Tag Archives: outings

Summer outing: Starbucks

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We’ve spent 2+ weeks of being housebound with various illnesses, but today we made our first trip out of the house of our summer vacation.  Destination: Starbucks.

It may not seem like the most exciting, educational or cultured of choices for an outing with the kids, but, for the first trip out in weeks, it was a good choice.  The kids have wanted to get out of the house and do SOMETHING for about a week, and I’ve held off because Liam wasn’t yet quite better, and I didn’t want him to get sickER again before Benjamin’s birthday party last weekend.  Also, Benjamin has gotten a stuffy nose and a cough over the last few days, so I didn’t want to push him, either.  (I’d rather spend our summer inside watching movies, but give the kids the rest they need, than let my frustration about *still* being stuck inside keep me from taking care of my little guys if they need to recuperate from something.)  I wanted to get out of the house, too, especially because the weather today was just so beautiful (perfect blue sky and about 75 degrees).  I just needed to pick a destination.

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Benjamin was actually the one with the idea.  I go out (or try to) twice a week and take an hour to drink a coffee and read a book, usually at Starbucks.  The boys always want to come with me, and I almost always say no (because as sweet as they are, and as much as I sincerely enjoy their company, two hours to myself every week is the minimum I need to keep my sanity).  Last week, Benjamin REALLY wanted to come with me, and he suggested that “sometime soon” he could come along.  When I asked if he’d mind if Liam came, too, he thought that was “even better”, so I tucked that idea away and decided to pull it out the first day with great weather that I couldn’t stand being stuck in the house any longer.  And today was that day.

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The boys really wanted to ride the bus, so we did.  (I love hanging out with my kids.  To grown ups, the bus is just transport, but to the kids, the bus is a grand adventure.)  When we arrived, Liam got a lollipop, B chose a cookie and I had a coffee.  I had the boys order their items themselves (Liam loved it, B was nervous, but did great) and they got to choose our table.  (Another great treat for a 2 and 4 year old.)  They chose a table for two, and sat across from each other, and I sat next to them.  It was a very grown up adventure.

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We really had a great time.  It seems like such a small thing, and kind of a trivial adventure, but for three people who have barely left the house in 2 weeks, it was excellent.  We even stopped at the drugstore on the way home and did a little shopping for the house.  A fun and functional journey — perfect!

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Over the next couple of weeks (until our big vacation at the end of July) and then, for the last few weeks of August (after our big vacation) it’s my plan and intention to go on a variety of outings with the kids.  Our collective energy level will determine how adventurous we are — more trips to Starbucks, or a day at the zoo?  We shall see.  For today, it was GREAT to be out in the sunshine, enjoying a little bit of Vienna with my boys.

Getting around

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My language class finished on Monday.  Benjamin starts preschool next Monday.  So, next week, our schedule as a family will be completely different.  Between now and then, though, we don’t have any need of our old schedule, we don’t need to be on our new schedule, and we don’t have anything in particular that we need to accomplish.  I’m in schedule limbo.  It’s a weird sensation (especially for me, tightly wound as I am).

So, I’ve decided that the next few days should be a like a vacation and we should try to do things we don’t always get a chance to do.  This morning, I decided to pack the boys up and go explore a park on the other side of town.  We went there once before, but as soon as we got there last time, Liam had a meltdown and we ended up leaving pretty quickly, before we got a chance to really check it out.  The weather today was beautiful and perfect for the park, so we got ready to go out.

After I’d gotten everyone dressed, Liam threw up all over himself and me.  (It’s amazing how frustrating it can be, even when you don’t have anywhere in particular to go, to *almost* get out the door and then have to turn right back around and undo everything.)  So, I got him and myself cleaned up and dressed again, got out the door . . . and Benjamin slipped on the freshly mopped floor on our landing and fell.  Back inside for ice on his head and lots of kisses.  Back out again.

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We got on the bus and rode to the end of the line, near where the park is.  We got off, and I was immediately stopped and asked for directions (as usual).  But, aha!  Now that I’ve taken German classes, I can give directions in German!  Woo hoo!  I explained exactly where to go, turned around, and realized I was somewhere different than I thought I was.  Not that I’d gotten off the bus in the wrong place, but I’d just lost my bearings, so I’d given these poor people the exact wrong directions.  (But, at least I did it in German!)

010We walked around the park a little and had a nice time — it’s very pretty.  We looked around, petted some dogs, had a snack.  We still didn’t see all that there was to see, but we made some definite progress.  Then, as it was getting to be towards nap time, we decided to head home.  Benjamin wanted to ride the strassenbahn home, so we found a stop, and boarded a train.  We got off to switch trains, and decided to take the U-Bahn home instead.  We all made it, in one piece, with no further catastrophe.  So, today, we rode the three major forms of Viennese public transport (bus, strassenbahn, U-Bahn), went to the park, and even gave directions (never mind that they were wrong . . . ) — we’re definitely making progress.

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