A fun day out... well, fun-ish

One of the things that my kids got in their stockings this year was a gift card to Build-a-Bear. They seriously can't get enough of that place.(I think their love of it is inherited from their Grandma T.) Anyhow, Caitlin came down to spend her day off with us and we got the kids ready and headed out the door to spend the day at the Gateway Mall, including lunch and a movie.

First stop was Build-a-Bear. The kids each had their gift card, plus some money from Grandpa Dave, and were informed that they were allowed to spend as much or as little as they would like but that it would all be their own money. Jake was the only one that seemed affected by this pronouncement, as he always has a hard time making decisions when it comes to spending his own money. 

But after a (more or less) pleasant hour spent picking out bears and their clothing we left with the following: 

Jake chose a black and tan bear and dressed him in a pair of jeans and cool tee shirt, and picked out skates that can attach to shoes. He decided to save money and just use the skates on shoes that he already had at home. 

Evie chose a pink bear and dressed her in a hot pink and zebra pajama set complete with matching sleep mask.

Lila just got a new bunny less than a month ago as part of her birthday stuff, and so she chose a Rapunzel dress and shoes for her bunny. There was also a wig but I said no to having one more head of hair floating around the house turning into a snarled mess. This was apparently the meanest thing I have ever done to her. (I keep thinking that she's only three and we have a lot of years left to live together in which I will undoubtedly do something worse...) She finally pulled herself together at the threat of getting nothing at all and chose a stroller to push her bunny around in instead. 

We decided to eat lunch at the food court where everyone could pick what they wanted to eat. Things were going pretty well until Lila dumped her drink all over the floor underneath us and had another meltdown. 

At this point I decided that it wasn't worth trying to take them to the movie. Lila was so tired and distraught over everything I knew she most likely needed a nap. So we changed plans and decided to rent a couple of videos instead on the way home. 

It was fun afternoon knitting and watching a movie with Caitlin upstairs while the kids played and watched a kid show downstairs. 

The lesson for the day: Don't be afraid to be flexible, especially when dealing with a fractious toddler. 

Also, for blogging purposes, it is much better to actually take the camera out of your purse and use it while doing fun activities. A picture is worth a thousand words and all that...