Monday, October 17, 2011

Autumn Family Play Day!

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The Fall sunshine brings out the little girl in me, and I have to go outside and play. Saturday was the perfect day -- what with it being sandwiched between rainy weeks!
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I dragged my little foreign girls out of bed before noon (what a rotten Mom I am!), and we set off to see what will probably be the last of the Autumn leaves and just hang together. They were so enthusiastic about it! Picture this: dark little heads on their hands, sleepy narrow little slits for eyes, staring morosely out the window thinking of I-pods and laptops and pillows (none of which were in our car!) And Mama next to them singing along with Katie Perry and Usher and trying to engage them in character-building aka geographically educational conversation:
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"Oh! Look at that one! So red!"

"Ohhh! So pretty!"

"Ahhhh, orange, gold and red - all in one tree."
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Not once did I ask "Are you having fun?" Not once did I tell them "Someday you'll be glad you saw colorful leaves in Nova Scotia." No ... I just did what I was supposed to do and treated them like I would my own kids. You know what I mean, right? "We're having a family day and you're coming and you're going to enjoy it! Understand?!"
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There were moments they liked a lot.
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And they thought Lunenburg was pretty. Eating lunch at a little cafe perked them up and fueled them for walking up and down that hilly little town as Mama continued to chatter cheerfully about this historic thingie and that historic thingie. (They did like the Dollar Store.)
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I may have picked up a slightly 'Please! No more!' vibe from them when I dragged them around historic Mahone Bay and into my favorite shoe store. But by then, I had long adopted the stance that someone should enjoy this beautiful day ... and it might as well be me!

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By then, it was time for beverages and dessert at Joanne's Market. Blueberry New York and Peanut Butter Toblerone cheesecake revived us once again. They enjoyed that..
But their eyes really lit up as I said we'll head home now. As we slipped off our shoes in the foyer, I thanked them for coming along and said "It was a fun day!" They smiled at me and dragged their exhausted little bodies upstairs.

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Yes! You know you're the mother of teenagers when you have an "Enforced Family Bonding Day". Thank goodness these ones were too tired (or polite) to whine like my own used to! And I trust that, just like my own, these girls weren't scarred permanently and will actually remember and treasure these days.
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After all - it is a cultural adventure!
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17 comments:

Sweet Tea said...

Oh-Dear-Doris
You.Are.Such.A.Morning.Person.

I am married to a person of the morning persuassion.
*yawn*

I love your type, but ony in the pm.

Lori E said...

Too funny. I give you credit. I could never take on more kids....I am still having trouble launching the one I still have at home.

Starting Over, Accepting Changes - Maybe said...

I am sure they will remember that day with you with very fond memories.

Janet said...

You've created some wonderful memories that they will look back on fondly (give them a couple of years to get to the 'fondly' part).

We, too, took a drive to see the fall colors on Saturday - such a beautiful day. Too bad all that rain and wind Friday night blew so many leaves off the trees. We followed the Medway up to Bangs Falls - lovely drive. No cheesecake, though :(

Dawn said...

You are to funny:) You in that big yellow chair if perfect. Exactly what I would expect from you. Always good for a laugh. Dragging you family along was just a plus. LOL

Pamela Gordon said...

I wish I could have been with you! I would really have enjoyed the whole morning. LOL I expect as time goes on they will talk about their lovely hostess and the wonderful tours and drives she took them on. I remember my mother taking us for country drives on back roads and at the time they were boring but as I grew older I appreciated them. Great memories!

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday beautiful Libran!
I really,really want that Toblerone cheesecake.

wendy said...

Loved that BIg Yellow Chair!!!!
sounds like a perfect day to me and topping it off with the cheesecake...YUMMO !!!

a mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do. We are the "keepers of Fun"
and they'll enjoy it if you have to beat it into them
I'd LOVE to see Nova Scotia.
maybe someday

TARYTERRE said...

Now as I was reading this I was saying to myself "What a lovely way to spend a day." Then you got to the part about the Blueberry New York and Peanut Butter Toblerone cheesecake and I thought I would die of jealousy. It looked so-ooo darn good, I considered licking the screen of my computer for a taste. LOL You know how to sweeten a day in the best way possible. Memories were made and they will cherish them.

RobinfromCA said...

LOL! We used to call those "Triple F" days. Forced Family Fun! But, now that my daughter is married and a new mom she is already planning some "Triple F" activities so it's not all in vain. You're providing great memories - even if they go home and say "You should see some of the places that crazy lady took us!" They'll remember it!

I'm mostly known as 'MA' said...

You are a good mama. I think they'll be thankful for a day like the one you had when winter rolls around. Now those are the days that this mama doesn't want to go out to play. Happy Monday!

Donna said...

What fun. Love that big chair, and that cheesecake looks so good!

Betsy said...

What a fun day! I'm also a family time enforcer and my kids have admitted that they actually liked it! In fact, there are times when I'd rather stay home and they tell me we should go out and do something fun together! It does stay with them and then they'll pass it on to their families. And boy did I love that big yellow rocker.

Red said...

You're doing the right thing. You expose them to as much as possible. In their home country leaves do no turn color . They will remember.
The wheels go around in those heads as those kids are very bright and the stuff they see makes much more sense to them than you would think.

Pat MacKenzie said...

How could anyone not want to go sightseeing on a beautiful fall day in Nova Scotia. Those girls are lucky to have you for a host Mama. They'll thank you for it after they've rested a bit.

Terra said...

"Enforced family bonding with teens", it's beautiful. You are being a true mama to these two gals.

karensomethingorother said...

that photo of you in the giant chair is FASCINATING for some reason--it's a total fabulous optical, Alice In Wonderland type of Illusion.

Well, come on--look at that freaking cheesecake?!?

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