All Dressed Up and No Place To Go

monday morning marked a big day back to school.  the children had been on holiday for three weeks.  we'd flown back from the states only a couple of days prior and were still battling jet lag.  i'd taken the extra time to lay out their clothes and things the night before as i always do to try and make the morning go as smoothly as possible.  i try to be prepared for anything that could possible make us late.  not because i'm such a good mom.  quite the opposite.  if i'm not totally organized, i'm totally UNorganized.  

the morning started out with little zane at my bedside.  at 4:59 am.  i could hear him saying, "mommy, i have something to tell you!"

then he waited.

and i waited.

i was hoping, praying really, that he would go away.

just go away you tiny little intruder.  i'm sleeping.  i can't even see straight right now.  it is not time to get UP!


so...i ignored him.

but zane is not easily ignored.  so he came over, got in my face and said, "MOMMY, I HAVE SOMETHING TO TELL YOU!"

after tilting my face up off the pillow and mumbling a bit i asked, "what zane, what do you want to tell me?"


"well, i just want to tell you that i don't think i'm weewy that sweeeepy anymore".

oh no he didn't.....

zane did end up going back to bed.  and he did fall back asleep.  i did not.

so after laying in bed for a while longer, i got up and got our day going.  it was the first day back.  i was such a sight.  hair all a mess, bags under my eyes, and sweatpants.  yes, it was going to be a sweatpants kind of morning.  i couldn't managed to fix coffee for myself.  i wanted to make sure everyone was up, ready and out the door.

first day back!  we have to be on time.  i need to be prepared for their jet lag leftovers.  for tears.  for ANYTHING that could make us late.


but once the children woke up, it was relatively easy.  just a regular old morning.  they were all tired but in really good moods.  echo was so tired that she was super quiet and just sat in her chair up under all her black hair and ate peacefully.  (score!)

we got out the door in record time.  truly.  it's like we were floating to the bus.  it was so nice.  we managed to catch the bus after only waiting 2-3 minutes.  there were PLENTY of seats on the bus.  we all flew to back and sat down.  and then i began to realized things....

where is zane's lunch box?
oops, we didn't bring their math workbooks back.
oops, we didn't  complete, or even BEGIN, their easter diaries.
oops, reese has on GREEN nail polish.  (she'd been told not to wear nail polish after the head master saw her with light pink a couple of months ago.)

you would think these things might get me down, but no.  i was still in good spirits, telling the children not to worry about any homework that may or may not be due (i mean, maybe it was meant for fun, right?).  and i told zane that mommy would be back in an hour with his lunch.  just enjoy the bus ride and let's get to school, people.

once we got off the bus and walked the rest of the way to school and rounded the corner, things seemed a little quiet.  i immediately began to wonder the impossible.  could school be closed today?  could we be late?  suddenly maddox, my ever so observant son asks, "mommy, are we late or something".  we continue to walk and as we near the school doors, it is becoming more clear that we are either really early, really late.  or there is no school.

i check my watch.  8:41 am.  children are allowed to begin walking in from 8:00-9:00 am.  okay, we are not late.  we get to the door and all four stand there for a moment in complete silence.  but i can't except the truth.  this can't be happening.  so i tell them, "we're going in".  we pushed open the door, good sign that the door opened.

and then i see a mom of a child who's in zane's room.  she is paying a bill at the front desk and starts to laugh.  she asks me if i got all the kids dressed for school today (laughing) because (laughing) there is no school today.  school is closed.  school starts back tomorrow.  we have an extra day.

we have an extra day.

an extra day.

well, that would have been nice, huh?


so, what else could we do, we got back on the bus, and rode home.

and picked up coffee.

a venti latte.

we made it in the door and kids stripped of their clothes and got down into their underwear and began to run around.  who cares if we were all dressed up with no place to go.  i was still in my sweatpants and no bra, so why not let the kids get practically naked.

and i can honestly say, i LOVED my "extra" day with those children.  i loved it.  we were all giddy when we returned home (i was sucking down a venti coffee, after-all!).  we were all just thrilled to have another day together.  another day to play.  another day of freedom.  an extra day.

one day, i will look back on this day and feel so blessed to have had that day.

i already do.