Puppets and Puddles

Spencer and I had a busy morning while the twins were at preschool.  They're starting to get the pattern down: Spencer goes with them on Monday and Tuesday, all in Mommy's car, and on Wednesday Daddy takes the twins in his car (since there are only 2 going) and they get to stay a little longer for "Stay and Play"...aka lunch time and more playing.  Owen and Oliver really like Stay and Play, and look forward to Wednesdays, and even act a little disappointed on Monday and Tuesday when it's time to go home!  The extra hour gives me and Spencie enough time to venture out with a packed lunch to find something fun to do without a rush.  Today we drove to a children's puppet theatre in Glen Echo, MD.  The show was pretty cute and geared toward babies and toddlers with big, bright puppets in a cozy, dimly lit theatre.  It was a rainy day and Spencer was excited to wear his rain coat and boots so he could splash in puddles along the way.  After the show, we took a leisurely walk back to the car in the sprinkling rain, stopping to examine wet leaves and splash in more puddles.  We drove back to Virginia and made our way to Safeway for lunch and to pick up a few things.  Spencer doesn't like sitting in a grocery cart for very long, so I made the shopping part quick before he started whining to get down and push or walk.  Oddly enough, he had a pretty exciting time sitting up in the child seat and playing with the toilet paper.  He'd put it on top of his head, then let it fall back into the cart and burst out squealing and laughing.  That was pretty much the scene, over and over, from the time we picked the toilet paper up, all the way to the car...much better than whining or crying!