Final Countdown: THREE

Oh, the thrills continue.  I hope you know I am just writing this stuff for myself; from past experience I know I will have no recollection of the days, weeks, months leading up to this baby.  Someday I - or she - might be interested.This morning I ventured to Trader Joe's for a final stock-up trip - mac n' cheese, marinara sauce, toasted pecans, my newest favorite chocolate.  All the good stuff.  Came home and cleaned out the fridge.  Why have I not done that in a long time?  Geez.  Four open bottles of mustard and two of cocktail sauce.  But I freed up a lot of space, and a lot of Tupperware.

Mid-morning my friend dropped her kids off for babysitting.  (Note: It's handy to have a pregnant friend with whom to trade babysitting for doctor's appointments.  Coordinating appointments makes it even easier.)  The kids played outside while I sat on the deck doing email, blogging and a little more work on G's baby book.  Thrill of thrills - I got an email from Cook's Country with my first test recipe since signing up to be a tester a few months ago.  Later I made the recipe and it was disappointing, but at least I got to give my feedback.

Ed came home for lunch - a treat we rarely experience - then G went down for a nap while I played a little with H and cleaned up the office a bit.  Then I went to lie down and I must have fallen asleep because when the girls woke me up asking for a snack there was a line of drool going down my cheek and pooling on my pillow.  After snack the girls played on the deck while I made the Cook's Country recipe and washed some dishes.

When it was almost dinner time I went up to the family/play room to find the kids had not done the cleaning job I'd given them earlier.  Also, the patio chairs had been drawn on with chalk, an explicit no-no.  As a general rule, I try to avoid power struggles in my parenting - they are emotionally draining for everyone and not very effective.  However, I'm THE MOM.  There are times when my authority WILL be acknowledged and I WILL be obeyed.  Anyone who's known me since high school knows not to cross me.  Obviously the girls are still learning this.  So the next few hours saw us through one of the biggest power struggles our family has seen, ending at bedtime with Hazel and I having eaten dinner but not dessert, Ginger not having eaten anything since snack, everyone drained and crying or on the verge, me sweating from exertion and frustration, and the family room cleaned up and cleaned out.  Every SINGLE toy hidden away in the office closet, only to be earned back by being obedient and doing a job, starting tomorrow.  At bedtime, I go to pick the stories.  And poor Ginger, who had fought me the hardest, and lost the worst for the evening, was asleep before they were even over.  Tough love is just that - really tough.

So this is a day I'm glad to be done with.  Forget whatever work may need to be done around here.  I am shaking from temper and guilt and just want to put this one behind me.  What am I thinking having a third?