We had a busy weekend. Matt ended up having to work most of the day Saturday, which put a big hole in our original plan to go to MarsCon. We were going to take Penny, but take turns with it, so that we both got a turn at the Con relatively unencumbered, while the other parent stayed home with Alex.
Without him... Well, the author for one of my favorite webcomics was going to be there, and I really wanted to go, so I decided I'd risk taking both kids. That worked out about as well as could be expected. We got there, and paid registration for a day pass, and wandered around for all of about 45 minutes before I had to take them home so they could have lunch and Alex could have a nap. Then we went back, and we managed to hang out for an hour and a half or so this time. Thanks mostly to spending an hour in the henna cookie workshop. (Which is to say, a kids' craft workshop to practice making henna-style designs, using chocolate frosting on hand-shaped cookies. Which was actually pretty cool, I have to say.)
In the Dealer's room, Penny begged for a little toy dragon, which I bought for her. And I also got Alex a teddy bear with dragon's wings that he'd fallen in love with while Penny was dithering over her choice. But there really isn't that much for kids to do at a Con -- especially kids as young as Alex, and without another parent around to watch him, I couldn't take Penny in search of the particular things that might have caught her interest (anime/movie rooms, various crafts panels, etc.) So once they got bored, we gave up and went home. And I never did find the guy I'd wanted to meet. Oh, well. Maybe he'll come back next year.
Still... Con day pass registration: $25. Stuffed toys: $35. Exposing your children to concentrated nerd culture (even if only for a couple of hours): Priceless.
Matt came home just as we were sitting down to dinner, and sat with us for ten minutes or so before heading back out to his monthly(ish) D&D game.
Sunday, Matt slept in, then watched the kids while I escaped to the grocery store. We had a fairly normal morning and early afternoon, then we headed down to my parents'. They're still planning on moving, though apparently the cost of getting their house ready to sell has hit my dad and they no longer think they're going to be doing it this year. But they're still cleaning stuff out. Mom made me go through all the crap she used to keep in her foyer closet, and sent me home with a bunch of candles and candleholders, a lot of clothes that she can't wear anymore, and a promise that when they do move, I'm getting her china and her silver. Which means sometime I need to clean out my china cabinet, to make room for it.
We also talked about the house itself. I think my parents would really much rather we bought the house than they have to go through putting it on the market -- which I can't blame them for. To be honest, Matt and I were tempted, but eventually had decided that the cons outweighed the pros. But if they're going to wait a few more years, then the balance might tip back the other way, because one of our big cons is the dearth of daycare facilities that will accept the responsibility of diabetic care -- but in another four years or so, Alex will be out of daycare, and Penny will be almost too old to go anyway, and she should be much more self-sufficient, with regard to her medical care. And there would be some big pluses to moving to that house, including lots more space.
Well, we'll see where we are when they do finally decide to move.
After the kids had played for a while, we all packed up and went out to the Samurai for dinner to celebrate Dad's birthday. We hadn't been there for a couple of years, so it was brand-new to both kids. Alex was mildly freaked out by huge gouts of flame, but not badly -- he would startle and clutch at me, but every time, I'd say, "It's okay, Mommy's right here. Isn't it pretty?" and he would enthusiastically nod his head. He did a lot better than I'd expected, staying in his seat without a fuss until nearly the end of the meal.
I'd eaten Alex's soup and salad in addition to my own, and most of his vegetables, so I left more than half my rice on my plate because I was so full that if I ate any more I was going to feel ill. That counts as good diet strategy, right?
It was loads of fun, anyway, even with trying to keep Alex entertained, so I'm hoping we get to go back sometime soon.
All in all, a very good, if somewhat tiring, weekend.
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