A Bunch of Junk

Today was just about a wash as far as actually accomplishing anything. However, while Mouse is feeding Baboo frozen peas, rather like feeding monkey’s in the zoo (which is marginally disturbing), I thought I’d take a minute and post anyway.

Despite having a rough start, Mouse came home from school in a rather chipper mood, which was a huge relief. I, however, am completely exhausted and could sit down and fall asleep right now.

When it was time to leave to pick up Mouse at school, Baboo insisted on leaving her enormously pink, sparkly, ruffled tu-tu and rather than risk a fight after such a great start to the morning, I let her leave it on. So there she was in her pink winter boots, lime green winter jacket, purple fleece hat with a very obnoxious tu-tu sticking out. It was a real treat trying to get the car seat buckled up.

I took out a package of ground turkey for dinner for tonight thinking I’d do “something “ with it. I’m in the process of cleaning out the freezer (when the store had chicken breasts on sale for $0.98/lb OF COURSE I’m going to buy 10 packages. Uh… chicken. AGAIN?) And then there was thanksgiving; so um, we’re kind of “poultried” out. Though, really ground turkey is technically poultry, I know. I was going to make shepherd’s pie but that involved doing potatoes and the oven etc, etc and today, I’m just too damn lazy for that. I had planned soft tacos this week, but really didn’t feel like that either. Then I saw a few almost freezer burned hamburger buns rattling around in the bottom and thought “HEY! Sloppy joes! I’ve a ½ can of tomatoes in the fridge! Whoo! Dinner is done!”. As I’m cooking the meat, I’m thinking this is going to make WAY too much. But WAIT. A part of my brain clicks in and says:“ hmmm, cook all of this meat up add tomatoes and onions etc then save ½ the meat for soft tacos tomorrow. THEN you don’t have to cook tomorrow night AND you are not left with a bunch more leftovers”. I know it’s not rocket science, but considering my very tired brain tonight, I feel like a genius! And I know that no matter now delicious the girls say this smells, they won’t eat one little meat crumble of it.

I love my children more than life itself. I really do. In many ways they astound me with their capacity for love, their exuberant energy and their incredible intelligence. However, nothing floors me more than their speed and agility when it comes to pulling as many things out as possible. No sooner do we get the living room picked up of Christmas ornaments, boots, socks, blankets, fish crackers, letter magnets and crayons then I turn around and the entire contents of the plastics drawer is all over the kitchen. Or my purse gets dumped out. Or someone decides they need ALL the dress-up clothes out. Or someone else decides that tossing the entire box of crayons into the air to watch them clatter to the floor is hilarious. Though we’re working on fostering their responsibility for taking care of their things and I insist that they have to help clean up, I still have to assist them in doing so. Sadly, this is a NEVER ENDING chore and today it furthers my exhaustion. And although I’m ashamed to admit it (avert your eyes, Mom! Oh, never mind, you’re already reading), I have been known, on occasion to open doors to closets, bedrooms, playrooms and just throw things in. Literally.

Friday’s have become “movie night” here at Casa de Lefty. After dinner, we all get in our jammies, we make some microwave popcorn (Aldi’s Fit and Active is AWESOME), squeeze the 4 of us on our little loveseat, dim the lights and pretend we’re at the movies. We munch on popcorn and shush each other and generally have a good time. Tonight’s movie selections will be Rudolf The Rednose Reindeer (thank you Tivo) or Muppet Family Christmas.

Mouse is colouring on the floor and just brought me her picture to show me what she made. Apparently it’s a ‘rainbow-saurus’. It’s actually shaped like a dinosaur-type-creature. Guess that trip to the museum paid off yesterday.

Hmm… what’s that sound? Ah, it’s the sound of a gazillion markers and pencil crayons crashing to the floor. And as I look over to the other room, I see Baboo trying to sit in the now empty marker box and the living room floor which was clean just a short time ago is now covered in brightly coloured drawing instruments. Oh and look at that. I avert my eyes for 2 minutes and Baboo has coloured in green pencil crayon on the kitchen island. Guess that’s my cue to get back to work. And that sound you hear, that crackle, crunching sound is the sound of the little twig in my brain snapping. Ouch.