a tale of two parents at the park

It's funny the stupid things you start to care about once kids come on the scene a la parenthood.

Grocery stores that aren't overly zealous about keeping their car corrals cart-free and therefore much easier to transition children from car seats to cart? I will drive many extra minutes to give you my grateful business with my little cherubs in tow.

Grocery stores with a reliable supply of free cookie samples for said cherubs? Again, I will find you.

Any and everything with a drive-thru? You're the best {stillllll waiting on the post office but - Picky Patton here}.

Waiting rooms with toys, no matter how germ-infested? Come to mother dearest.

Enclosed playgrounds sans wood chips with a smaller structure for smaller kids? Gold.

I used to think a playground was a playground was a playground but I've come to know and appreciate that I was oh so wrong. One thing I will miss when we move is the overly impressive glut of fancy playgrounds here in St. Louis. It's almost like they're all in a silent but deadly playground competition for best and most wonderful playground because we keep finding better and better gems.

Plastic bear - built to scale ... kept Phoebe Badger and her stare entertained for five minutes aka an eternity in baby time.

So last week after naps and dinner when the kids were in rare crazycake form and I knew Simon was working a 24 the next day and the anticipatory dread was reaching new and happy heights - I loaded them all up and set up camp at the park nearest to the hospital so that we might transfer the parental duties and power as soon as humanly possible. My heart and its generosity knows no bounds.

Julia thought I was taking her to a business {casual} meeting and dressed the part but was surprised when tackling her brother wasn't on the agenda and found herself sitting smiley in timeout.

Anyway, Simon came bearing gifts of pizza crust {Phoebe's favorite - he ate his pizza in the car so it was sort of fresh, judgers} and M&M's and was treated like kid royalty upon his arrival.

I'm always on the mamarazzi prowl and was later looking at photos from the SOS sojourn and had to SALTS (smile a little then stopped as opposed to LOL) because here in all her go-getter mom glory we have the two photos Simon snagged ...

if you give a Phoebe a pizza crust ...

Anyway, we have Mom on her park perma-perch.

And then we have Simon ...

lazy and uninvolved.

Opposites attract and it takes all kinds and a bevy of other excuses.

But I know other moms can relate.
Or I think.
Or I hope.

{lazy dads ... you're welcome in my corner too. I'll bring extra chairs}