The summer grounding of '14

So the kids normally behave very well to the point I think that we're blessed but this past week the children have developed hell spawn abilities and wield them with impunity, or so they thought.

I have the kids clean their play room every day and I have them start about an hour before Mom gets home. During normal times I may have to ask twice maybe three times before they would get the job done, that said, I never have to sit in the room to make them finish. Now don't get me wrong there have been some yelling matches over the play room before resulting in the removal of toys and privileges, just not to the extent of Tuesday.

Long story short, after two and half hours of back and forth and many forms of attempts to create motivation, the children have become grounded! They have lost all TV privileges and their favorite toys, no longer allowed to have their wubbies at bed time and on the day of the incident they were sent to bed without dinner.

Now kids being the selfish self absorbed little creatures that they are have no idea the difficulty this poses the SAHD. TV in it's deprecating way provides a service to parents the world over especially when the temps are as high in the afternoon as they get in Texas. So in order to teach the kids responsibility and correct behavior I have in turn punished my self.

Not enough summer camps!

Time is the fire in which we burn.

The kids love the Summer Fun camp it seems to be circus themed and their first day they made clown masks. I can tell you that the teacher seems a little standoffish since the kids told her that I make scary clowns and monsters in my work shop. The kids have been having a great summer so far. We have been all over Dallas, been to the beach, been to a couple of movies, and in some of the best restaurants that Dallas has to offer. Swimming at Nonnie's and Poppie's and going to Denton for lunches and ice-cream with Grandpa and Mimi. The kids get the whole playing in the water sprinkler in the yard thing now with the added water gun crazies. The kids are having fun running in and out of Daddy's workshop and trying on different masks. The worst thing about the summer is that my children look like they have the pox from all the mosquito bites from playing in the yard.

Things to do in the summer.

When the kids are not kept busy with camp or other such things it falls on me to be the entertainer of the trips. Now don't get me wrong the kids are more than capable of amusing themselves, however that normally results in a trashed house and squabbles twixt them. So I as the stay at home Dad must finds ways to pass the time. Thank the heavens for Studio Movie Grill in one example. SMG has a summer movie series in which they show children's movies from the past couple of years at 11am for two dollars per person. Now they more than make their money back in food and drink costs. But it's hard to beat a movie on the big screen in AC with a wait staff as a good way to kill two hours in the day. We go to the park, we go to the Zoo, we hit the museums. Sometimes we just go get ice cream.
And thankfully now the kids are getting old enough to help out around the house so there is that.