Family Fun Day

April 19, 2015

What a special day. With temps in the mid 50s and rising to the mid 60s, I knew it was going to be a special day. But when I woke up I wasn't aware of how special the day would end up being. It really all started with Kimmy asking if we could go to the Zoo because it was a nice day. Obviously I said yes.

After looking up what time the Zoo opening we all got ready (Kim packed changed diapers and packed snacks) and we piled in the car. After getting on Interstate 93, I asked Kim how long she planned to be out. When she told me what time, I knew that we were not thinking about going to the same zoo.

Kim thought I had looked up the hours for the Franklin Park Zoo in Franklin Park (South Side of Boston). In reality, I looked up the hours for the Stone Zoo in Stoneham. Although the Franklin Park Zoo is much bigger and has more animals, I thought Kim wanted MJ and Jackie home at a reasonable time for a nap. So, I assumed that we would be going close to home. After some swerving on the highway and dipping in and out of lanes, I reached a decision to go to the Stone Zoo before passing the exit.

The Stone Zoo

Stone Zoo Map

Although it wasn't the Zoo that Kim planned to go to, we all had a blast. MJ slept the whole time. Jackie stayed in the stroller and was obsessed with the black bears. Kim wore MJ in the Baby Bjorn. And I loved seeing the jaguar. I can't wait to bring the kids back when they are older so they can get more out of it.

Momma and MJ.

After being there for an hour or so, we left and headed to Dairy Delight in Malden. Now this place has a special significance to Kim (mom). You see, Kimmy worked there the first year of the new management. She also worked there all through high school and into college. In fact, I can remember when Kim worked there. I even remember when she hung up her moo-licious pants for good (maybe I'll share one of those stories in a different post).

To understand the connection to Dairy Delight, it may cause some bogglement to your mind so I'll spell it out as simple as possible. Kathy Stanton is the owner. She is GG's cousin. Simple, but it can be complicated when you try to figure out if Kathy is a second or third cousin. But the most complex thing about the Stantons is that there are so many of them. They're hard to keep straight. But that's a topic for a different day.

Upon leaving Dairy Delight we needed to rush home for many reasons (naptime, bathroom breaks, and the snacks were gone). Kim decided to finalize plans so she called GG and Poppa Tommy. They were in Florida for 3 weeks and they wanted to have us over so they could spend some time with their grandkids. We had planned to go over after nap time but GG made a convincing argument. Instead, we decided to head over their house earlier. That way we could all hang out longer while the kiddos napped.

So we headed over up to Andover to see Mickey, Amanda, GG and Poppa Tommy. Obviously Jackie didn't nap when he was put down. He spent the entire 3 hours throwing toys. MJ was a dream. She just slept, ate, and pooped. And then slept, ate and pooped some more. We ended up spending most of the day there.

This may just sound like a boring book report or a list story of the different events from the Sunday but it was more than that. It was a day filled with family. Although I could go back and edit this post to be sure that the meaning of family is intertwined throughout this piece, I think I'd rather just say,

"This past Sunday Family Day was awesome!" 

Mom, Jackie (signing more), MJ (in the Baby Bjorn), and "Bananas" the Black Bear in the background.

  Nothing beats hanging with the "fam-bam."