Determining a Successful Outing

The day after July 4th. Kids slept in until almost 8 a.m. (Those that know my kids, know this is unprecedented.) We were recovering from a late night, and our morning--while good--was rainy. Our plans with friends at the pool were shot so we opted for something new. My friend Allison called and said several moms were meeting at the Air & Space Museum. Rainy, holiday weekend + free indoor museum = amusement for my kids. (Ok, I only took one kid.)

In the back of my head, I must have known that this equation also means big crowds. But the outing got me thinking. Am I a 'half full' or 'half empty' kind of mom for outings.

Let's dissect this and see if this was a successful outing.

The Good
1. I got to see four of my mom friends while only having half my monkey crew.
2. Since we carpooled with two other moms, I only paid $4 of the $12 parking fee.
3. My son got to see his friends.
4. My son got see the planes (which he doesn't care about), the space ships (which he also doesn't care about), and eat at McDonald's (which he will tell you he loves more than anything, but his daddy says is very unhealthy because the beef from the hamburgers comes from corn-fed cows and not grass fed. Alex will tell you all about a cow's stomach, too, if you want to hear.) But he still loves McDonalds.

5. Squished pennies keep kids happy for a long time.

6. The kids had fun and were tired afterwards. (Read: Everyone will take a nap)

The Bad
1. Son got in trouble from wanna-be security guard for running down the ramp.
2. Squished pennies went up in price from 51 cents to $1.01. Damn inflation! 3. Crowds (most of it other kids or older people in wheelchairs) makes it hard to keep track of six kids under four.

The Funny
1. Same security guard was busting up other families' fun as well.
2. Squished pennies were really the highlight for everyone.
3. Had to bypass the second stop on the control tower tour for Alex's potty emergency.
4. Alex really led the group by what HE wanted to do: eat, squish pennies, see the space ships, go to the bathroom, go home. Nice.

My vote: Outing was a success. While it was packed and the kids were literally everywhere and without much focus, us four moms were fully aware that this was a preschool-led activity. None of us had expectations except to be somewhere out of the rain with the kids. If they had fun, so did we.