up high. Otherwise we have to take turns. Sometimes she's content with counting to 20 very slowly while a baby plays with something before she gets it back. Other times it takes a time out just to get over the extreme pain of having to share with her brother or sister.
Since the bickering has begun and I'm sure we'll be dealing with it pretty much for eternity, I have to remember that having more than one child also creates a lot of happy moments. There's nothing cuter than pushing each other on the tricycle, bathtime together, three faces hiding in the tent, playing with a ball, and of course spontaneous kisses.
Just remind me of that tomorrow morning at 9 AM when I'm already tired of asking everyone to share, okay Ben?
"NO! Stop, that's MINE!"
"HEY! I'm playing with that!"
"WAHHHHHHHH"
Since we returned from vacation, our children have discovered all of their old toys. This used to mean at least one week of nice, quiet play time. Now it means they have to SHARE. Oh, the horror.
I thought the twins would be good at sharing since they've always had to share everything, even my womb. Nope, not true. Isabel and Adam have a knack for wanting to play with the same toy at the same time, and both are pretty good at running away, twisting, and turning to keep something away from the other. Many times a day you'll hear the wail of a toy or sippy cup being taken away by the other baby. My current tactic is to tell them they need to share, and pick one of them up to try to distract them to move on to another toy.
Then, there's Anna. Sweet, adorable Anna. It might be a lack of sleep from trying to get used to being at home again, but she has not been good at sharing this week. No joke, she probably freaks out about a baby taking something at least 10 times a day. I tell her if she really doesn't want them to get something, she has to put it up high. Otherwise we have to take turns. Sometimes she's content with counting to 20 very slowly while a baby plays with something before she gets it back. Other times it takes a time out just to get over the extreme pain of having to share with her brother or sister.
Since the bickering has begun and I'm sure we'll be dealing with it pretty much for eternity, I have to remember that having more than one child also creates a lot of happy moments. There's nothing cuter than pushing each other on the tricycle, bathtime together, three faces hiding in the tent, playing with a ball, and of course spontaneous kisses.
Just remind me of that tomorrow morning at 9 AM when I'm already tired of asking everyone to share, okay Ben?
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
I need a vacation from my vacation
I know I promised house pictures some time ago but that would require too much energy. Instead, I have pictures from our supposed "vacation."I love our children but they don't understand vacation. We never slept in, stayed out late, or did anything incredibly out of the ordinary in Maine. When we had only Anna, it was easy enough for one of us (or someone else) to watch Anna in order to relax on vacation. Clearly, that is no longer possible. Despite this, we had fun and tried to relax as best we could. At the very least, our trip was memorable as the only vacation (so far) where our family dealt with two separate rounds of sickness (in Maine and CA) and possible teething. It's a miracle we have any happy pictures.
Isabel happy to no longer be on a plane
"Anna fish" in Sebago Lake. She asked to go swimming as soon as she woke up each morning.
Adam walking around camp.
Adam typically sat in the sand and tried not to move. Isabel couldn't sit still and thought she could swim in the lake.
Anna and her cheesy smile.
Poor Adam all alone on the beach. He didn't like the water so he occasionally found himself alone on the beach while the rest of us swam.
The obligatory lighthouse shot. We didn't try to see lighthouses but we came across this one during our travels.
Our ferry ride to Peak's Island. Isabel and Adam wanted to jump in the water the whole time. Anna displays another cheesy smile.
The very very cold Atlantic ocean
Our not-so-little family
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay
I hope the few loyal readers we have will forgive our absence from blogging. We have had a nice, long vacation. A little too long actually. I am eager to get back to our regular life.
Maine was wonderful and tiring. Remind me not to travel with three kids under three. Actually, I don't think I'll need reminding. They did great and better than I expected, but relaxation is still non-existent.
Our camp by the lake was great and we had beautiful weather every single day. The kids loved swimming, especially Anna (or Anna-fish as she was called by my Aunt Cathy) and Isabel. Isabel thinks she is a big kid and tries to wiggle away from you like she can swim. Adam had fun too, either while clinging to us tightly in the water, or happily playing in the sand.
Here they are on the dock...
Anna with her Great Grandpa "Bumpy"
Sebago Lake
Only one week of our trip was spent in Maine, the rest of the trip has included working with a little bit of fun. Much more on Maine and other things to come.
Maine was wonderful and tiring. Remind me not to travel with three kids under three. Actually, I don't think I'll need reminding. They did great and better than I expected, but relaxation is still non-existent.
Our camp by the lake was great and we had beautiful weather every single day. The kids loved swimming, especially Anna (or Anna-fish as she was called by my Aunt Cathy) and Isabel. Isabel thinks she is a big kid and tries to wiggle away from you like she can swim. Adam had fun too, either while clinging to us tightly in the water, or happily playing in the sand.
Here they are on the dock...
Anna with her Great Grandpa "Bumpy"
Sebago Lake
Only one week of our trip was spent in Maine, the rest of the trip has included working with a little bit of fun. Much more on Maine and other things to come.
Friday, August 3, 2007
So.......slooooooow
We have Internet access at our camp (they call it a camp here in Maine, but that means a big house with all of the amenities) but it's dial up. Painfully slow. So no pictures until we get back.
We are having fun swimming, eating, playing in the sand, and yesterday a few of us went jet skiing. Today Ben and I and the kids all seem to have colds, so I hope that ends soon. I need a nap.
We leave camp tomorrow and we'll do some other things in Maine - I think we might go to the Lobster Festival on Saturday, then to Old Orchard Beach on Sunday to see the ocean.
More details when we get back!
We are having fun swimming, eating, playing in the sand, and yesterday a few of us went jet skiing. Today Ben and I and the kids all seem to have colds, so I hope that ends soon. I need a nap.
We leave camp tomorrow and we'll do some other things in Maine - I think we might go to the Lobster Festival on Saturday, then to Old Orchard Beach on Sunday to see the ocean.
More details when we get back!
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