Solo Dad Weekend

I went to Texas for work last weekend and Russ had both kids on his own for an entire long weekend (Friday through Monday) for the first time. Granna did not come in town this time since she was just here last week and I think it's safe to say that Russ missed her and me! 

I took the kids to school on Friday before I left town and did lay out clothes for them to wear to a birthday party on Saturday, but other than that, Russ did everything on his own! He picked out the rest of their clothes, fixed all their meals and even took them both to said birthday party by himself on Saturday afternoon. At one point, I called to check in on my way to the track and he answered to a lot of noise in the background and all he said was "I can't talk right now, I have my hands full!" Ha! Caroline has been really needy lately and I know she was a hand full.  I did arrange for a babysitter to come by for a few hours on Saturday night, so Russ could go to a coworker's surprise birthday party and I know he was appreciative of the break! He also kept all our friends updated on his "Solo Dad Weekend" with funny posts and pictures on Facebook. I have to say, he did really great overall and I am so proud of him. I think he even surprised himself! I asked Russ to take lots of pictures to document their weekend as you will see...

The first picture I was sent on Friday...eating dinner after school.

The result of Dad picking out Caroline's clothes - ha!

Some selfie action with Daddy and Caroline, the copycat!

Gimme that hat! 

At Maddy's Build a Bear birthday party...Tyler made a puppy, Clyde.

My handsome fella!

Always trying to take out her bow!!

Enjoying post-birthday party cookies at home.

Russ was wearing Caroline in the Bjorn during the party, but here's a shot of her party outfit!

Watching TV...they are obsessed with the "Dancing Bear" video.

Toy explosion results before the kids went down for a nap...Russ posted this one on Facebook.

He posted this one 10 minutes later...I knew he couldn't leave it messy.

Russ made PBJ sandwiches for lunches for the week.

This was apparently one of Caroline's favorite spots.

"Where's my Mommy?! I miss her!!"

While he was with the kids in Memphis, I was in Texas for the race. It was our March of Dimes weekend, so we had their National Ambassador family at the track as well as Cowboys Tight End Jason Witten to help raise awareness for the cause. On our way to an ESPN interview, we all got stuck in an elevator and Jason started freaking out...he is very claustrophobic and was nervous the rest of the day every time we got in an elevator. It was a busy weekend and it rained most of the day on Sunday, so the race didn't actually run until Monday...luckily, I did not have to delay my return flight to stay in town for it! 

Me and Aidan in the golf cart ready to drive in the rain!
We made him a mini firesuit to match Denny's.

Crazy Larry the Cable Guy at media availability.

Denny, Aidan and Jason at media availability.

Aidan and me waiting behind the stage for driver intros.

Mommy made it on TV! Tyler was apparently really excited!

Doing an interview after driver intros.

Jason and Aidan taking a hauler tour.

Playing a little catch...

The purple FedEx Office #11 / March of Dimes car when it finally raced on Monday!

During my down time, I tried to make the most of my trip and actually really enjoyed my time away. I read a great book (Divergent), which I haven't done in a really long time. I ate some great food on my own, by myself, which I LOVED! And, I did a little shopping at Ikea and at the outlet mall for a few spring clothes...I planned ahead for my purchases and packed an extra duffle bag to haul everything back. Overall, it was a great trip.

I bought several things at Ikea, including 2 step stools that I
somehow managed to get into my luggage for the flight home!