My Crazy Life

This week has been hectic.  I don't know if some of it is because the boys are out of PDO this week or if I've just gotten that disorganized.  But I feel, more often than not, like I'm the proverbial chicken sprinting around sans head.

I've GOT to work on my organization and planning.  First. Foremost. Without a doubt.  I know from experience that writing a To-Do list in the evening helps me a lot when the next day comes.  The problem is writing the To Do list the night before.  Especially lately.  Rich's third job is taking off (I promise, I'm not as evil and mean as I sound, refusing to work while making him work three jobs - he's a bio-safety officer during the day at Vanderbilt University, he teaches a class at the University of Phoenix one night a week for 5 week stints and he's just taken up some tutoring on the side.  Sadly, he makes more money in any of those jobs than I've ever made.  I've looked for something for me, but it doesn't pay enough or it's during hours that I can't work.)  Anyway, he's had two tutoring gigs this week, one hour each, and is getting home right before it's time to put the boys down for the night.  Which means that we spend time together talking after the boys are asleep. And by the time I remember it, I'm half asleep.

With the boys being home from PDO, Teddy's been having more blow-ups than usual..  He's really upset when he doesn't get his way.  On Wednesday, we were supposed to travel out to Clarksville to see my friend Trish.  When we were maybe 15, 20 minutes out, Trish called to cancel - she had to take her daughter to the doctor.  While I was disappointed, I understood.  Teddy, however, didn't.  He cried almost the whole way home, heartbroken.  And the strange thing is, he'd never even TALKED to Trish before - this was going to be the first time we'd seen each other in over 15 years.  Today, he wanted to go to the park after grocery shopping.  Unfortunately, I had milk, veggies and some frozen food so the park wasn't possible.  I told him and he threw a major wobbly in the middle of Wal-Mart, telling me what we WOULD do, trying to push the cart the way he wanted me to go... It was pretty embarrassing for me.  I paddled his behind and kept taking one thing after another away.  (A tactic I'm going to forgo, thanks to advice from Becca.)  I just don't know how to handle it or how to get him out of these fits.  "Mommy, you just ruined by best day ever!" he'll cry.  And I don't know what to do about it.

• Monday (or was it Tuesday?)  we went to Big Lots.  I need to find something to store my stamps and the various other bits of crafting supplies that I have.  My scrapbook paper is currently lying flat on my Baker's Rack because it's too wide for my crafting cabinet.  I've got a bunch of various supplies (stickers, rub-ons, etc) in a bin on the Baker's Rack because it won't fit in my cabinet.  My stamps are kind of higgly piggly in the top drawer.  I need organization!  Unfortunately, I didn't find anything suitable for organizing there.  However, I DID find more of the cheep paper craft packages - $2 for $20 worth of stuff.  While I was looking at it (and some other supplies), Teddy and Peter were behind me.  Pete was in the cart and, without my knowledge, Teddy was climbing up onto the cart to be silly.  He managed to pull it over on him, smacking his head on the floor.  Both boys were screaming so much, it broke my heart.  It was almost impossible for me to pull the cart off Teddy then right it so Pete was ok.  Neither sustained any real injury, but I let Teddy sit in the cart instead.  Both boys got a little treat (a DC action figure, $2 each).
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• But that's the kind of week I've been having.  Nothing catastrophic, but enough to keep me off balance. I'm hoping that next week will be better.  I need to make it better with better organization.  Especially because we have a lot of things on our plate.
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• Tomorrow, we've got to bring out recycling, stop to pick up our Angel Food and buy for next month, stop by the library so I can pick up The Lost Hero, get some housecleaning done and work on Teddy's costume.  
• Sunday, I need to finish Teddy's costume (yes, I'll post pictures), more cleaning, work on some swaps and go to Trick or Treat at the church where the boys go to PDO at 5:30. Oh, and Teddy and Rich have church in the morning.
• Monday, more cleaning, more swap stuff, story time at the library, including dress up for their "party". Rich has tutoring.
• Tuesday, more cleaning, more swap stuff.  It's my one day of relative peace, I think.
• Wednesday, PDO for the boys, gift shopping for my friend Becca's daughter, cleaning, swapping (the usual), probably making a repair or two to Teddy's costume. I may be going to Smyrna for a JackFM Stick-Up. Rich has tutoring.
• Thursday, cleaning, swapping, making up goodie bags for PDO. Rich has tutoring.
• Friday, PDO, handing out candy at PDO for their trick or treating, giving blood at 12:15, picking up the kids at 3, Fall Festival at 6 at our church. Rich is teaching.
• Next Saturday, possible fall festival at the PDO church in the morning, library, party at 11.  I'm pretty sure there's something that night, but I can't remember what.
• Next Sunday, Halloween - aside from church, the only other thing is a trunk or treat at the church where we get our Angel Food.

It's gonna be one busy week!