Spontaneity makes me happy. I wake up most days not knowing what our day will consist of. I usually give in to my feelings for that day, whether that means staying home or going out (unless of course I already have some other prior committment or responsibility). But otherwise, I just plan my day as I go. I love when fun things pop up that I hadn't planned on. Perhaps I get that from my dad. On second though, I KNOW I get that from my dad. He does the same thing. Neither of us are planners. I love that he will call out of the blue with some off the wall idea to go do something. It makes life more fun, more interesting that way. I love the memories from my childhood of being woken up at 6am on a Saturday morning telling me to get ready, we were going on a trip. With no warning, just pure joy, excitement and anticipation, sometimes not even knowing where we were going. But I always knew with him, with our family, it would be fun. I love that about us. I hope to give my children those kind of memories. New experiences, lots of fun, and quality time spent with the family. This past Sunday was one of those days. This time, dad and I both had an idea of something to do. I called him and asked what he was doing that day and his reply was "something with Kelsie." I asked if he wanted to come up and go to a movie with us after church (my mom works on Sundays after church and Nathan was in China on business, so spending time together was on both of minds.) He said he had been thinking of taking her to science center/aquarium in Greensboro. At first, I thought of all the other things I needed to do, and how much of a hassle it would be to pack up everything for her, go to church, drive to Greensboro, deal with her missing a nap, the fussiness, the tantrums on the way home and I almost just said No, too much work than its worth. But then I started thinking how much she would enjoy it. How excited she would be to spend time with grandpa, how happy I would be to spend time with my dad, and for all of us to enjoy doing something fun together. So I supressed those other feelings and decided to go for it. And it was so much fun! Valerie and Drew (my sister and brother-in-law) met us too and we all had a great time. It brings me so much joy to watch Kelsie see something the first time. How many times have I seen farm animals up close? It is still fun to see, but for her, these first few years are about seeing and doing things for the first time! And its so much fun being a part of that. Being with Kelsie when she saw the tigers for the first time or fed a goat or put her hand in a tank of stingrays or watched the sharks swim...these are now great memories that I may not have had if I had said "no, I don't feel like it today, maybe another time". We just never know if we will get "another time" and that thought often leads my decisions. Why not just put aside your chores for a day and do something fun? Your children will only have one childhood, so make it worth it. Make it memorable! Share as much joy with them as you possibly can. Give them new experiences. Teach them new things by letting them see it with their own eyes. And above all, just spend time with them. Yes, we could have done that from anywhere, including our living room. But it wouldn't have been near as much fun as this! And we wouldn't have been with "A-pa"! (I'm so thankful for him, that he likes to have fun to, likes to do new things with Kelsie, and instilled in my this zeal for life and raised me to be as I am. I love him.
