Rare outing to a playground this afternoon. It was more fun than we anticipated and kids finally got to ride the swings; all-time favorite playground activity. It was a quiet afternoon with only a few number of kids, so social distancing was not an issue.
This wobbly tire swing was a first for Elliot. He wasn’t keen on riding it so I managed to squeeze into the tire and swing beside him. The weight balance was great but getting out of it was harder than I imagined. We all got a good laugh from me struggling to climb out; thankfully no face flops.
The best afternoons happen when you least expect it.
“Spend the afternoon. You can’t take it with you.”
Annie Dillard
Today was supposed to be a routine outing for a dentist appointment and then back home. But the weather was breezy and sunny, not overly hot, and kids readily agreed to explore a nearby park. Good experience and workout for all of us!
My coffee cup got knocked over in the playground and our snack bag was dripping with coffee. I was hoping to pick up a Starbucks at the nearest drive thru, but there was a long line of cars waiting for their afternoon brews too. If it was a solo outing, I would’ve gladly waited, pleasantly passing the time listening to my favorite Christian radio station.
But the afternoon was running too smoothly that I couldn’t risk it for coffee that was already waiting for me in the fridge back home. I could feel the chill of my glass pitcher holding my cold brew and mixing it with the Costco brand oat milk I just opened yesterday. For the happiness of my children, I can do this and drive past Starbucks. That’s just the kind of mom I am. lol
Categories: learning with kids Mom lIfe Play
singlikewildflowers
Welcome to my blog! My name is Esther and I'm so happy you are here. I'm an avid nature photographer and a daydreaming thinker. My posts revolve around photos of nature's beauty, homeschooling adventures with my 2 kids, sporadic reflections on my child's heart condition, Bible reading reflections, gardening feats, and other mish mash things. Hopefully you'll leave encouraged, pensive, or smiling at the simple things of life. Thank you for stopping by and hope you'll find some interesting posts to read!
sing like wildflowers 
What a great day! Both of my boys have that same green build tshirt from Target 🥰
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It was! Great days happen when you least expect it. God is good like that.
hahahah, love Target shirts. Elliot is starting to grow out of their kids’ clothing but there husky sizes work for now.
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sounds like the perfect weather for this trip to get some swinging in (and you wrote so well I could see the spilled coffee drips!!)
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Yvette, sorry I didn’t get to reply sooner to your lovely comment. But right after I read your encouragement about my writing, I was on cloud nine. Thank you!!
It was a great outing and we went back a few days later. I must’ve been really tired from these active outings because I plopped down on the couch and could barely keep my eyes open. I’ve been told snoring was involved.
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Good to see your kids had so much fun, Esther!
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Sounds like the perfect afternoon following a dentist visit. Must do fun things and celebrate no cavities right? I’ve never been in a tire swing and probably would have not been able to get in or out of it.
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It really was! This was another orthodontist appt. for Elliot but the dentist wants to wait until all his baby teeth are out. We’ve been having lots of appointments shuffled around these days. This Wednesday is their regular dentist appointment. That takes more preparation since Ellis needs to take antibiotics one hour before her appointment.
The tire swing is very swooshy. I was nervous of flopping backwards or forwards. Once is enough for me. Trust me…you haven’t missed out. A regular swing is better in my opinion.
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I had the traditional wrap-around metal braces on my teeth as an adult and they pulled two top rear molars to put the braces on. It wasn’t fun and three years of that and headgear at night and when at home and double rubber bands. I was supposed to get braces in Canada, then we moved over here and there were no orthodontists within walking distance and my mom didn’t drive and my father didn’t want to take time from work, so I waited until I could drive and go myself. My mom did the antibiotics regimen too, pre-medicating before every tooth appointment because she had a hip replacement. I’d like a traditional swing better too – I’d likely land on my head.
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Braces seem like a rite of passage for most kids. Whew, they are uncomfortable, especially those spacers. My mom was so busy that I was mostly weeks late for my appointments. I got 4 teeth removed and that was the day I discovered I was allergic to penicillin. Very painful and disastrous experience.
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Wow – I am allergic to streptomycin but I never hear about streptomycin, once used to treat TB. That’s scary for you. Four teeth at once – that was painful. Orthodontist removed rear molars and used my wisdom teeth on top and then I got my braces off and about six months later, my bottom wisdom teeth came in and were impacted and had to be removed. Not fun at all there and was bruised all over my face and neck.
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It wasn’t a pleasant afternoon. I was in denial that the dentist would pull out four teeth in one visit, but it was one pulled right after the other. Kind of barbaric. I had TB when I was 14 and the medicine I took ended up giving me an ulcer. I didn’t know why I was so lethargic and a trip to the pediatrician showed that it was a positive TB test result. Wild times for me!
Braces toughen us up for pain tolerance. You had it pretty rough too. Yikes!
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Wow – your ordeal was worse than mine. When I got my bottom wisdom teeth out, I had just started a new job three months before, but they had to come out, so I took the Friday before Memorial Day weekend. My father took the day off work to take me as I had to have anesthetic due to them being impacted, so it was advised I see a maxillofacial surgeon and not drive home. I worked for a law firm that did medical malpractice and dental malpractice defense work (and other things). I picked this surgeon as he was often an expert who testified on our behalf … BUT, he had also been sued. I figured his expertise outweighed the lawsuit. I got in there and filled out the patient history/insurance form and when I was in the chair he looked at me and started swearing and called me a “_______ legal secretary – are you gonna sue me because if you are, get your ____ out of the chair right now. A mere slip of my scalpel and your jaw will be hanging like this.” (Proceed to make faces and pull on his jaw sideways.) Thought he was nuts, but I was not going to take another day off, or make my father do so, plus I did it ahead of the long weekend so the bruises and pain would be gone by Tuesday. I was so scared of his actions/anger, I could not “take” the anesthesia … I don’t remember why, so I said “forget it – get it over with.” I got an air pocket, not necessarily his fault – he was an idiot!
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What?? The surgeon sounds like a psychopath. I’d be nervous to take the anesthesia too. Amazing…how unprofessional of that guy to act that way and say such things.
Sorry you had that terrible experience. Man, some people are just unfit for lots of things…he was probably a good surgeon but a jerk.
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Yes, he sure was a jerk. I Googled him after I wrote you – evidently he retired to Florida and died 10 years ago. He had several lawsuits that I knew of at that time, but he was also the on-call maxillofacial surgeon for all major facial trauma at some of the bigger hospitals around here, so he “knew his stuff” but yes brilliant and a jerk.
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Can totally see why he got lawsuits. It must’ve been a vicious cycle…lawsuits probably made him more skeptical and continues the cycle of his meanness. Also, he was a good, sought-after surgeon and that probably swelled his ego and lowered his bedside care manners.
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Some doctors are gems and then there are the other ones. My mom treated with an infectious disease doctor for the flare-ups of cellulitis in her leg. She had a great doctor and he and another doctor (his superior) in the practice had an argument and he left and is now the head of Infectious Diseases at a big hospital. He is often interviewed since the beginning of the pandemic. Always caring and thoughtful.
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