Unexepected Half Days

There is nothing I love more than my children. Let that be clear. However, there is nothing that throws me off more than my children having a 'half' day at school and I not know about it until 0600 the morning of.

16 minutes ago in random conversation I find out they will all be home by noon.

ACK!

This is not the good. The leisurely afternoon I had planned of lying around watching my shows and planning how to torture and thwart them from having fun like ALL THE OTHER KIDS IN THE WORLD when they get home has now been thrown off.

I'll have to move up the lying around and torture and thwart planning to as soon as they walk out the door. Oh and I'll have to squeeze in my daily exercise in every room of the house of nimbly throwing their stuff everywhere. I wouldn't want them to think I missed a day of that. They all put everything away so nicely the night before. They said I just didn't check it while it was clean.

I might even try extra hard today and shove some stuff randomly behind dressers and under beds. Here's the secret if you really want to entertain your children. The stuff you throw and shove, make it from ANOTHER KID'S ROOM. yep, that's what get's 'em. Muwahahahahahha!

I bet I could really impress them and take just a few minutes to run into their bathroom and utilize their facility, not flush it, and then rub some dirt around the inside of their tub. They will be speechless when I tell them they have to scrub the tub and toilet. Just speechless. Even though they already did that yest... I mean last we-month!

I really don't want them to be bored when they get home. After all they usually leave me hours to insure they have chores to do when they get home which keeps them from watching cartoon network and playing outside with strange children I've never seen before in my life. I really am awful. I wouldn't let Recruit 4 go to some one's house I didn't know and go inside and play video games that he couldn't name. It's really not fair.

I admit, they often have unkind things to say about me and they scream and fight with each other. Today it's going to happen several hours earlier than normal. They really try hard to give me a good show everyday. We've actually been responsible for new potty words. I sure hope they're not disappointed when they get home! I know they just want me to be the best Mom I can be, they really love it when they lose privileges. I can tell by the way the bounce up and down and their heads spin a little.

The little darlings are giving me incredible opportunities to practice staying calm, firm, and kind even in the face of the most hideous transformation from my beautiful angel baby to a hideous mythical character of the most stinky and grotesque proportions.

With The Marine gone I get extra practice, and really, I can feel myself growing. Like when you were little and your bones and muscles were growing and stretching and these shooting pains shot up through your entire body like hot pokers getting shoved up your legs into your lower back!!!

Well child rearing really is nothing like that. Not at all.

And The Marine really helps calm me down when we talk. He often says things like, "they don't do that when I'm home." mmmm, I feel so much better.

And actually in spite of the fact it has been a little more difficult recently with a few of the Recruits. There are also sweet wonderful moments where I can see them maturing and making better choices. I'll write a post about those moments later. I can't seem to find the words right now...

Well I guess I'll go crawl back into bed. I need to rest up for the early release this afternoon. I wouldn't want to disappoint any of them!