Hot Pink Trees and Lucky Charms the Cereal

Today was easy, peasy, breezy. Parenting was a cinch. The kids listened the first time and were extremely helpful. They cleaned up after themselves and didn't track in a gallon of mud. My house just became orderly--almost magically.

If you haven't figured out by now all that was a big, fat lie, then I have some ocean-front property in Arizona to sell to you.

Most of the day was great in that Kal and Kara did get along together very well for the majority. I still had plenty of mean-mom moments, but we ended the day with a board game and laughs. That's a win.

They did have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that they used up today: spray paint. They carved their names in two of the beech trees on our property, then wanted to spray paint what I understood to be a small section of the tree so they could re-carve their names.

I thought they meant a salad-plate-sized section. I had no idea they were going to decorate my trees in black, white, and hot pink. Now we have a semi-permanent nod to AC/DC, warnings to beware (of what? Mom's wrath?), and various other markings.

Please don't drive by our house. It's just too embarrassing right now.

Well, this will just be a great opportunity to build character.

We build character around here by doing dishes and laundry, raking the leaves in the woods (such a nice, thick layer), sweeping the gallons of mud off the floor that get tracked in all day, and cleaning bathrooms.

On a fun note, I got to call the courthouse to figure out why our property tax bill was 3 times higher than last year. I figured it out while waiting for a call back. Unfortunately, it is right, not the typo I was hoping it would be. Something to do with a deduction that applied last year, but not this year.

Looking back reading through what I've just written, I guess I sound like I'm growling and complaining about the day. That's not it. I've just been too tired today to fight much.

We've had ups and downs, but the ups float me along through the day and into the next.

Phone calls with my sister and my friend, Becky, also helped me through the day. Hearing a real, live person on the other end of a phone is the next best thing to the currently prohibited visit.

Another up (at least my weight will be up) was stress-eating Lucky Charms throughout the day. Yummy dried marshmallow rainbows. I don't do that often--because I don't buy Lucky Charms very often.

On to new, or just recycled, aspirations for tomorrow! I will emerge from my cocoon as WonderMom, taking on my house work, sewing work, and parenting with skill, grace, and the precision of clockwork, and fueled by Folger's and the Bible!

I can hope, anyway. Tomorrow is a new day to try again.