OK, so I’m definitely being challenged on my gratitude today. Wouldn’t you know it? The second I decide to attempt a shift in my perspective on life, I am freakin’ challenged?!
My Dad always says, “No good deed ever goes unpunished.” I hate this phrase, but it’s so true. I’m always beating myself up, because I feel like I don’t do enough outside of my little hornet’s nest/chicken coup/witch’s hollow. I don’t volunteer enough…bake cookies for others enough…offer up my voice, my skills, my time for some charity. So, a girlfriend of mine just recently had surgery, and I seized my opportunity to make her family dinner tonight. This, in and of itself, would not have been a big deal. “I can handle that,” I thought. I’m just going to whip up something easy.” So, last night at about 3am during a feeding (for my son…not for me, unfortunately), I was struck with panic. My husband had been to the store already, not once, but twice since Sunday to pick up odds and ends we needed FOR THE WEEK. Was I really going to have to go to the store AGAIN on a day that I have to teach and pick up MORE so I could fulfil my very UNhuge promise to make my friend dinner?!???!??!?!?! Yep! So, I got up and attempted (ha ha haha) to make a grocery store list. Boy was my plan thwarted. My older son grabbed my pencil and ran with it before I could finish. I chased him around the house for the pencil. The baby was fussing and needed to be fed. My husband mentioned how he “really needed to get to work early this morning.” I desperately needed a shower. And that’s how my day began.
Somehow, I managed to pull this list together AND get it into my pocket AND get us out the door AND made it to the store while sipping on (ok gulping) some coffee. This used to be a no-brainer. Now, it’s a freaking logistical nightmare. My brain is thinking, “OK, I’m just going to get in…get out…get the cheese, sour cream, taco shells…pay…get outta there!!!” My son is thinking, “I wanna see the lobsters in the tank…I want the candy in isle 5…I wanna try the cheese at the cheese counter…” HOLYYYYYYYY HELL! So…(sigh)…we made it home by 11:30am. Baby was starving. Older son was wound up. Meat needed to be unloaded and put in the fridge (since it’s STILL upper 80’s here!!) I’m EXHAUSTED!
I managed to get the car unloaded and kids unloaded and knew I needed to haul ars to get everything unpacked and put away before a screamfest. Yay me! I did it! (another sip of coffee) I made my son lunch, tried to clean up the kitchen from the night before AND feed the baby. Then the doorbell rings…(hate this, btw!!) It’s the pest control guy. Really?! Son immediately jumps up from his meal and runs to the door. Dog starts barking. Baby starts crying. Project Get-My-Kid-to-eat-his-lunch just failed. Damn the system! Finally get him seated back at the table. Remember we have to make rice crispy treats for my students and the Halloween party we are going to tmw. How hard could that be? what the *#& ever! Oh, and I don’t just decide to make plain ol’ rice crispy treats. Nope. I decide to do the Halloween kind with orange food coloring shaped like a pumpkin. Again…what the *&^% ever! I did it and no one got hurt or colored orange. Hurray for me! (another sip of coffee). Clean up the entire mess. Feed the very tired, fed up baby. Plug my older son in front of a DVD so I can attempt to get the dinner I promised made and ready to go. It’s just tacos. No biggy. But, it’s 1:45pm. I start teaching at 3pm and have yet to actually sit down THE ENTIRE DAY! Oh, and have I mentioned that we are potty training (or trying to) this week? So, throughout all of this, I’m trying to coerce my son to go pee pee on the big potty. Yikes! I get the meat on the stove. Yay me! Shred the cheese in my new food processor (cuz why in the HECK would I just buy shredded cheese and make things easier on myself??). Cut up the tomatoes. Pull out all the fancy, to go containers I just purchased for the event. Son decides he wants cereal with milk and wants to sit at the table. Baby awakes from nap. I’m rushing like mad to get this damn dinner put together before the bell rings. Wait, what bell!? I seriously felt like I was on some cooking show where you only get 1 hour to prepare a meal for a crowd of 10,000 people. The clock was ticking! I managed to get everything cooked, sliced, shredded and put in containers by 2:30. Wow! I had enough time to eat a bite, go to the bathroom, take a drink and maybe throw on some lipstick before my first student arrived at 3pm. WRONG! Son decides to go potty again. Baby gets extra needy and clingy. Am I wearing any deodorant? First student arrives — 10 minutes early. My husband is not yet home. Baby won’t let me put him down. House is on fire. OK, that part is just an embellishment. You get my drift. Son is naked and coming out of the bathroom showing his wee wee to my student. Have I mentioned how grateful I am?
So, I taught this afternoon. I made it. Students came. Stomach growled. Students didn’t get neatly packed rice crispy treats shaped like pumpkins in little bags with spiders on them filled with candy and spider rings. They didn’t get jack (except their lesson). Son screamed outside my door, “MOMMY!!!! OPEN THE DOOR!!! GO AWAY!!!” Husband was growing less and less patient with him. Baby was fussing (probably because he hadn’t eaten either the whole day). But I made dinner for a friend in need. And I was so glad I could help. And she was so grateful to me. It was worth it.
So, without further adieu, here’s my freaking gratitude list:
I am grateful for:
- Friends in need. I was in need once or twice and the people who came to my rescue were SAINTS. They probably had a day much like I had today when they were trying to help me out. Thanks friends!!!
- My crazy little family.
- Realizing my strengths and weaknesses today and having somewhat of an ability to multitask and handle situations under pressure.
- My pillow. I’m ready to lay my head on it.
- Orange colored rice crispy treats.
- Kick ass/no fail tacos. They were yummy good.
- The wine I should have but didn’t get to drink tonight because I was too tired. Probably better anyway. Who needs wine?
- A cold front is coming through on Thursday.
- My Mom. She did things like this all the time AND baked cakes for a living AND had 3 girls to deal with in the meantime. I’m sure we were no less exhausting than my kids were today.
- A GIRLS NIGHT OUT on Thursday!!!
- This blog. For without it, I would need a punching bag right now.
Good Night
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