day 116: questions at 10:27 pm

How is it possible that my baby turns 9 tomorrow? Nine years old. What happened to the diapers, and crawling, and....well....needing me for basically everything??

How have I been able to go 31 1/2 years without a pedicure? Ever. 'Til today. 'Til the mother-in-law called me on a whim and told me to meet her there. So what does one do when one's M-I-L gets these crazy whims? One simply rolls with it, and enjoys it.

What is wrong with this child? Really? She is the weirdest, most random, eclectic-thinking person that I have ever encountered. One day I'd like to figure out what makes her tick.

Who would've thought that allowing the girls to get the outside toys out of the barn would have resulted in a mud pie making fest? I've never been the kind of mom that shudders at the thought of something so messy. We paint, quite often. We love to do Pla-Doh. Which we even did today. On the same day as mud pies. Horrors! And yes, I know my kids had good clothes on. To their credit, they even poked their heads inside and asked if they should change. "Nah," I said. "You'll all come clean later." But notice the mud boots. Good idea, girls.

Why are these dumb chips so good, and why have I not discovered them until now, and how in the world did I eat half the bag while cleaning the kitchen? Good heavens.

"Mom, can I please take my bath after supper?" Nine damp Bounty paper towels, a stack of laundry, and two kids clad in only their undergarments later, I said "yes".

Why did I wait so long to get this simple project done? And then why did I wait to start it the day before the girls' birthday party bash? But I simply adore the way these kitchen curtains turned out. I discovered them hidden away at my Grandma's house almost a month ago. Except they weren't long enough....until I met with the remnant bin at Jo-Anns and landed on the perfect shade of yellow for the bottom. A few stitches later....voila! Love it.

(And one more question: why does this child in particular, now much cleaner after her bath, remind me all too much of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde? How can she be a terror one moment and the next, washing my dishes, without even being asked?)