Thursday, August 15, 2013

TN Aquarium Fail

When all of Christian's family is down from Ohio they always do all the touristy stuff.  The day after the 4th they decided to go to the TN Aquarium.  I NEVER take both boys by myself other than to the grocery store or somewhere else around Trenton.  I have a huge fear (as I'm sure most Mom's do) of someone trying to kidnap one of my kids and me being helpless and unable to do anything.  It's not that I would just let it happen and not try to stop it.  The hardest parts for me are the loading and unloading of the kids.  If someone grabbed on of them while I was putting the other one in the car what am I suppose to do?  Anyways, it gives me terrible anxiety and I am unable to enjoy anything because I am so paranoid.  I know how I am so I just avoid the whole situations all together.

Apparently Harrison didn't want Lincoln in the picture.




Christian's two cousins and their kids follow me downtown.  We park in the parking garage and they meet me at my car to help me get the boys out.  Everything is going good.  I am so happy that I am taking the boys somewhere and not waiting until my husband is available to help.  We get to the Aquarium and I decided to buy a family pass.  If we used it three times it would pay for itself.  So everyone else gets their tickets and that is when everything starts to go down hill.  Since I have the stroller I have to ride the elevator and they take the escalator.  I didn't think much of it.  We could meet at the top and everything would be fine...WRONG!  I sit in a really long line and finally get on the elevator.  My back it to the door so when it stops I assume it is where I am suppose to get off.  Nope, I only made it to the second floor.  Guess what?  If you get off the elevator on the second floor there will never ever be enough room to get back on the elevator going up.  I forgot to mention this place was a zoo!  There was a bazillion people there.  I get incredibly frustrated and walk down to the first floor to get on the elevator.  I can't fit through the doorway to get back.  Our stroller is gigantic.  I try to talk to someone to get some help.  I am a total wreck by this point.  When I am stressed I cry so I am balling in the middle of the aquarium.  I should have threw in the towel at this point and went home but I refused to let it defeat me.  I finally get someone to help me get to the top.  Once we are there my family is long gone because it has been a good hour or so since we parted ways.  I gave myself a pep talk and we kept going.  People are so rude.  We would patiently wait behind people so I could pull the boys right up the exhibit where they could see from the stroller and grown people would just cut right in front of us.  I still keep going because they boys like the fishes.

We walk around a little longer only to become trapped.  We came to a point that had a round-a-bout door and then a wheelchair door.  I clearly can't go through the round-a-bout and my stroller is too wide to fit through the wheelchair door.  I figure I will try to push it through anyways.  Well in the process of my trying to push Harrison throws his leg over the side without me seeing and gets his leg pinched.  I am done at this point.  I want nothing more than to go home.  My only option at this point was to take the staff elevator.  I know I am not suppose to but I don't have a choice.  Harrison is crying because his leg hurt and the elevator stops on a floor and an employee gets on the elevator.  I told him that I knew I wasn't suppose to be on there but I just wanted to go home.  I'm sure he thought I was a crazy person but he helped me anyways.  Finally we are out of that crazy place.
Of course, it was raining but I didn't care I just wanted to go home where I felt safe.  I finally talk to my relatives (I didn't have their phone number) and tell them I am going home.  I am still freaked out but better since I am finally out of the mad house.  I should say I was better until I realized I had to load the kids in the car by myself in the parking garage.  AAAHHHHH!!!  I had to come up with a game plan.  Once we made it to the car I unbuckled Lincoln and sat him in his seat and told him not to move.  Locked the car and got Harrison out of the stroller, unlocked the car and buckled him in.  Locked the doors to walk around and buckle Lincoln in.  Lock the doors again except for the back so I can load all of the stuff in the car and get the heck out of there.  FINALLY we were headed home.


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