Free Night at The Children's Museum

NEVER AGAIN!!!!

So, I don't know, about a year and a half ago, or right after whenever the last time it was that I blogged in a half hearted attempt to document and remember any single part of my children's childhoods, Morn called to see if I wanted to take the boys to the free night at the Children's Museum of the Lowcountry (CML hereafter). We have a membership, but Gams and Pops were going, Casey was out of town, and Bryant would still be at work, so I figured, "Why not?" Honestly, Dear Friends of Mine, if I ever again even hint at the idea of going to a "free to the general public" thing in an enclosed space with the children again (especially without their father), don't hesitate, don't blink, just smack me across the face and remind me of how much I enjoy watching my children get trampled by thundering herds of tweens and abnormally giant elementary schoolers. Remind me that Bennett is prone to get tangled up in the middle of any situation that can cause him bodily injury, and why do I want to make it worse than it is on any regular day. Suffice it to say, I'm not a fan of these scenarios, and call me elitist, but I'll be going to the CML from now on only on the Members Only Mondays.
That having been said, the night overall was such fun. When we got to the CML, the line was all the way to John St. They did have things outside for the children to do, and Leeze and Reeves took advantage of that time to get their faces painted. (That's, of course, a dinosaur on R, in case you couldn't tell. A brontosaurus, I think.) When you finally did make it up to the door, it was only to put your name on a list. (That should have been the first clue.) But we did, and given the fact that it would probably be at least an hour before we were allowed, by the fire marshall to go in (another clue - maximum capacity - never a good idea to enter, even if it is legal), we headed to Juanita Greenberg's for some supper. The children were really quite well behaved. Bennett sat a the head of the table and flirted with the college girls behind him. William served as his wingman. Leeze and Reeves spent most of the time coloring, taking a break only to ingest the five bites of supper they would totally consume for the night. And we enjoyed our adult beverages. Gammy even remembered how much she likes coloring!
We finally left, and on our way back to the cars, decided to stop and see if we could just walk right in to the CML. With about a five minute wait, we could. The children loved it. I was about to explode. Bennett got so soaking wet in the water room that we had to take off his shirt because, since it was about 23 degrees outside, he would be warmer with just his jacket. Outdoor survivalists are we. Seriously, couldn't they look into changing the water room into something else for the winter? Reeves looked like Oliver Twist on the shrimp boat. He was politely holding onto his one blue fish, waiting for the basket as the aforementioned giant elementary schoolers ran amuck around him. "Mommy, is it my turn now?" Sometimes I curse these good manners we are trying to imbed in him. I wanted to scream, "Just knock them down and take it!!"
However, in spite of my ranting post above, it was ultimately a fun evening. Somehow, despite the frustrations encountered anytime you throw a bunch of children and adults into a madhouse, as long as you have your core group with you, you forget all the outside chaos, and your memories eventually amalgamate into what a wonderful night you got to have watching your children play with their cousins and grandparents. And, I imagine, years from now, that's all I'll remember. Except for the fact that I AM still counting on you for that slap in the face if I ever want to do this again!