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To Tradition or Not to Tradition?

About a week ago I had the BRILLIANT idea to take the kids to Salt Lake City and see the lights on temple square. In fact I thought it was such a BRILLIANT idea that I called my SIL and asked her if her family wanted to join us. She too thought it was BRILLIANT idea and we decided to meet Friday night at 6.  To walk the streets of Salt Lake and enjoy the Christmas spirit.

Friday morning came and though the promise snow had not fallen, it was looking as if it was going to be a beautiful day with beautiful temperatures.  What could possibly go wrong?

Did I say that?  Have I not been a mom long enough?

No sooner had I thought that thought then H. came up to me and said, "Mom I don't feel so good."  

I'm sure all you moms out there know what preceded that statement. So I will bypass the gory, icky, nasty details.

By five o'clock the time we were suppose to leave H. had slept most of the day away and assured me he was feeling better. We loaded up the truck with children, coats, gloves and hats. On the road we went.  A mere twenty minutes away from the house and H. was sick again.  Brent and I decided to turn around and take him and H. home and then I would take the rest of the kids and go.

By the time we were back at the house it was 6:00 the time we were suppose to meet my SIL and her family.  A quick phone call assured me that they too were running behind and it would be fine.  

Back on the road we went minus two.

By the time we reached Salt Lake it was 6:40 and I still had to find parking.  Which was not going to be a big deal because I knew right where to go.

Except, Except..... The building I was going to park at was gone.  When I say gone I mean gone. All that was left was a huge, gigantic hole in the ground. GREAT!!!!!

So now I had to find a whole new place to park, in the dark, in a very busy city, with people waiting for us, and oh did I mention that there was a concert on temple square so umm there were people EVERYWHERE!! 

Another quick call to my SIL assured me that it was fine that they themselves had just found parking.  Apparently as I traveled to and fro twice they had sat in bumper to bumper to bumper to bumper traffic.

Did I mention the BRILLIANT part of this idea.

Eventually I found parking and eventually we found each other and eventually we were able to wander the beautiful temple grounds. A little after 7:00 only an hour behind schedule.

Temple Square is always so beautiful they do such an awesome job lighting and creating a Christmas wonderland.  Al's favorite part along with my SIL's youngest seemed to be all the nativities from around the world.  They have some fun ones and it is neat to see the craftsmanship that goes into them. The night was absolutely perfect.  With jackets and coats we were comfortable and able to enjoy ourselves.


As we wandered the grounds my SIL and I notice all the cranky little ones.  We laughed and thought how great it was to be past that stage.  No more bawling, no more fits, no more trying to get a stroller in and out of buildings.  It was wonderful.


Did I just do that again?

What is my problem?

When am I going to learn my lesson?

No sooner did I think this then the obnoxious behavior began. OH MY....GRRR... cries of hot chocolate, pushing and shoving, giggling and laughing, while others tried to enjoy the more spiritual aspect of temple square.  You would think that my children had been raised by a lunatic.


Again no comments, please.

While it was all perfectly normal behavior it was a LONG night. One that I am a positive I will want to do again next year.  WHY? I have no idea! Other then, aside from all the traffic, normal kid behavior and stress we had a wonderful time.

Thanks family for going along with my BRILLIANT idea, we had fun and can't wait for next year.

Comments

Angie said…
Hey! Me and my parents and our WHOLE family were down at Temple Square last night too. Too bad we missed each other. I've decided after fighting that HORRENDOUS traffic that we will NEVER go to temple square in December again by car. We will ALWAYS ride TRAX from here on out. The lights were beautiful though.
Sharonda and Zaron said…
Thanks guys; we had a great time. (Even without hot chocolate.) I definately think we should make it a tradition. As we were walking back to the car last night, Zaron and I each made mental notes to ourselves; "next year, park the car in Sandy and ride Trax into Salt Lake". Hopefully we'll remember when next year comes. Once you're inside the temple grounds looking at all the lights you kind of forget about all the hassle that it was to get there. Good times! Thanks again.
The Larson Family said…
Fun!! Maybe we'll tag along next year? (After riding Trax???) :0)

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