Feeling rather perky tonight: the monkey sacked out two and a half hours ahead of schedule after a day of activity and sugar, in addition to missing her nap. We took her to the park for a neighborhood easter egg hunt. We got there like 15 minutes ahead of time and were maybe the third toddler there (they had 0-3 and 4-6 year old sections). During that 15 minutes a million other toddlers and parents showed up and crowded around the area where multi-colored plastic bisected eggs were unceremoniously sprinkled across the lawn. We had practiced at home hiding and finding easter eggs so we were pretty sure Ronin would clean up.

[The battleground.]

When the whistle blew, the toddlers were pushed forth by the parents (one guarding the kid, the other wielding the camera) so that each came with his own entourage of caretakers. We had assumed that they would just let the toddlers stumble out and fend for themselves but apparently not. We followed Ronin out into the melee.

[Ronin and Nigel ready to go out and kick ass.]

[Mass confusion.]

Let’s just say that the action was quick. Ronin was clearly confused and we had to essentially tell her to pick up each single egg she saw and put it in the bag. Or rather, “Here’s a green one! Let’s put it in the bag!! Oh, well, um… here’s a pink one! Let’s put that one in the… Oh. Ronin! GET THIS ORANGE ONE RIGHT HERE!! QUICK!!” She managed four eggs, which was fine because each one held 2-3 chocolate treats and she ate every single one.

[Mmmm. Chocolately.]

After that we decided we might as well O.D. on The Fun and head to the zoo, where we happen to have a membership. One year ago I would have never believed that I would have ever gone to the zoo again but here we are, practically on a first-name basis with the African wild dogs and the sun bears. Anyway, we went to the zoo where they had easter egg hunts every 1/2 hour or so throughout the day. It was about as bizarre. The eggs were not hidden at all but scattered around on the grass and STILL she had trouble figuring out what she was supposed to do. Maybe we confused her in the beginning by actually making her work for her eggs.

[Another mouthful.]

She ate another bunch of candy and we headed home. She refused to nap and wanted to hide eggs the rest of the day. I filled the plastic eggs with such fantastic treats as raisons, bunny crackers, and cashews and she begrudgingly ate them (mostly).

She fell asleep quickly tonight on the fourth round of Curious George Goes To The Zoo. (Not as depressing as the first CG book but creepifying in its own right.) Makes us wonder if it’s better to deny her a nap in order to have a peaceful evening or let her sleep if she needs it and suffer the consequences come nightfall. Very, very hard call.

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 3rd, 2010 at 8:01 pm and is filed under doings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.