Fighting It

How does it make sense to have a "teacher inservice" day the Monday after Halloween instead of the ACTUAL DAY AFTER HALLOWEEN, when it would be convenient? Am I upset with the school district for making this day more complicated? Yes. Very.

I spent 45 minutes of my morning chasing three kids on scooters. Two were going at lightning speeds, while one would stop for every pebble at the side of the road. So I was both screaming for some to slow down and demanding that others speed up. I'm sure that was a sight for the other joggers on the trail. Keeping things klassy, RIGHT HERE.

I hear that children often project our own demeanors back at us. I can say with confidence, that is absolutely true. This is demonstrated by the fact when I was on the phone with The Husband over a stressy medical situation, all three children started fighting. What were they quarreling over? A small plastic lid. A little flat piece of plastic with zero entertainment value.

After spending most of the day worrying about scenarios a, b, and c. It was decided that a change of scenery was needed.

I will always suggest going out to eat whenever things seem dire. Where the joys of both PURCHASING and then CONSUMING something meet- that is what keeps me sane some days. Add in the extra fact of not having to cook AND see my awesome family? That was everything I needed to keep from spontaneously combusting. (well that and the anxiety meds I will be undoubtedly taking tonight before bed)

Retail therapy is my second most favored form of stress mitigation. (The first being consumption of enormous quantities of Tootsie Rolls)

Last night the kids gave us a break and retreated upstairs to play "camping." From what I've observed, "camping" is just stuffing things in backpacks and taking it all into one room, where the backpacks are emptied, the lights turned off, and scary stories are whispered. Whatever. I will take the relief whenever offered. I flicked through the DVR while hearing the footsteps bounding around above me. I did note that the kids complained of being thirsty often. I figured they would come down and drink some water- cups were sitting on the counter for this purpose.

When bedtime came, I found that the thirsty children had been quenching themselves with little cups of water. Using the disposable paper cups normally reserved for tooth brushing. They went through an entire stack doing this. Hundreds of cups in a matter of hours. HOURS.

This morning, as Husband decided he needed to stay home to see various doctors about his back pain situation, I popped open the laptop to resolve the paper cup situation. (see how retail therapy works? It can happen WHENEVER. Thank you, internet) It is quite easy to get caught up in these background emergencies- like excessive paper cup usage.

Thirteen dollars later, and at least one situation is solved. Whale water fountains are now on their way, one for each faucet in the house. That high kept me aloft for at least an hour. Which should possibly be disturbing? Will I be the crazy old lady who gets boxes upon boxes of useless mailorder stuff just to keep her from feeling lonely? PERHAPS. I've decided not to dwell on it. Whatever gets me through the day, right? Yes.

Prior to this morning, I had pre-typed the majority of a post about my rededication to the diet & exercise routine. Upon further reflection, after lowering my candy standards to include freaking AIR HEADS, that post would have been laughably disingenuous. Another time, kids. There are still many more days in the month...