Weekend Road Warriors

Last week I was checking out the family calendar for the week's commitments. Mark had to be in Phoenix again for work Saturday night. Madelyn had Monday off from school. That either left me with two wide open days to spend with the kids by myself or the opportunity to take a road trip.

We opted for the road trip. The boys have especially been missing Mark during his travel the last few weeks. They want to talk to him whenever I do. They want to save him dinner every night. They want to know when he'll be home to do baths.

Mark still had to work Sunday so I took the kids to the Arizona Science Center. We had a great time participating in all the different experiments and facets of science.

Catherine calculated how many square feet of skin she has.
Madelyn wouldn't leave this area until she plumbed the bathroom to the hot and cold water sources. I guess all that remodeling when she was a toddler did leave a lasting impression.
Sam and Harrison in the stroller. Harrison's not quite big enough to ride here regularly but it was a fun break for both boys.
Seth kept himself busy racing cars and gathering things in his wagon in the play area.
Chloe tries out the bed of nails.
Madelyn demonstrates how the pulley works.
We found this great 'Build-It' area. They had huge soft blocks that even Harrison could play with.
Seth found construction equipment to play with.
After an exhausting day of discovery both at the Science Center and Daddy's work, we took the kids for a late dip in the pool. It was about 6:30 p.m. when this picture was taken and still about 80 degrees. The high had been 91 degrees.
On Monday I headed home with the six kids. Mark had to stay behind to finish out his work week. The drive out of Phoenix was beautiful. The wildflowers were in bloom and the hills glowed with yellows and oranges.
We had a great time in the temporary 'land of Daddy'. I'm proud of Mark and I for rising to the challenge of a spontaneous road trip. We enjoyed the scenery, the weather and the challenge of discreetly taking six children to a hotel breakfast. We also learned that buying our kids their own sodas is our best bribery tool to date.