Still alive and kicking...for the most part

In case there was any doubt, it turns out life without childcare is somewhat more hectic than life with it.  July was a blur and I'm still not quite sure what happened to August, but here we are solidly into September.  School is in session and I have found myself with a moment to spare for what feels like the first time since our Au Pair packed her bags back in the middle of July.

Forget family dinners and monitoring weight gain, I'm just thankful to be here to tell the tale.  Granted not every summertime situation was handled with Claire Huxtable's knowing poise and endless good humor but alas, the kids and more importantly, Mufasa, are still talking to me.  The gym, the blog, and inspired meal planning took a back seat to using every ounce of my will power not to smack anyone - Looly for telling me she didn't like me and wanted a new Mom on my birthday, the lady who used her extra inches to nab the last container of Similac Go n' Grow at Target even though I was clearly reaching for it first, the librarians who continually accuse me of not returning books I never checked out, Roo every time he spits out food he's eaten a hundred times before claiming he doesn't like it now, and so on.  I required a couple of mandatory mommy timeouts and didn't make it to 5 pm every day before popping the Viognier but nobody got hurt.  It's all about managing expectations. 

We're not quite back up to speed yet but the three glorious hours per day I've reclaimed while the little ones are at school are helping me feel human again.  Showering has resumed as a near daily event.  My gym card is back in rotation, and at long last I'm blogging.  We've hired not one but two competent babysitters who, for a fee, tolerate Bean's ceaseless screeching while we are away for a bi-monthly date night out.  The little kids are transitioning to new teachers, new friends, new rules, and most importantly being dropped off at school.  By transitioning, of course, I mean full-out wailing, writhing, spitting, hissing, and attaching themselves to my leg until their teacher pries them off with a crowbar.  So the gist is, we're getting there.