What a Day

We love fall, we love outings...put them together and watch out! One of the big ones is trick or treating at the zoo. We've tried and tried to get there for the past 5 years, and each time for one reason or another, we just can't seem to make it in time to get any candy! So this year I was determined to get me some banana laffy*taffy's (er, uh, I mean, the kids needed their treats!) and was sure I could get them there in time! The morning started off with such promise...I actually woke up early (a miracle right there!), the sun was shining (this was truly amazing, since it has rained almost every day this month!), even made some yummy pumpkin pancakes so they'd be nice & full for our big day. The kids started waking up and almost immediately my balloon began to deflate...Lulu didn't like the pancakes, Big Butter wouldn't wear his costume, this was too itchy, that was too scratchy, a turtleneck under a costume would look "so dumb!"...blah blah blah...seriously guys...CANDY at the ZOO! They had been looking forward to this all week, but somehow could not get motivated to get dressed and out the door! Finally, about an hour later than I had planned, we were dressed, fed and out the door...ready to fill up those bags with some treats! I thought something was off, when the automatic doors wouldn't open, yep car won't start...oh that's right! I saw that light on last night & totally forgot to turn it off...darn battery's dead. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, as we have an SUV that they can squeeze into (and Kurt has his company truck), however...he took the SUV hunting all weekend, so we were stuck (couldn't quite fit them all in a pick-up...safely)! Good news, the next door neighbor was home and came right over to jump start my car. Bad news, it was in the garage and those darn safety features weren't letting me out it in neutral to back it out. So after flipping through the manual (so flustered and furious...did I mention Baby Butter was whining the whole time because his beloved blanket was in the washer!) and calling the dealer, (which was no help because the buttons etc he talked about were nowhere to be found!) I finally just ripped the cover off of the steering column, found THAT button and got the car in neutral and out of the garage. Bam, got it started in no time! "Come on kids get the heck outta here!" They all went outside as I ran back in for one more thing....Lulu came back in and informed me that she had accidentally locked the car! Of course I had left it running, and of course I had used the spare keys because I was in a hurry and mine were buried somewhere in the depths of my purse (which was also in the locked car)! So I called 911, knowing full-well that they wouldn't unlock it unless someone was inside (because they've done that for me before!), but hoping for a miracle...of course not! So I called my resourceful Home Teacher...naturally he was out of town! I finally got the auto-shop guy to drive out here and save the day! Long story short...I know, too late, we were able to eat some lunch before we left, got there with enough time for two handfuls of candy (which was really all they needed) and it had warmed up so my little Tinker*bell was OK without the dreaded turtleneck to keep warm! So Tink*s wings wouldn't stand up straight, Captain Hook*s hook was in the SUV 2 hrs away and Peter*Pan wouldn't wear his hat...we considered this our dress rehearsal and an opportunity to fine tune the costumes before the real deal! despite our nasty start, we had a great time...saw some animals, rode the train, got some pictures and got the heck out of there! We still had two more parties to get to! After a quick run through *Target, we were on our way to the next event...a 2nd Birthday Party for our friends' adorable twin girls! This was great...they had an inflatable bouncer in the backyard, hot dogs, adorable mini caramel apples, a Nemo*cake and more trick or treating! As if that weren't enough for one day...we had to leave the party early to go finish getting the backyard cleaned up for our S"more Fun Night with the Brownie troop! Yes, I am an idiot who clearly needs to have her head examined! Some how I think that I CAN do it all....crazy crazy crazy! We had 9 of the 11 girls and some of the moms over for a night filled with star-gazing, "create your own constellations," hot apple cider, pop-corn, of course the s'mores and the all important camp songs, (including the Hokey Pokey)! Thanks to Duraflame* I got a fire going (you would think that after all those years at Girls' Camp I would know how to build a fire, but you'd be wrong, i can't!) the girls had a great time, and I had a lot of left-over treats! I somehow thought we needed a massive pumpkin shaped Rice*Krispie Treat and a yummy chocolate, caramel "Witches Hat" on top of it all. Yeah, I was wrong, but my kids and I have been enjoying every cereal-filled bite!

So do you think that's enough for one day? Sure thing, but how about the night? Turns out, Big Butter decided to get one of his athsma/croup episodes and i was completely out of Delsym* Typically when he starts coughing, I have to give him that cough medicine, get him in the steamy bathroom AND give him a breathing treatment. Since it was midnight and Kurt was still out of town, I was in a bit of a bind! I couldn't exactly leave my kids alone while I ran down to walgreen*s! So after a quick Faceb**k post asking for help, my neighbor was soon on my porch, jammies and all! My night wasn't over just yet, we had another breathing treatment and of course a diaper change and more milk for Baby Butter (he is SUCH a spoiled little boy - my other kids NEVER had a drink of any kind in bed!) but at least we didn't need a trip to the ER (which can happen if that cough isn't stopped quick enough!)

So, it was kind of a crazy day, but I learned a few lessons along the way, including...stop trying to do so much in one day, go with those thoughts (like turn off the light in the car!!! and I had just been listening to the Conference talks all about that on Friday night! arghh!), get lots of spare keys for my car, I am so lucky to have such helpful neighbors and ever-so-important...I can beat any challenge I'm given! That's right...I am Woman, hear me ROAR!

As a side note...if anyone's still reading this incredibly lengthy post...sunday was fabulous! I made the pumpkin pancakes again and the kids mowed through them! They were happy, cooperative, sweet kids who watched "My Turn on *Earth" before going to church (almost on time!) and did an incredible job in their Primary Program...brought me to tears...so you know it was good! And that was all we did that day!