Also important to note, AJ liked his tie-dyed shirt. So maybe this day was a success after all.
It was one of those days that had me questioning if God was bored and looking to me for some entertainment.
A bit of background: AJ brought a note home from school a couple weeks ago with a note informing us of his upcoming Grandparents' Day program at school. The note included the line "we are asking your child to wear any bright-colored or tie-died shirt and jeans. No problem, I figured. Grandpa David and Grandma Elouise had given him a tie-dyed shirt from Florida. It'd be perfect.
I then waited until Monday night to think to look for it. And it was nowhere to be found. Not in his dresser. Not in his closet. I finally found it in the basement - in a bin of clothes AJ had outgrown two years ago.
So Tuesday evening we headed to Walmart in search of a tie-dyed shirt. As I hinted in yesterday's post, they had none. So instead we headed to the craft section and bought the tools to make one ourselves. I probably should have read the directions that included "allow to soak for 4-8 hours, then rinse and hang dry." At 11 o'clock last night, I was finally able to rinse and start the drying process.
Jeff, meanwhile, got called in to work early Wednesday morning, which meant - in the middle of trying to write a brochure that I'd brought with me home from work - I was on my own to get the kids ready and out the door. It was hectic, but finally I got them awake, dressed, fed and loaded into the car. The plan was to drop Sydney off at daycare, then drop AJ directly at school (skipping the bus ride) and then off to work I'd go. Sounds simple enough. And then I turned the key to start the car.
Nothing.
Not even the slightest whirring of a battery trying to turn over.
Absolute silence.
I believe the thoughts racing through my mind went something like "Really?!? REALLY?!? Are you freakin' kidding me?!?!?"
From the backseat, AJ started questioning what was wrong. I called Jeff and left a message that he needed to call home as soon as his situation was resolved.
I continued trying to start the car, cursing myself for stalling and not bringing the car in to be fixed last summer, the last time the starter acted up. But why did it have to pick today for a repeat performance? I must have voiced some of these concerns out loud, because then from the backseat I heard:
"Mom, sometimes it helps to take a deep breath and count to three."
Stunned, I could only ask, "Did your teacher tell you that, AJ?"
"No," he answered. "They say that on Wonder Pets."
Yet another reason to hate that show.
Nevertheless, I stopped for a moment and took a deep breath. After counting to three, I turned the key.
Still nothing.
Amazingly, Jeff called back right then to say he'd be home as quickly as possible.
Remembering that the last time this happened, the starter had magically started just as suddenly as it had decided to not work, I continued trying to start the car.
Still nothing.
I unbuckled the kids and we headed into the house. I returned to the car and continued my attempts to start it.
And then... success. I quickly called Jeff back and then loaded the kids into the car. Leaving the car running at each drop off point, I got the kids to where they needed to be. Did I mention AJ continued to make his "fluh-fluh-fluh" sounds (see yesterday's post if you're confused) during the drive? I then headed into town, switched cars with Jeff and at last made it to work. Remarkably, I was less than a minute late.
Appropriately enough, the kids are watching Yo Gabba Gabba right now (another annoying Nickelodeon show, though at least the characters don't speak with bad lisps and baby-talk voices like Wonder Pets.) and the characters are singing a song that includes the chorus, "Keep going. Keep going. Don't give up."
Sometimes I think my life could be the plot for a sit-com. But I'm afraid the critics would pan it... as way too unrealistic.
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