The Dreaded Holiday Day

February 16, 2009
For the entire day on Sunday, I tossed back and forth in my mind how I would handle the next day, President's Day. On a typical day, I'd rather eat glass than spend a day stuck at home with my husband and toddler. I decided I'd work on President's Day, just to get out of the house. But wait! Paid holidays are an "earned" benefit at my job, and I'm entitled to take the day off! I decide to stay home on Monday, mostly because a young mother who forfeits her holidays in lieu of staying home with her family appears mentally unstable.

Rather than spend the entire day cooped in our 950 square foot house, I decide that a family trip to the aquarium is in order. Getting my husband ready for an outing is not unlike getting AC ready for an outing: both lack the attention span necessary to do so in a smooth and timely manner. Surprisingly, I had to do little yelling to get my husband up and out the door.

We arrive at the aquarium, and AC delights in the displays, running from tank to tank and shaking with excitement. She discovered the highlight of the aquarium: the otters. She waved and yelled, "Hey, buddy!" to them while the crowds gathered around her laughed with glee. She refused to watch the otter feeding demonstration, and looked shocked, as though people were invading her personal otter display. We decided it was time to leave for lunch at McDonald's.

The McDonald's Play Land was joyous as always. Such a visit always reminds me of a recent discussion that I had with my mother: who has to clean up the mess when a child vomits in the ball pit? Thankfully, if any vomiting occurred in this particular ball pit on this particular day, it was not commited by my child.