Ian's day off

Selfie at lunch

I became the fun parent on Friday, June 13th. I granted Ian a day off from school.  I cleared my schedule and kept the day open for whatever Ian wanted to do.

Ian is a good kid.  He has worked hard this year.  I feel like sometimes (most times) he gets the short end of the stick.  His sister sucks all the energy from us and there is not much left to give him.  And to top it off, Ian is excellent with his little sister.  He really looks out for her and tries to do what he can to make her happy.  He is a fantastic big brother.

Once Ian's SOLs (Standards of learning tests) were over, I knew the remaining days at school weren't really going to matter.  I asked Ian which day he'd like to skip school and this past Friday was his answer.  As we got closer to the big day, I was really looking forward to spending the day with him.  Just us.  8 hours to do whatever he wanted.  We didn't have to worry about pleasing Sam too.  And because most of the world was either in school or working, we'd be able to hop from place to place easily.  In a most serendipitous turn of events, Sam got invited for an after-school playdate with her one of her classmates.  She was going home from school with her friend and would not need to be picked-up until 7:00pm.  This meant that Ian and I didn't have to rush back or worry about the time.

We started Ian's day at the movies and saw "Million Dollar Arm".  A most excellent choice and Ian and I loved it.  We were the only ones in the theatre!  A private showing just for us.  How fun!  Then we had lunch at PF Changs.  This was Ian's choice.  We followed lunch with a stop at Ben & Jerry's for ice cream.  And we ended the afternoon with a visit to the batting cages.  Ian hit 90 balls.

I love Ian's faces he makes as he hits the ball. 

It should be noted that I did manage to squeeze in a quick trip to Macy's and REI in between our other stops.  Despite it being Ian's day off, it was mine too!

Ian and I had an awesome day.  Even with the downpour and lack of raincoats/umbrellas made for a fun moment running from building to building getting soaked.  I was so glad I could give Ian this day.  I hope it was as special for him as it was for me.