Random thoughts...

I'm up super early today because my bed has a pothole in the middle of it and it makes my back hurt so I got up. The kids have the week off of school so today I am going to make them spring clean their rooms. Julie always teases me that I'm constantly making them clean their rooms, but they are disgusting. Kira crawled under her bed for something the other day and came out DIRTY. It's more than dust bunnies and it's impossible to clean in either of their rooms because they are so packed with crap. I am going to make them throw away a bunch of stuff. Nothing important, just broken toys and garbage that they insist on hanging on to.

I have to go shopping today too. I have to go to Sam's Club and I hate going to Sam's Club because of the incredibly long lines to check out and then having to immediately get into another line show someone my receipt to prove that in the 20 feet from the checkout to the door I haven't stolen anything. Makes me want to steal something. Then I have to go to the grocery store too. Ugh. I shouldn't complain, I was thinking about going shopping when the kids were really little and how hard it was compared to how easy it is now. These are the steps I used to have to do simply to go grocery shopping with Sam and Kira when they were about two and five:

1. Determine whether we can go another day without milk, realize that grocery shopping is inevitable no matter how much I bought the week before.

2. Look in every room, closet, and under every piece of furniture for the shoes and other random clothing Kira has lost around the house.

3. Get jackets on. There was a dialogue that went with this step: “No, that is not your jacket, get YOUR jacket.... not that arm.... other arm.... other arm.... other arm.... It doesn’t go on that way.... Why are you crying?

4. Get in the car. This took at least fifteen minutes. Kira insisted on hand picking her toys from the car toy box BEFORE she’s buckled in. Sam forgot which side of the car was his side EVERY TIME.

5. Drive to our destination. Usually this was the easiest part -- unless, of course, Kira got out of her car seat, which she did pretty regularly.

6. Get from the car into the store. Parking lots were difficult to maneuver when I was carrying a purse, diaper bag, and Kira in one hand, and holding Sam’s hand with the other while he is trying to lean down to pick up old gum from the parking lot.

7. Shop. Kira sat in the cart seat, and Sam sat in the big-kid seat that faces the cart seat. Kira would take this opportunity to hit Sam in the head because he couldn't move out of her way.

8. Pay. Kira seemed to think that if the cart wasn't moving, she should get out. While I was writing the check with one hand I was usually pinning her down into the seat with the other.

9. Repeat step 6, in reverse. Only add ten bags of groceries.

10. Drive home. NAP TIME!

Now it's easy. They even help! So I will just shut up.