I've been quiet for a while because life has been moving so fast -- too fast to take breath. The last week, I've had a little time to catch up with normal life. Almost every night, London asks if Miss Evelyn is going home or if Taylor is coming over (the sitters). It is pretty evident that my being home is unusual for everyone. I think that it's the first week I've been home every night since early July.
When normal isn't the norm, when it's not what you've become used to, it can be extraordinary. Sitting in the rocking chair with one of the kids or reading a book with them or sitting in London's new tent is a very special treat. The kids are more beautiful to me; they smell even more wonderful; their smiles melt even my worst mood.
Of course life isn't perfect. I took the kids for a drive on Thursday night through a Christmas light show at a nearby museum. The lights were a little overwhelming for me -- too much, too bright. (Grizwalds gone wild.) Violet was at her limit and London was overwhelmed by it all. After a screaming stop at Burger King for a kiddie meal, I was trying to figure out how I could stop for a bottle of wine without looking like (and maybe being) a terrible mother. Couldn't drag them into a liquor store or grocery. Although I bet I'd get a lot of knowing looks. Couldn't leave them in the car like my parents used to do with us. That just doesn't fly anymore. In the end, we went home & I squeezed the remains of a box of white wine that I use for poaching fish & chicken. My only feeling of dignity is that I could've easily made myself a martini, but for some reason, I felt that drinking hard liquor was so much worse than squeezing a bladder of plastic to get the last drops of cheap white wine. Yeah, life is getting back to normal.