A Day

Deep breath (it's a long one - albeit elementary and, therefore, quick and easy)... and READ!

Slept well - albeit with Lil beside me on couch and hubby in bed with boys - better than night before when we were all up tossing and turning or, like me, with full-on insomnia - only an hour or two of sleep.

Open refrigerator to get more milk this morning - light bulb explodes in my face. Scares the @#%&* out of me. Refrigerator dark.

Email freelance clients with proposal info. and school with spring break info.

Get kids out the door a la one of my previous posts. In a perfect performance art-like commentary on the fickle weather situation, my preschooler left the house wearing no coat - my kindergartner all suited up in winter coat, hat and gloves (remember when I asked for advice on that earlier? Still need it.).

Lovely breakfast with friend at Square Cafe (though our planned walk is foiled by cold and rain -and to think that yesterday, we were dragging the water table out of the basement and taking the Radio Flyer for a spin around the neighborhood).

Lilliana won't leave S. Cafe - fights me for rights to toys and has poopy pants. I also just notice that she is covered in ketchup and has been playing with an orange slice dipped in sour cream.

Change poopy pants in van (after running through sleet-like rain and through giant puddles; it is, for the record, an extreme puddle day and my wild ones are champion puddle jumpers).

Take off to get Milo at preschool; Lil screams NONSTOP when I pass school to find parking place.

Have pleasant chat with other preschool mothers (though one informed me that one of her little ones has broken her arm. If I could make it better, I would :-( - poor little girl, and... poor mommy). Teachers inform me that I have not returned an important form. I just turned it in in the office - whoops.

Head out to run errands. Lil runs from me in front of school - another child's father has to chase her. Milo leaves through the front door, locking himself out and heading the wrong direction from the van (we were parked in the back to avoid such problems).

Milo rejects all "real food" for lunch and, instead, wants donuts. Chocolate donuts. So does Lil (and - you won't hear this from me again - but thank God for the Dunkin Donuts Drive-thru). Many baby wipes and some roadside stops later, we are clean and fed (albeit junk - he told me his stomach was "grumbly" - had to fill it with something - hopefully, preschool snack was nutritious - and Lil did have some ketchup at breakfast, right?).

We head to hubby's office on the Southside to complete errands. I get the "stink eye" from building patrons as I wait in a "no parking" area.

Hubby in car - off we go to check on a business venture we are launching. Arrive at destination. No one there. Do we have wrong day? Wrong building?

Head to next destination - print shop to pick up invitations he designed for church event. All should go well, being a church-thing and all ;-), and.... it does. Look great - no issues - all paid - will be delivered tomorrow.

Head around block. Hubby says we need to hit dry cleaners because he had to rush job some shirts - trip to NY and all. What trip to NY?? I foolishly ask. Argue, argue, argue, and BAM - we are hit from behind. Big Caddy - apologetic driver - not our fault. Hubby irritated - I am quickly shushed, trying to point out damage not that bad. Upon closer inspection, one sensor on back bumper is TOTALLY crushed. In hindsight, glad I was hushed and hubby actually looked. Insurance exchange - nasty looks from drivers trying to get around me.

Hubby back in car. Continue "discussion" on his trip and how I never hear anything correctly - argument moves to his d@#% iPhone and how it always cuts out during conversations (I heart u, AT&T).

Hubby says "rush" dry cleaning will never be done. I say it will. We go. It is done. Score.

Back to our new biz venture vendor. NOW someone is there. Meet with him despite Lil and Milo running the length of the warehouse and taking turns trying to "break" a mirror propped against the wall. When it's all said and done, Lil steals paper clips and "works" on our vendor's computer. Milo does a flip off the stairs ("I'm OK"!). We discuss orders, etc. All is well - though hubby tells me he was so stressed, he doesn't know what he ordered, but... he did leave a check. Great.

Hubby needs lunch. Drop him at Pizza Sola and circle block. Forget where Pizza Sola is - drive in circles for a bit. Arrive back at Pizza Sola - hubby already dialing phone looking for me (doesn't matter - I wouldn't be able to hear him anyway ;-).

Back to office. Bye. Mommy, we want to go home.

Drive home by way of Oakland (don't know WHY I took that exit). Traffic, traffic, traffic. Lil begins to scream that "she is stuck" halfway home -then that her boot is "gone".

Arrive home. Milo is sleeping (feepin, as he used to say), so... he'll never sleep tonight. Lil runs from car and hits huge, mucky, deep puddle in driveway (the coat on which she received compliments all day is now soaking wet and a deep brown color).

I clean out car - drag diaper bags and garbage into the house. Look fervently for sippy cups and bottles full of milk (it is milk so I HAVE to search or have nasty smelling little "bombs" all over the car) - apparently, my two wild ones have begun throwing their cups when they're done - like little Vikings.

Head inside - check email (had urgent VM from client) only to discover that a client has pointed out an oversight of mine. Have to leave door propped open (40 degrees and falling) because Lil wants to stand on stairs and I left Milo napping for a few more minutes (can see van from window - door 2 ft from me). Milo wakes and is "mad" - rages at me from the front yard. As I run to get him, he throws himself on the wet and muddy porch steps.

Everyone inside and warm - wet clothes removed - Noggin / Nick Jr. on - warm drinks distributed. I bake after school cookies for Olivia and Enzo (and wild ones - it's just.... the chocolate donuts earlier... um... how much chocolate can they take? Offer them whole wheat crackers. They bite.).

Currently sitting in a sea of back packs and lunchboxes (and Enzo's thumb hurts - Olivia wants to know if we can take a spring break vacation. Spring Break is next week). Literally seconds ago, a smoke detector began "peeping" like it has a dying battery - already getting annoying. The BBB just sent me an important message regarding a recent complaint I submitted - only there is no attachment. I just heard a crash in the kitchen AND I need to make dinner, send out yet another freelance proposal, get through two batches of homework and get the lacrosse carpool to practice by 6 pm (is anyone else thinking like Stouffer's lasagne and a quick salad, at this point? You have to admit those "let's fix dinner" commercials are appealing.). It is now 3:00 pm. Do you know where your sanity is (and ... we all just had an '80's moment - remember those commercials?)?

This is really my day. In fact, I think I left some things out(oh yeah - my one outing of the week on my own - CANCELED - in lieu of NY trip that I knew about for 100 years. Is that it? Might be it....).... Hmmm.... was the precedent set this morning by the "number one" and "number two" underwear accidents pre-bedtime last night - the cranky, cranky two year old who roamed the house for hours, inconsolable - the uninvited family member (though family members are always welcome, combative dispositions are not) with news that our kids were the only ones not invited to a recent family b-day party for no reason - the fact that the MUCH lower rate on a hotel we're researching for a weekend just disappeared from the web site - OR - was it just ONE OF THOSE DAYS???? Love my kids - appreciate my hard-working hubby - but today..... ugh. Ebb and flow. Ebb and flow.