The Other Hat

Had to wear my Uncle Cowboy hat last weekend. But this time it was for two-legged monsters as opposed to The Boyz, Daphne, or some other four-legged creatures. Michael and Sara skipped town, leaving me in charge of burning down the house and hanging out with their four kids, ages 11, 9, 6, and 4.

The tour of duty started Friday after work. I did not arrive promptly enough, which meant Jakie already had called his dad's cell phone at least five times asking when I would arrive.

Once I did get there, Jakie, his older brother Car, and two sisters El and Liv, all loaded up for a Red Robin outing. We were joined by Michael's identical twin brother, Matt, his wife Rachel, and their three kids, Z, P, and R. Three adults and seven children. It was smooth sailing as everyone chowed down. We even enjoyed a visit by the Robin, gathered tons of balloons, and avoided having to drop coins in the claw machine with hopes of snagging a bear.

Check out other pics from the weekend

Saturday morning, Car and I took on the duty of pancake making. El noted the cakes didn't look quite like her dad's, but she ate them anyway. Car and I admitted we had no form. With practice, we promised to for sure sharpen our pancake-making skills.

The afternoon was full of coloring, PlayStation, spinning and practicing dance moves, playing with toys, calming some arguments, going to basketball games for Car and Jakie, and lots of other fun. I even had a friend call once so that I could pretend it was Santa checking up on them. One thing I learned, dishes and messes reproduce. I'd have that countertop shining and four minutes later there was stuff all over it. Just a mess. I wouldn't even know how it all would happen.

Later, we went Christmas-light looking through Kansas City, downtown and Crown Center and stopping by my home for dinner. The kids were thrilled with the many mechanical Santas and other silly Christmas stuff I have.

Back at their home, I had Christmas gifts wrapped and waiting. If they were good, the gifts were the prize. The girls were fascinated with holding the wrapped items and fantasizing about what might be inside them. It was magical.

They promised to have on pajamas and waiting for their Mom and Dad to arrive home. The girls complied and once the folks arrived, we opened our gifts. Reindeer Poop for the boys (it was actually fudge), Groovy Girls (their first) for the girls, orange-handled tools for Michael, and an orange picnic blanket for Sara.

I'm already looking forward to donning this hat again sometime soon.