"Macy Day" Parade is a Blowout!!

So I get this phonecall from my dad earlier in the week saying he had cleaned up my '61 powder blue Buick Invicta convertible for the parade at our local SummerFest.  He keeps it at his house and we hadn't driven it in literally years.  The hubby picked the car up and as I am attempting to get ready (though I didn't even bother taking a shower - 90 degree temps plus short on time - and, I mean I had one at naptime yesterday), two year old is putting my deodorant on all over her shirt - but mostly in the armpit area - pretty observant.  I loaded our brood plus a tween friend, & met him there.  The girls were so excited to drive in the old car without carseats and throw candy - party on!!  Thinking back, I wish I would've advertised my aspiring blog site.

Sitting ON the steering wheel, driving - now that's one big wheel!

So, the car did look very nice.  However, it didn't run!  This we found out after it had been parked IN LINE at the parade.  My dad had a couple of other cars in front of us and one of the drivers was a guy that knew something about cars.  So, he popped the hood & sprayed some engine starter stuff & it eventually ran.  For 3.2 minutes - as the parade is rolling along.  The hubs is driving, thank god (he held the cursing under his breath).  The girls are attempting to throw candy & wave, yet we have to keep stopping - their heads only jerked back & forth a couple of times.  As we were rounding the bend to Pine St., I started to breathe easier.  The girls quit complaining about not being able to eat the candy (we had a limited amount to throw), people were making positive comments on the car (even tho it was spitting smoke - great inhalant for the kids w/the top down), we were waving, smiling, tossing candy.  Then it died again.  Hubs lays on the toot-ish sounding horn and the helper guy in front of us stops & runs back to our car & gets it going again.  Some lady was taking a picture of us sitting in the car w/the hood up!  We get the thumbs up from a bystander, I show him the crossed fingers instead.  We actually had to let part of the parade go around us!!  AND people came up & said "your car is leaking some green stuff."  Oh yea.  Miss Macy keeps on waving.

Hey - it could've been worse - at least Mac didn't load her drawers during the parade.

We finished in enough time for us girls to "enjoy" (it was so dang hot & the kids got so dang grumpy) the other festivities while poor hubs gritted his teeth & loudly cursed all the way back to grandpa's to return the blue beast.  (When meeting up w/him later he said his eyes still hurt from the fumes & that when the one spectator came up to the car to say "you have smoke coming out from under the hood" he wanted to use the ol' phrase "no shit Sherlock.")

I put the girls in the Sit n Stand stroller & run with them through the fire truck sprinkler - after I remembered my phone & camera were also in the stroller.  Afterwards, Kami says her eyes hurt - guess the sunscreen ran.  We hit some of the blow up stuff - which was almost too hot to play on.  We bought 6 tickets but they were a waste.  Hubs meets up w/us & we head to the sand pit.  Kam gets her nice new white leggings ruined and Macy runs around upset b/c she doesn't like the way the sand feels on her feet. 

Kam wants to play a game before we go so I dole out $2 for a bball game, she wins a prize but is so grumpy & indecisive I end up grabbing an inflated ball.  She gets ticked & grabs some cheap little stuffed bear.  At this point Macy has grabbed the ball, so I dole out another $2 and hand it to the lady - for about 10 cents worth of junk.  Time...to...go.  Hubs says "quit talking to everyone you know and keep walking."  Small hometown - that's what happens.

Kam says she's thirsty, I ask if she wants a root beer float - "yes yes!!!"  Anything, at this point, to quiet the oncoming storm.  While the $5 float is being prepared, Macy is screaming bloody murder & Kami is yelling "mommy, mommy!"  I noticed a little girl come up to the side of the stroller & stare at Macy while asking "what's wrong w/her mommy?"  I turn around & it's one of my friends from college.  Nice.  We start walking back to the mama van & Kam complains she doesn't want the float.  Then Macy knocks hers off, spilling the entire sippy (maybe $2.50 worth of the drink).  As the teens & hubs stayed behind to do more stuff, I was alone w/the chore of getting the gear & kids into the van.

As I am literally wrestling that blankity blank big ol' stroller for about six minutes trying to get it to close the heck up while Macy is screaming that she dropped her ball, the car behind me starts backing up right where I am - getting way too close - jerk.  I finally get the Sit & Shit closed (sorry - that's what I was saying to myself during "the procedure"-wait - the folding up of the stroller - not using the toilet) and hoist the heavy hauler into the back, while groaning b/c I have already pulled a muscle in my back - and it pulled it again right there.  Yay.  Probably from carrying these kids around on my hip and sleeping all cock-eyed w/the 2 yr old at my side.  As long as I don't have to whip out the BenGay.  Some of my cousins used to joke, when my sweet grandma was still living, that we could all play "Find Granny" by blindfolding each of us then trying to locate her by letting our sniffers guide us toward the menthol vapors.

 Anyway...I stupidly head to the long line at Taco Smell.  Time to put the DVD on.  Then we get home for the beloved naptime (cheese rolls eaten in van).  Two yr old goes first then I entertain five yr old a few minutes.  As she is using the potty in my bathroom, she trips over the ceramic iron cord as she is attempting to flush, and it falls to floor, quite a few pieces shattered.  Pick up the pieces, so to speak, and move on, after tossing it in the trash.  Mo money, mo money...


Kami noisily (little sissy's room right next door) crawls to her room w/the prized microscopic bear on her back.  Afetr getting her tucked away & I see the future of a hot bath w/the jets on my aching back, she realizes her "other" animals are in the living room.  A whole process ensues of lining them up just right and adjusting their blanket.  THEN she can't find her "silky."  Finally find everything & get settled, after me complaining that I "just want to get in the tub" and "why does this have to take so long?"

Finally get that bath, then Macy wakes up, "where's the car?"