Ever wonder if the animals at the zoo are more entertained watching us walk by?
I apologize to my lack of of postings. It's summer, and I'm busy getting all kinds of crazy bloggeryisms with the kids. I'll post as much as I can, but it's exhausting keeping these kids busy, and then keeping up with them.
Yesterday, I was at the zoo in a bit of a mommy timeout. I thought since the zoo doesn't have wifi I could stay there while the kids were at the day camp and get some good ol fashioned reading done. I'm taking a class (Get this: I'm taking an online classs on how to teach online, while teaching a separate class...online.) and have text to read but surfing the web and facebook and needy happy kids get in the way of that. So I had a plan - but then my blackberry came in the mail. God bless the blackberry.
I also didn't calculate people at the zoo to be so distracting - but what a fantastic place to observe parenting. It really makes you uh - review your own parenting style and choices.
Take, for example, daycare - I don't care how old or young your kids are or how good they are they are getting barked orders at all day - even on a field trip. I'll give the daycare workers a break, because they are making slightly over minimum wage to take care of your kids. Think if you were a daycare leader with 20+ kids. You simply can't be the fun guy on disney that I let babysit my kids for hours on end.
I'm also noticing a trend of nannies texting while watching your kids scurry through the gorilla exhibit, or chase a peacock. Not safe. Really, there should be some rule...
Even better is the mom that's not even to a zoo exhibit yet picking a fight with her 4-year-old. "I am not holding your camera today! I told you that when you just had to bring it. I am not holding it!". Okay lady. Really? Omg - how dare your 4-year-old want to capture a moment at the zoo. The nerve of her excited for seeing new things and using creativity to take a picture. They'll never make it thru the zoo. Poor kid.
Just before I left at lunch - a daycare group rolled up - this time she's barking orders while texting. When the other daycare leader guy rolls up - he's got a cooler of lunches. Hands them all out and one kid has no lunch. So they bark at kid,"Did your mom bring your lunch?" Kid says "I don't know" defensivley - like maybe he's been in trouble all morning with this crew. Girl leader rolls her eyes, the kid sees it and is defeated. She gets her chips and tosses them at the kid. That's nice that you are sharing so rudely and all. Look, if you're gonna take kids to a zoo on a Monday you should really bank on atleast one mom forgetting, if not more.And don't go taking it all out on the kid. It's not his fault his lame mom was all busy with frivolous things like getting ready for work and getting kids to daycare and frivolous things like that.
I was just about to roll in on my magic carpet and go get my lunch out of the car and bring it back for this kid, when the guy leader dude finally stepped up to the humanity plate and had the kid sit with him and shared his lunch with him.
After all that, I finally got my reading done and since I had my little fitness sandals on, I decided the second largest zoo with rolling hills would be a great workout for the day. So, I'm finishing up lap one when a firetruck rolls by. What, what? I stop to ask a staffer standing by, to be helpful or something, "Is that firetruck here for one of the day campers?"
Cute little helper teen in Zoo staff t-shirt simply says, "I don't know." Really? That's all you got? So comforting.
I keep walking, this time with my phone in hand in case the zoo calls me.
On my way out I stop in guest services to ask the distance I just walked - no one knows that either but they were a little preoccupied with silly things like police and witnesses - we don't know where the victim is - WTF? What did I leave my kids with all day?
So, the cops are here, out front and there's 3 guys smoking right in front of them - on the smoke free zoo campus. Nice.
Can't wait to take them back tomorrow!
That's how I roll.
