This mama needs to get out of vacation mode! I’ve been so lazy in the mornings, but on no morning have I regretted it more than I did last Friday…

…I’ve spent the morning puttering around in my bathrobe (yes, the new fuzzy one!). The house has the usual toys scattered everywhere, hasn’t been cleaned yet for the week, last night’s supper dishes are still by the sink, and there’s a load of laundry waiting to be folded. I’m not planning to leave the house until 1:30 when I will go do a small cleaning job (just main living area, no bedrooms or baths), and then go get the girls from school at 3:30. At this point it still feels fun to be wasting my morning.

11:15 - Jen calls to say that something came up at work, and she can’t leave the office till closing. Could I run to PA and get the boys for her? I’d have to be there by 4. And I have to take the girls. And did I know that Sophia gets out at 2 o’clock? (Ok? Yikes!!!)
11:20 - I call Wes to see if he’ll be home early, so I can leave our kids here…he won’t be, and then tells me that Mike and Michelle are coming over for dinner at 5:30. (WHAT!?!) ok, I can relax, they are BRINGING dinner! (ok, will be lots of fun, but I’m going to be late…will be as fast as I can)
11:25 - My wonderful mother-in-law always bails me out of tight spots…I know she’d take my kids the rest of the day. I call, but she’s not home.
11:30 - I’m rushing around the house, venting to Tori on the phone (she just laughs at me), and wishing I had made use of my morning. I take out the trash, and when I go to replace the bag, I reach into an empty box. Shoot! Which reminds me, we don’t have paper towels or napkins. Oh well, no time to go to the store.
12:30 - The house looks decent, and I’m rushing out the door with the kids and a diaper bag full of lunch, snacks, and books for the road. Then I remember that the car is almost totally out of gas. I’m glad the cleaning job is just down the road.
2:05 - I’m putting the cleaning supplies and away, and packing the kids back into the car. (they’ve spent a happy hour playing with the little cat who lives here)
2:15 - Finally picking Sophia up at school, and I’m lucky enough to pull up right next to Michelle…could you bring napkins over tonight? She says yes, and I rush off to the gas station.
2:35 - We’re picking Isabella up at the Little School.
2:45 - I stop by Jen’s office and get everyone moved over to the Surburban. Jen hands me the keys, $ for gas, and $ for a stop at WaWa (wish I had time to stop!)
2:55 - We’re pulling onto Rt 1. Sophia is reading to Morgan, and Chandler and Issa are laughing at each other in the back seat. I smile, settle back, and put that Surburban in the wind!
3:35 - I’m turning off 95 onto 202, and know that the PA line is just a few more miles, so I call Zach, and tell him and Max to be ready by 4.
4:05 - After 10 minutes of shuffling and waiting, and running back in for something else, we’re finally all buckled back in, and backing out of the driveway.
4:15 - Morgan always reminded me of the type who would get carsick, and she proves me right! I whip over into the center turn lane, and rush back to help her out. As I’m throwing her nasty clothes in the back, and grabbing more wipes from the front, I contemplate that I’m surrounded by 6 lanes of rushing traffic within touching distance…thank you Lord, for safety.
4:20 - We’re headed home again…Morgan’s wrapped in her coat, sleeping soundly, and we have the windows cracked to stave off that terrible aroma. Chandler and Issa soon join Morgie in sleeping, and all is well the rest of the way home. Although we run into a lot more traffic than we did going up, we’re still about 30 minutes ahead of the bad traffic, and for a Friday night, we think it’s pretty great.
5:35 - I pull into the office again, transfer my kids back to my car, and rush home to a waiting Mike, Michelle, Wes, and dinner.
6:10 - Morgan’s had a bath, and is starting to feel better. The rest of us are eating and watching a movie…the evening is lots of fun, and Michelle brings some very cute outfits for th e kids.

Late that night, I’m finally headed for bed, and I can only think of one thing… “Thank You Lord, that none of us have the stomach flu! I DON’T feel like getting up with puking children tonight!”