New Year's Eve

The Christmas decorations are packed away. The house is back in "normal" mode. There is some significant cleaning to do, but that will wait until tomorrow, when my daughters will be available to help me. (More about that later.) The grocery store was busy and crowded-- especially with four children in tow-- but I left with not just our New Year's Day traditional meal ingredients, but a week's worth of meals and supplies. The pantry is loaded, along with the fridge and freezer. I have written my goals out and enjoyed reading the ones that people have linked to mine. I am, as they say, as ready as I'll ever be.

Tonight my daughter is in the Matthews Playhouse New Year's Eve Mystery play. She is in rehearsals all day, preparing. At some point, somehow, we will venture out to see her. If we can find a sitter we will go together to watch her. If not, we will go in shifts-- me with the 7yo to the 7 show and him with the 11yo to the 9 show. Not nearly as romantic, but real life sometimes intervenes.

Last night I got on a mission in the kids' rooms-- particularly my daughters' room. They are both old enough to keep their room nice, but they do not. This is an ongoing thorn in my side. I have lectured, and begged, and threatened long enough. When I walked upstairs and saw all their Christmas toys and things thrown around the room like a tornado had hit, I got crafty. I didn't say a word to them. I just got trashbags and gathered everything that was in the floor or shoved somewhere it shouldn't be. Four LARGE trashbags later, their room looked nice again! And it was alllll mine. The new Juicy Couture purse. The new dvd player. That new Ipod. M-I-N-E. (Maniacal laughter erupting while rubbing hands together deviously.)

Oh? You want it back? Well, my pretty, there is just one way to get your beloved things back. You must work to earn the bags back. One. bag. at. a. time. Oh, boy did I have fun with that one! Of course, the oldest girl is gone, as I said, so we will be starting the earning back process tomorrow. And I am going to have a clean house in the new year to boot! Wooowee, I love being the mama sometimes!

There was just one fly in the ointment. This morning I said something to my oldest about what a bummer it was that she had lost all her stuff and asked her when she thought she might get it all back. She paused, "We-ell, I have to admit my room sure does feel cleaner without all that junk cluttering it up...."

Oh.

I always knew they were smarter than me.