Glad We Have Family in Town!

The excitement never ends here. Oh yeah- I just keep looking forward to the next "adventure" (please don't misunderstand me, this sentence should be read in a very sarcastic tone). We were off to the city far, far away (Ballwin- so it's not actually that far but it is when you are talking about getting three kids two and under there by 9 o'clock in the morning). We were going to have a morning of fun. 1st stop- meeting my aunt Clemanne at McDonalds for breakfast and the indoor playground. 2nd stop- Once Upon a Child to look at a used triple stroller. (I have a hard time driving the Sam's shopping carts, but being bound to my house for the last three years with children has driven me to the brink of insanity, so I thought I'd try pushing a triple stroller around and see what happens!) 3rd stop- Kohl's because my lovely aunt was taking us on a shopping spree to get summer clothes for Anna, Naomi, and Abigail. I was actually looking forward to a nice morning outing. Everything started out great...we were up early. I had laid everyone's clothes out the night before (including my own!). We were even ready early...a concept completely unheard of in the Irwin household both PRE- and POST- kids. We headed out the door without breakfast since we were headed for McDonalds. If you live in St. Louis, you might know that we have had a lot of rain lately, even severe flooding. Yesterday was no exception and it was raining rather hard. About halfway through my drive, our windshield wipers started vascilating between fast and SLOOOOWWWW, with heavy emphasis on the SLOOOOWWWWW in case you missed that. I was starting to freak out because I couldn't see anything in front of me. At one point, I was driving on the highway and all I could see was rain on my windshield and red lights - I am assuming from the car in front of me. This means they were slowing down but we were on the highway so how was I supposed to know how much to slow down? I was constantly having to flip the windshield wipers back and forth so that they wouldn't turn off. This was another instance (besides have three kids) where I wish that I could instantaneously morph into an octupus with all eight tentacles. Apparently, with all eight tentacles or not, all four of our guardian angels were following us around yesterday so all accidents were avoided. I called Ryan saying I can't drive in this. I can't go home, I can't go meet Clemanne- you have to find a car repair shop near to me so I can take the car in. Since we only have one vehicle, it had to be fixed and soon otherwise we couldn't drive anywhere. Ryan found a shop for us to go to and we trekked over there and made it. Then Clemanne drove all the way across town to meet us. We crammed three car seats into the back of her car in the pouring rain (I was so suprised they all fit!). The car place said it was a complicated problem so it would definitely be several hours. This was not hopeful news as it was 9:45 and naptime was near. But there was nothing we could do so we all went to Kohls...in the pouring rain. We killed some time in there- got new wardrobes for the girls! (Thanks Clemanne!) and when they started running around the store like banchee children, we decided we needed to go. Meanwhile, the repair shop called saying there was indeed a problem (yes, I know!) and that it would be a couple more hours. We then decided to go to McDonalds since none of us had eaten yet. The food was well, you know, not really food. But was nonetheless, thrilling for the girls, particularly the kiddie sized ice cream cones. The disappointment: the playground was too old for the girls- they couldn't reach any of the steps to go up to the actual fun stuff so they just got to eat and stare at the playground. Also, Abby has had a SEVERE diaper wash to the extent that I have been giving her a baking soda bath every diaper change along with a paste of cornstarch and vaseline. I was dreading changing her diaper on all of these outings but decided to "take the plunge" in the McDonald's restroom. I was again disappointed- Why McDonalds doesn't have a diaper changing station OR a counter at their sink is WAY beyond me! So I changed Abby on the floor of a bathroom stall with my jar of vaseline and my big tub of cornstarch. Grrr. Ice cream made me a feel a LITTLE bit better. The fudge sauce made me even feel a more LITTLE bit better. With no where else to go and the girls getting T-I-R-E-D, I called my mom to ask her if we could seek refuge at her house. Of course she said yes. We actually have taken refuge there several times when things like this happen. We got everyone inside, changed, fed, and then the phone call came that our car was ready early!!! Happy news because otherwise, Clemanne had to leave and I was stuck there until 5 pm when my stepdad was going to take us to pick up our car. So we piled back into the car, drove to the car repair shop, and got our vehicle back....$350 later! :( It was 2:30 pm, with no naps to speak of, no more money, and a wet mom exhausted from hauling carseats and kids in and out of cars and stores in the pouring rain. But all in all, it was good- no accidents, our car was fixed, and I had family around to help us out...and we came home with lots of clothes! Not a horrible, no good, very bad day. But then not a thrilling one either. So I guess that means we have to go look at the triple bus (I mean stroller) next week- dun, dun, dun.