Have you seen Groundhog Day? One of my favorite scenes is when Bill Murray's character steals the groundhog and says "don't drive angry"......well, never mind, I guess you had to be there.
I thought today started pretty well, but I guess that's the kiss of death for how my days go. No fugue state today, although I think I would have preferred it to how the day went. Good news, I got treated again for lunch (yum, thank you!). Devon was in a good mood, despite the fact that I was unsuccessful in making her a sock bun. Who thought that up anyhow? And do you know how many youtube videos etc there are on how to make one? She did have a small bun in her hair, so she went off to school quite happily. YEA!!!!
Aubrey seemed to be her usual self this morning...a brief appearance of the Aubrey-monster, but all in all seemed to be happy enough to go to school. You can imagine my surprise when I got the message from the school principal requesting we come pick her up and keep her home for a few days! Thank God Ron has an office that lets him leave and come back and make up hours. We really appreciate how good they are to us and the flexibility he has to accommodate our family's ups and downs and ins and outs.
So, needless to say Aubrey is not loving not being able to go skating with her friends, go horseback riding, go to the mall, watch tv, play on the computer or iPad, or do any of the millions of things kids her age love to do. Not sure how to quite get her to understand that this is not "no big deal"....it definitely is a big deal! Of course, Devon does see the downside (all the fun stuff that has disappeared), but she really has a good appreciation of the upside - no school. I am sure she is trying to think of ways she, too, can get suspended!
So, after a somewhat aggravating evening...how many times can you be asked, can I go skating on Friday? before you go nuts? I was not happy at bedtime - just not in the mood to deal with getting the 2 girls ready for bed. Why is tooth brushing such a big deal? I mean, it's not like I live for brushing my teeth but it's not the end of the world, either. And, of course, Devon starts melting down, I need to stay with her to get her calm so Aubrey will stop screaming at her to shut up, which of course tells Aubrey I love Devon more, but if I go to Aubrey it means I don't love Devon. Who invented families with multiple kids anyway? So, aggravated and making everyone else unhappy by the constant "I'll be there in a minute"s I use to enable them, I wind up doing what I did not want to do, and stayed with Devon, calming her to get her to relax and go to sleep. And somewhere during this time (hours to Aubrey, minutes to me), I myself began to relax and enjoy the quiet time with Devon holding my hand clutched to her chest to make sure I don't disappear while she is falling asleep. I love the quiet, unsolicited "I love you, Mommy"s I hear as she struggles to stay awake just one minute longer. And I remember again why I so wanted this second child, this miracle child of mine. And then on to Aubrey, who has, of course, been calling for me to come read every minute or two. Deep breath and down the hall I go.
But Aubrey, too, can be just so lovely at bedtime....we read a little, talk a little, and invariably wind up laughing a lot. She can be such a joy to be with, so much fun, and it's so easy to forget that when we get a call from school or see the rolling eyes and hear the angry "but I'm entitled" voice. And I remember again when she was my miracle child, arriving with such short notice but so very welcome and wanted. So beautiful, so full of love and light. And as I head downstairs, I am calmer, not so angry, and glad that they are mine....no matter what.
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