Legoland | 10:02

Kamryn is 5 1/2 years old, finishing up her first “real” year of school and yet when I look at her, sometimes I see this very grown-up little person. I watch her teach Rory simple arithmetic, sometimes including all of their fingers and toes on the really complex problems. If he happens to guess the right answer, she praises him with a “Good job, Buddy!” At times, her patience is infinite and her voice calm and soothing with the little 3 year old who idolizes and mimics her every move.

Kamryn reading books to Rory.

That version of Kamryn amazes me and leaves me in complete awe. Luckily, that Kamryn is around about 95% of the time. Those that know her, know she can be generally found with a big smile on her face.

The other day she told me, “I’m starting to be a mommy. One, I drank a whole can of Sprite. Two, I chew with my mouth closed. And second, I take my own showers.” (No, there isn’t a typo in that sentence, that is how she said it.) She proceeded to tell me that now I only have to wash two people everyday…myself and Rory.

I have to admit that her stating that she was starting to be a mommy had me a little bit concerned because she does have a slight obsession with babies right now. But after she explained herself, I understood what she was getting at. I’m a mommy and although she is what identifies me as such, it’s what I do outside of being her mother that she associates as a mom privilege. For example, every Wednesday night I go out with friends to sing Karaoke. All of my friends are moms as well so Kamryn makes comments like “I wish I was a mom so I could go to Karaoke too.”

Karaoke makes me super happy.

I like that Kamryn thinks she has to be a mom to do some of the fun things that I do. I know she’ll realize one day that isn’t the case, but it’s a nice reminder that my fun didn’t end once I had kids. It’s a little different and possibly a bit tamer (except maybe on Hump Day Karaoke nights), but still fun. And what Kamryn really doesn’t realize is that if I didn’t have her and Rory, I would be missing out on a lot more fun. We’re going to Legoland today and if I didn’t have kids, I am pretty certain I wouldn’t be going to an amusement park on a Wednesday afternoon.

A picture from our last Legoland Adventure.

This week, as well as last, has been a bit crazy with lots of activities and goings on. I’ll give you the menu as I have it written, but I don’t think we’ll get most of the meals in this week.

Tuesday – Pasta W/ Meat Sauce – I have about 8 billion 3/4 used boxes and bags of pasta. You would think I would learn to just buy the same kind of pasta so I can easily make the unused portions, but that would be far too simple.

Wednesday – We are planning a little afternoon trip to Legoland tomorrow so we will either still be there at dinner time or on our way home in which case we’ll probably pick something up.

Thursday – I have a going away dinner for a friend who is moving across the country. I have pizza on the menu, but in lieu of making it from scratch, I’ll suggest Ryan orders it from somewhere.

Friday – Orange Chicken – I love this chicken so much, but I’m trying to figure out a way to being a little more efficient when making it. It’s a little time consuming, but it’s so good, it’s worth it.

Saturday – Ham & Cheese Turnovers – These are really good and the kids love them. You really can’t go wrong. Ham – good. Cheese – good. Bread – gooood.

Sunday – Gnocchi W/ Sage Butter – I haven’t made this for years and I kind of did my own improvisation of it. I tried to grow a little container garden and the sage was the only thing that actually produced anything. I kind of fried the leaves in butter and they were delicious. They get nice and crispy. I may try doing that again instead of using the dried sage like the recipe calls for.