Why?!

Zoe had an appointment this week at the IWK, so Mr. Level-Headed and I decided to turn it into a mini-vacay for everyone since we have not done much this summer with the entire family. On Sunday night, just as we were about to reach Truro and the three big kids erupted into a screaming match, WHILE both babies and probably because both babies were crying and had been crying for quite sometime, Mr. Level-Headed and I questioned our sanity and then turned into the nearest McDonald's to let everyone stretch out their legs and fill their bellies. Sometimes I think I make this parenting business much harder than it has to be; like let's have two more babies because three was just not busy enough! How about co-sleeping - don't I see my babies enough all day long? Or cloth diapers - Hello?! Do I need more laundry? How about tandem nursing - Isn't nursing one baby every two hours of the day time consuming enough?

Yesterday, while Mr. Level-Headed and Zoe were at her appointment, I took the two-under-two crew and the two older boys (I need to come up with a snazzy name for them . . . hmmmm) downtown Halifax to visit my sister Hilary at the beautiful new library. Before we went there, though, the crew and I needed to find a place to stop for lunch. I was pushing the double stroller with Leif in it and had Harriet strapped to my chest in her sling (she really does not like to be apart from her mama) so that ruled out any of the crowded restaurants on Spring Garden Rd.

No problem! It is only 36' with the humidity; we can keep on walking until we find a a spot. Oh, Avery! You want to go to the comic book store. Sure! Let's walk a little further. I know it is right down this road. 

Picture it -There I was downtown Halifax on one of the hottest days of summer, pushing this gigantic stroller up the steep hills with sweat running down my back while I try to soothe Harriet, whom I had recently placed in the stroller because I feared she may be cooked onto my chest in all this heat. One of the teens who had decided to wear his new khaki pants that he had just bought the day before and who had no interest in going to the comic bookstore was grumbling under his breath, and the preteen who desperately wanted to spend his last $15 on some comics was growing disheartened as we passed each new block and still had not found it. Thankfully, we did manage to find a restaurant for lunch - a non-air conditioned one mind you, but what they lacked in cool, breathable air they made up for in greasy, delightful donairs, but unfortunately, we never found the comic bookstore.

By the time we made it to the library, I must have been a sight - one sweaty, wild-eyed sight with two crying babies and two cranky teens in tow. My sister took one look at me and asked with a tremendous amount of concern:

What's wrong?

Which surprised me because really, nothing was wrong, and then I had one of those out-of-body experiences where I stepped out of myself, figuratively speaking, and looked at the situation from her eyes . . . eeeeeeek!

Nothing is wrong.

And then I told her all about our "adventures" that morning.

Oh, the comic bookstore moved to the waterfront last year.

Of course . . .

Then for one brief moment, I kid you not, I actually contemplated turning around and heading down to the waterfront. Thankfully, I am not that crazy . . . yet.

So why do I continually choose the more difficult path? Why didn't I, for instance, stay at the hotel with the four kids in our air-conditioned room and let them watch television for the morning and eat Corn Pops out of disposable, plastic bowls? Why? Because I love adventures. I love getting outside and having new experiences. I love pushing myself and going beyond my comfort zone. I love the unexpected and the chaos, but ultimately, I love being a mom and I want to make the most out of every second I get to spend with these five amazing people Heavenly Father entrusted in my care.