Several years ago, I reluctantly moved to the suburbs. I missed my life as an urban mama cruising all the mama haunts with my three babes loaded up in a triple stroller. Suddenly every outing involved a mini-van. Since the move, my kid crew has doubled in size and like it or not, suburbia is the very best place for us.
This was reinforced last week when we held the Mabel’s Labels Staff and Family Summer Sizzler in my backyard. I gotta say, life is pretty good if you are a kid hanging out in my backyard. We keep things pretty kid focused around here so there is no shortage of activities – we have a heated swimming pool, trampoline, sand pit, swing set, and bikes and riding toys galore. To top it off, our house backs on to a huge park that is easily accessed by a gate in our back fence. Last Thursday, the Mabel team (and kiddos) rocked up and had a taste of my life in the suburbs.
Many years ago upon arriving to Canada, my grandparents co-founded a local Irish Club. Every year there was an annual picnic that was jam-packed with activities like running races and relay games. We enjoyed the picnic so much that it became a highlight of the summer.
In the spirit of the old Irish Club picnics, I put together an agenda of cheesy games and races. On top of doing the usual three-legged race and egg-toss, I added a few new ones to the mix that were nothing short of hilarious!
1) The Mommy Call:
You sit all the kids in their sibling groups at the finish line. The mamas get blind-folded at the start line. The kids then all start screaming “MOM! MOM!” and the first mama to find her kiddos is declared the winner.
2) The Daddy Piggy Back:
This activity requires dad to carry all of his children on his back while racing to the finish line. If a child falls off, dad is not allowed to move until child is back on. Clearly, the daddy-o in our family was at a disadvantage, but that didn’t stop him from giving it a good go. I pulled some rank and only allowed him to carry four of them at once – the thought of them all falling and landing on the baby was really too much for one mama to handle.
So maybe life in the suburbs is not so bad. Just imagine trying to pull off some of this fun elsewhere – dads stumbling through the city streets, loaded down with kids and tripping over the latte-sipping city folk in sidewalk cafes. Yep, I think for now this is right where we belong.
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That picture of ‘daddy-o’ reminds me of the movie ‘Hook’ where the lost boys are trying to train Peter Pan to be a kid again and he has to run through the forest with a kid on his back and one on each ankle! Far superior to weight training I’m sure. Plus, barbells don’t laugh and squirm. I’m sure that adds at least 50lbs.
Love the “mommy call” game. Did your six take pity on you and gather in one place or did they all shout for you from opposite ends of the yard?
I love your game ideas! I agree about living in the burbs, at times I think city life would be cool for the kids, but I really enjoy letting my kids run free in our large kid zone backyard.
You have the perfect spot to raise your 6 kids. One day they will realize how lucky they are to have such a great life!!!
They know it now, only because I remind them every day! lol!
Sounds like loads of fun! You are definitely a good mama! I understand missing what you had but you are making great memories for those kids!
Love the games, especially The Mommy Call!
Just like being in a store and hearing a little one shout for “Mommy!” And all the moms in the store turn to see if it’s theirs!
It sure sounds like suburbia is where you belong! : ) Love the photo of your husband and kids. How fun!