Monday, November 7, 2011

I want to live in Denver

6 kids
3 adults
1 gigantic dog
1 average-sized house

Things I have learned:

1. Dog hair is well worth it if you have smallish children who suck at feeding themselves. Or if you fling gobs of food on the floor every time you make a meal.

2. TV is magical.

3. I wish we lived in Denver.

Jeremy went to the Philippines for almost two weeks, and my sister called up and asked if I wanted to come stay instead of sitting at home. Yes. Oh, yes please.

The drive out was almost perfect. I don't know if it was the DVD player a friend lent us, if it was better carseats, older children, having a van with tinted windows, or that they could entertain each other, but it was amazingly scream-free. Their little brains imploded about 45 minutes from my sister's, but it was a short-lived crisis.

I handled it maturely and gracefully by yelling a lot of dire threats. Outstanding parenting. Give me a medal.

And then... insanity. There's no way to have that many people under one roof and not have insanity. It was hard, but I kind of liked it. Working hard most of the day is a near-cure for stupid anxieties and pointless navel-gazing. I'm sure I can't sustain that level of activity without someone forcing me, but it did bring me a boatload of perspective. The more selfish I am with myself and my time, the more unhappy I am. And two kids is nothing. Well, okay, not nothing. But it'll be a while before I really start whining again.

Today is my first day home, back in the old routine, and I'm climbing the walls. I really need to get over my aversion to the cold, or it's going to be a long winter.

Or have twins. Either of those would work.

The drive back was less pleasant. I got to drive into the sun for six hours after a good snow. The kids loved that. Nothing like getting strapped down for eight hours and being forced to stare into the sun for six of it. There was significantly more screaming on the way back.

But! I did not threaten or yell. I gripped the steering wheel and dreamed of booze.

So, I'm back. It was a good visit. We are all safe and alive, etc.

2 comments:

  1. I'm glad you had a good visit and that you made both legs of the trip safe and sound. I think you deserve a medal for only dreaming of booze.

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  2. Hah! Well, there was more, but I'm more conscious of appearing to be a fit mother here than it might seem.

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