Summer. Day One.

Holy hell, I'm tired.  It's only been summer for one stinking DAY, but the Fasciotto girls did this day RIGHT!  I can already see some key differences between this summer and the last one.  Last summer I was tired in that I was up all night with a baby and worried about where I would nurse her if the zombie apocalypse hit the zoo or the pool or the library when we happened to be there.  This summer I'm sleeping at night, so it's a different kind of tired, probably nothing more than these STUPID seasonal allergies, but still.  This summer will be spent yelling "Stay close!" to Sylvia as she runs ahead of me through crowds of strangers, and "What's in your MOUTH?" to Margot, who may or may not have eaten bird poop today.  I came to a grand and important conclusion today, and it's this:

I'll always be tired for the rest of my life, so it's high time to just shut up and get on with things. 

Everyone I know is tired.  It has nothing to do with the number of hours of sleep we get and everything to do with the amount of worrying we do all day long, so tired is tired and we all have it and now let's move on.

I woke up today determined to tackle The Tired.  Because I woke up tired after a good seven hours of sleep and I was all, "NO way, Tired!  NOT today!  We're going to the ZOO!  It's SUMMER and you can SHOVE IT, Tired!  Get out of the way!"  So I took both girls to the zoo by myself.  I know, it's not that big of a deal.  I saw two moms there today with EIGHT children between them, and I followed them long enough to determine that they were NOT from a day care.  People do this all the time.  I just haven't attempted two kids by myself at the zoo yet, so I was nervous.  Between 7 am, when the girls woke up, and 8:45 am, when we actually walked out the door, I almost gave up ten times.  I threatened Sylvia within an inch of her life when she threw her royal fit because she couldn't wear dirty clothes from the laundry hamper OR her pajamas.  I'm pretty sure I said this: "If you don't pick one of the ten shirts in your drawer, we are never going to zoo EVER - for the rest of your LIFE!  GET DRESSED!  I'm not doing this with you anymore!"  And then I flung myself on her floor on my back and covered my face and tried not to cry.  I don't know where she gets it.

I was sure I'd forget something from my mental checklist (sunscreen, stroller, lunches, DON'T FORGET THE DIET COKE!) and after I strapped the girls in the car I had to go back into the house no less than three times to get things I forgot (once for sunglasses, once for my phone, and once for....I can't even remember, but Sylvia was cracking up laughing at me and I did NOT appreciate it, but it was better than whining and crying so I didn't really mind).  As we were heading up the street, blue skies and sunshine all around, singing The Zoo Song, I started to feel confident that this day was going to turn out okay...and it totally DID!  People, we ROCKED that zoo trip!  It was amazing and we're totally going back there four hundred times this year. 

The best part about the zoo is that Sylvia gets to call all the shots so she feels important (lunch at 9:30 after seeing our first animal?  You GOT IT, GIRL!  Eat that sandwich.  At least you're eating!) and I don't have to stress out about anything because we have a pass, so what do I care if we see ANY animals at all?  I don't.  The only thing I had to be really careful about was the potty.  I made sure we hit EVERY family restroom we could find because the time between, "I have to go potty!" and me getting covered in pee is remarkably small. 

I brought plenty of snacks.  I took a few pictures.  All in all I'd say it was a roaring success! 

The third item I went back into the house for was Sylvia's sweater!  Thank goodness, too.  It was COLD this morning!

I wrapped Margot in a blanket since I did not dress her appropriately and she promptly fell asleep! Morning nap? Check!

Margot slept while Sylvia ran around like a madwoman on the playground.  And I sat on a bench.  Score.

I told her to make a turtle face and this is what she did!  Hilarious!

Snack time.

Petting zoos have brushes now!  Those goats have it MADE.

Neither child wanted to look at the camera, but there I am, all proud of myself!

I'm sure the next time we go it will be a total disaster, but today was a really good day.  As tired as I am, I am SO excited to be home for the summer with these awesome girls who just so happen to live at my house!