Time's A-Tickin'

In only 9 days, I will be outta here! My friend Kristin and I have booked ourselves a girls' vacation. One week, all-inclusive, and guaranteed no shovelling of snow. We are off to San Salvador, El Salvador, where this upcoming week, the weather will be sunny, with highs between 30 and 33C, and lows around 18C at night. Pretty sweet.

As the Queen of Procrastination, I have surprised even myself at the amount of pre-planning I have done for this trip. I cleaned out my drawers and closets. Tried on a bunch of summer stuff, and put in a haphazard pile, all of the clothes I intend to pack. I bought a couple of new shirts, a pair of shorts, some capri pants, and 3 new bathing suits. I have sunscreen and chapstick. Cameras locked and loaded to go. And most importantly, I have written up a Husband/Father Survival Guide for the week I am gone, as Mark is taking the week off to be Father of the Year while I am away.

I was surprised at the amount of stuff he needs to know; after all, they are his kids too. He lives in the same house as we do. As my friend would say, God is in the details. Like what time school starts. When it ends. Which days they each attend. Pizza Day. Dance-A-Thon. Library days. Spelling homework. Reading logs. Writing practice. Language therapy. Medication. How to operate the washing machine, and dryer. All of these big and little things and more. It's enough to make one's head spin. My friend Darra said that seemed like too much work to even leave the house.

I say, girlfriend, it is worth it. Take the time, to take the time out. So needless to say, this will be a very busy week for me, getting everything ready to go, not just for me, but for the FOUR boys I am leaving behind.

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On a separate note, how often do you do laundry? I seems, no, it is the reality, that around here, I put the laundry away, and fill up the baskets again. It is never-ending! I am doing laundry as I type! (Okay, well, the machines are, but I have to load them, and fold or hang stuf...so you know what I mean).

Speaking of laundry...have you seen the new Gain commercial? The one where the guy puts on a shirt, and spends minutes smelling and stroking it, until his wife walks by and looks at him like he is some kind of freak? Well, recently, after a static-cling-induced rage of my husband's, I bought some Bounce dryer sheets. Today I washed towels, and threw one of these in. I got out the shower a while ago, and spent a creepily-long amount of time smelling my towel. So soft, so fresh! I guess the Gain Guy and I have some bizarre connection. And that really weirds me out.

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Yesterday afternoon, I took a rare nap. Not planned, just passed out on the couch, with the back-of-the-mind assurance that Mark was home for the day, and was watching the kidlets. It was such a nice nap. Nice dreams accompanied said nice nap. Until Ty Superfly Snuka, in a rare moment of top-rope aerialist flying attacks, body-slammed me from the end of the couch. He laughed until he peed himself (which he didn't care, mom will change his diaper anyway) and I counted broken ribs. Kripes! (Mantra of that day? "Children are a blessing. Children are a blessing.")

Well, I suppose that I should go and fold the next load of laundry. Even though it is 10:30 at night, and the kidlets are asleep. And husband is in bed watching a movie. Sigh. How long till that vacation again?