Some Days You Just Can't Win

I've been contemplating all day whether or not I should lock myself in my room with my laptop and google search whether or not it is really illegal to duct tape your kids to the wall in my state, especially if I can get them to consent to it. Im sure my kids would actually think that idea would be hella fun. Unfortunately, even if I decided to, I wouldn't have the time. Already I've locked myself and Soren in the bedroom trying to get him to nap only to have either Xavier or Ashe come pounding on the door in dire need of one emergency or another, usually something like wanting more chocolate milk, the questioning the whereabouts to the tv remote or something else minor to us adults.

Today I am dealing with a sick 3 month old, sick 2 yr old, sick husband, and a 7 year old with severe ADHD and no medication (stupid STUPID Target back ordering on Concerta!) One sick person is a breeze to handle. I can even handle 2 sick people without breaking into a sweat. But today is marathon stress day and no matter how much coffee I drink I just feel like I can not keep up. Worst of it was that today was Ashes day to go to preschool and I had to keep him home. I think everyone looks forward to preschool day. Oh and Xavier is still on vacation (which in reality is a good thing because I cant even picture what his behavior chart would look like if he went to school without his medication, even with the teacher being aware of his situation.)

When Ashe gets sick he throws tantrums and cries at the drop of the hat. When Soren gets sick it looks like he clings to me even more than usual. When J gets sick he keeps quiet and out of every ones hair, but cant help much but to give me sympathetic glances. Its ok I do the same to him when I get sick if the kids let me. And when Zavi is off his meds... well, try and picture Pee Wee Herman on Speed and 4 triple espressos all at once, stuck inside on a rainy day.

Ashe was feeling ok enough to make things hard. Usually when he is sick I can coax him onto the couch with a cup of milk and watch his favorite shows. Today he had enough energy to cling to my legs and cry that he was sad. So I tried redirecting him and Zavi by setting up some paint and paper for them to go crazy with. It kept them happy and quiet for about 30 minutes, more time than I could have asked for. I was able to nurse Soren in peace while they happily painted squiggly Darth Vaders or what I am told is supposed to be Transformers. When they decided to clean up though they left purple handprints on the walls and doors, and flooded the bathroom.

I decided to take them out of the home to prevent further destruction after we all cleaned up as best we could. Despite the wet day (which means playgrounds are out) I decided everyone needed a good place to stretch their legs. I sent Zavi on a quest to find a ball and we headed out to a local baseball field. First we started with the game Red Light Green Light. Note to parents: playing this game in a ball field is awesome! You can make your kids run around the bases, tell them they get extra points if they stop on a base, say green light and let them run themselves ragged for 5 minutes before they catch on that you haven't said Red Light yet.

Once they got bored I pulled out the ball and had them play catch, fetch, and soccer. In the middle of seeing how far they could run where they could hear each other (in case you're curious it's far) I got a phone call from the pharmacy that Xaviers meds were ready. Unfortunately it was too late in the day for him to have any but it is a beacon of light for tomorrow.

We popped in the car when a park official came to ready the field for a game tonight and headed to target. While there, the manager I had talked to about not being happy with how I didn't receive a phone call in time for me to find a pharmacy that DID have Concerta in stock took a look at me with Soren in his Moby, Ashe whining (but behaving and holding my hand!!!) and Zavi repeatedly going under the rope even though I told him 4 times to knock it off, and apologized. Profusely. Said it wouldnt happen again. Ever.

After I was too tired to contemplate making lunch so I cheated and got Wendys for us all. Of course Ashe only ate the top of his burger bun like usual and Zavi whined when I refused to let him open his toy until lunch was done (family rule).

Get home, eat, nurse Soren and chaos continues. My friend Greg, who decided to try out the MMORPG J and I play, called to get more info on the game. Of course while I was trying to explain the differences between spell upgrades, brokers, and tradeskilling, the kids decided to try and kill each other 34 times. Yes, I counted. Greg just laughed at me when I tried to pawn the kids off on him. I should have said I would throw in free shipping too. Hmmm, maybe I should call him back? I finally separated the older boys by sending Zavi to his room to build me a Darth Vader Lego set. I dont get why this was considered punishment to him when normally I cant get him to leave the damn Lego's alone when I need him!

It's now 3:30. Ashe is passed out on the couch after a long tug of war with Zavi over a transformer toy (only 1 of 65 we own), Zavi is just twitching and talking to himself under his breath, and Soren, recently fed, is whining about being put down on his play mat so I could escape to type as fast as I could and down a cup of coffee to continue. Good thing I type fast and drink coffee faster than a Pirate can put away grog because it sounds like Soren just spit up half his second lunch and Zavi is poking Ashe in the face trying to wake him up. Just because he can.

if I'm still sane by tonight I am going to allow myself to cry a little bit. And maybe steal Ashes blankie for the night to cuddle with once he's in dead sleep mode.