Frustration..with some sweetness mixed in

Don't say I didn't warn you. The Navy blah blah blah thing has commenced forth and I'm alone....with 3 kids. With a mother recovering from surgery.

Today was tuff. Capital T-U-F-F. I've been so busy doing other things this week, I had to focus on the house before I got reported to DSS and they came by and cited me for nastiness. Besides, we needed clean underwear, ya know? So, here I go...scrubbing the bathroom floor on my hands and knees. Washing a good 8 loads of laundry (yeah, there's still 2 loads to go). I put off the hands-and-knees deal as long as possible because the back just can't take it. Paige was kind enough to entertain Vitt so I could get it done without "supervision" on his part. Chores were getting done.

I call my mother and ask how she is. Does she need anything? Is there any pain? She proceeds to tell me she is doing super. Then...I get blasted. Apparently she's been waiting for me to go and sit with her and clean her house and do her laundry. Excuse me? You never once indicated to me that you needed all this stuff done! And she says....well, I don't beg ....you should have called. ~Deep breath~ I then tell her that I am no mind-reader and I would be more than happy to do whatever she needs. I just can't go and sit with her all day (People...she's NEXT DOOR for crying out loud!!). I have things that need to be done in my own house and she doesn't want 3 kids tearing her house up. She goes on about how my Dad is doing the laundry and this and that, etc etc. Well, pardon me, but it won't hurt him one bit. Sure, he's worked ...but hasn't she worked for years and come home and done all of that and supper is ready at 6:22 p.m. sharp every single freaking day? I just get off the phone and cry because, once again, I have won the award for World's Worst Daughter.

I proceeded to let Paige go be a teenager...well, in her mind at least. She left this afternoon with a friend and I got that famous phone call at 8 p.m. "Can Paige spend the night?" Sure. Why not? Getting a break where ever I can, folks. I bathe the rest of us who are left and put the Troublefinder to bed. I look and there's my sweet Makenna on the computer, drawing pictures and entertaining herself. Not asking a thing of me. I go to the kitchen and put some cookies in the oven to bake. I then tell her that I never get to just sit and hang with her and I was cooking us a treat. Her eyes got so big. We proceeded to have cookies with a glass of milk...just the two of us. She looks at me and says.."Isn't this just so cool? Thanks, Mama. You're the bestest." Crushed my heart and made me touch the sky at the same time. She's so easygoing. Smooth. Self-sufficient. Low maintenance. I've got to make more time for her. She might end up saving my sanity for me.

Took the kids skating last night as a reward for good grades. Yeah, I'm cool that way. SIL went with hers and we just partied. Today, the girls are so sore from using those couch potato muscles. Can we say "Motrin is our best friend?" Makenna informed me that the motrin, cookie, and milk hit the spot and she felt like she could rest real good.

It was a day of frustration. Because you can't sneeze while you're cutting the grass. Because your small son is riding with you and just when you sneeze and close your eyes, he decides to throw his paci (why does that kid throw EVERYTHING?????) and guess what? Yeah, I ran over it. That and my mom....why it's enough to make a decent person crazy.