weekends, love em' or hate em'...

i have a love/hate relationship with the weekends. during the week, i am struggling as a single parent with school activities and homework to help out with, keeping a strict schedule to keep things flowing smoothly, waking up early to take kids to school and pick them up. all i can think of is how easy and carefree the weekend will be. but, i always forget how crazy the weekend becomes. some things i love about weekends:

fun things to do around town as a family, like: the bookless party at the public library downtown. 

the painting wall was a hit with the kids.

my little artists did not want to leave this station. it was just way too much fun.

did i mention that this paint was not washable paint? permanent. yep. too late now. at least they loved it.

isaiah and makayah were relatively paint-stained-free. however, samiyah managed to fall into the wet-paint wall. of course she would. and she had the nerve to just laugh about it all. 

quick snack break and then down to the basement for some creepy light-up mummies.

there was also some kind of maze, complete with dragon skeletal remains. isaiah found that sticking shoes into another person's artwork is hilarious. boys.

weekends are also fun because we get to experience new things like free bluegrass concerts, and super simple artwork that inspire my budding artists - 'hey, i can totally draw that!'

we capped off our party visit in the "stuffies" room. i finally got to sit down and relax while the kids rolled around.

mak was such a doll today. thanks for being so chill. whew.

daddy met up with us after his basketball game and we headed over to the overture center for the rotunda kids performance. it was free and it kept my clean house cleaner for a little longer.

mimzy was entranced by the juggling man. she even clapped daddy's face during the really impressive parts.

i was not in the mood to go home and dirty up my clean kitchen. we walked down the street for some gyros and fries. someday mims will realize how dangerous it is to fall asleep when daddy is around. 

so there. the reasons why i like the weekends - fun stuff to do as a family. there is nothing better than watching my children laugh and enjoy themselves, and have the chance to talk and laugh with my husband. those sparkling moments make walking through the freezing wind with a stuffy nose, down state street, all worth it. 

now, one may look at this collage of our day and think, 'wow! what a perfect saturday afternoon!'

 let me just say, it takes a great amount of effort to create this. 

i stress out about a number of things. i stress out when the house is not clean and in order. i stress out about being on time. i stress out when things don't go according to the plan inside my head. that's a lot of stressing out, i know. and it's even more disturbing to realize that i am the only one who stresses out about these things.

this morning began nice enough with a waffle and sausage breakfast. we made the plan of cleaning up the house before going out to these fun and fantastic events around town. well, i guess i should clarify - I made the plan to have the house clean before we left. after breakfast, everyone disappeared into the living room to watch movies...while i cleaned. yeah, that stressed me out. i don't do well with these "let our breakfast settle" breaks.

stressing out. 

cleaning up.

shouting orders at the kids and husband.

looking at the clock.

stressing out, again.

ugh. i was so ready to throw in the towel, and tell everyone the plans were scratched. i really hate turning good mornings into bad ones. somehow i pushed aside my seething fury about being the only one who cleaned anything up, and decided to be grateful that i didn't have to take care of the kids' baths. i really wanted to keep this bad attitude i had acquired, but, at the same time i really wanted the kids to have a fun day. in the end, the kids won out and i had to water down the flames. i can be an incredibly unselfish person. they should be thankful. ;)

sometimes, the weekend chaos just really stresses me out. i haven't yet figured out how to juggle the weekend fun with the weekend disaster it almost always brings. i cleaned my house this morning. by the end of sunday, there will be pillows and blankets and crumbs sprinkled across my living room floor (yep, no matter how many times i tell my kids to eat at the table). the kitchen sink will be overflowing with dirty dishes. there will be milk and cheerios spilled beneath the kitchen table. and of course, more laundry to wash. i will be too wiped out to do anything about it all, and it will stay this way until monday morning when the kids are at school, when mimzy is napping, and when i am supposed to be having some ME time - i will, instead, be forced to clean this place again because otherwise i will go insane and be terribly unhappy and unsettled. there's nothing i hate more than stepping on sticky floors.

sometimes, i wish i had a wife of my own. someone who could clean up after ME. someone who would make ME breakfast, lunch, and dinner. someone who would wash and fold MY laundry. someone who cares about how clean and tidy this place is as much as i do, and then clean it accordingly. and maybe if i did have a wife of my own, i could finally be a real person with hobbies and interests again.

oh monday, where art thou?

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today i am grateful for:

*the willpower to let go of my pride. it really did make me happy to see my kids have such a fabulous day.

*homemade hummus. 

*free events around town. free is always good.