Date Night (!).......Maybe

We received a gift certificate to one of our favorite restaurants for Christmas (thank you Ray Ray and So So), and have been anxious to have the opportunity to enjoy some good food and not have to worry about telling little ones to sit down, or to use an inside voice, or that they "better actually have to use the bathroom this time." So, when we saw that a place nearby was having a Parents Night Out we decided that it would be fun for the kids and give us the chance to squeeze in dinner. So we made reservations and got the kids signed up, and then last night started trying to plan logistically when Lance admitted that he was nervous and wasn't sure if he wanted to go. That, in turn, made me anxious because his fears aren't completely unfounded (people we don't know watching the children in an active environment with lots of other children). I am torn - I know the kids will have a great time, and I know that we will enjoy some time together than doesn't involve a basketball gym or stadium BUT, I don't really want to spend the money (for the Parents Night Out) and then sit and worry the whole time while we are trying to enjoy our meal. We may just call it off and try to plan something around my birthday when hopefully we can do some advanced planning and find someone that Lance is more comfortable with watching the kids (aka - family - :)).

Nothing much else planned for the weekend. Katie still has dance class for the next couple of months, but other than that there is a chance of snow on Sunday which means cold, dreary and rainy (not even going to get my hopes up that it will be snow instead of rain) so we will either head back over to Monkey Joe's or find something to do indoors. I can't wait for it to get a little warmer so we can start playing outside and going to the zoo again, although Lance took a job with a new company and has to work on Saturday and Sundays now and my tennis season starts mid-March so I don't know how we are going to do it all! Katie will have dance class right when my tennis matches will be and Lance will need to be at work on Saturdays before I am back from tennis and Tyler isn't old enough to watch himself - I guess we are going to get some practice learning how to juggle lots of activities which I am sure is in our future as the kids get older. Either that, or we need to get better at asking for help! We still haven't located the camera charger so we'll have to continue to make do with poor quality pictures, but if we get into anything fun this weekend I'll be sure to snap a few!

Tyler completed his participation in the Vanderbilt research study yesterday. He did great and told me repeatedly that he had a good day. He really enjoyed being there and you could tell he felt like a big kid and was proud of himself (and he really likes the dinosaur prize he got at the end). He is back to doing his shy thing where he hides his face and clings to either Lance or me, but for some reason he was just chatty and open with the doctors and researchers over there. He got to eat lunch with me and Lance, So So and Ray Ray after his appointment and was having a really special day until he realized that we were in fact going to school. He tells me he doesn't like school (other than saying that he does like the playing outside part), and is resistant to go pretty much everyday - BUT he never wants to leave when I pick him up in the afternoons so I am thinking it's not that bad :)! Spending one on one time with Tyler is always fun because you really get to talk to and listen to him and the way he interprets things and sees the world is funny and interesting, and often makes you stop and think too. He is very matter-of-fact and isn't afraid to tell other children on the playground, or in his class, or even adults how things should be done, or what they should or shouldn't be doing. A boy who was about 6 years old at Chic fil a was being mean and Tyler told him "it's not nice to do that," his teacher was having trouble with something and Tyler finally looked at her and said "what are you trying to do, you need to ask for help" (something we tell him all the time to try to keep him from getting frustrated), and the funniest was yesterday when he was trying to tell me something and Katie just kept talking and talking (and he had been reprimanded the night before for saying shut up and then saying be quiet meanly) and he looked at her and said "Katie, you need to slow your mouth down!" They are too funny and I know I need to remember these times when they are fighting over a chance to talk to me since I am sure there will come a time when I am begging them to tell me what they think and how they spent their day!