Rainy Days and Mondays

... actually keep me pretty up.

It's been an overcast, where-did-the-sun-go kind of day, with spitty rain everywhere. I don't mind that at all. It makes for a calm and centered Mommy. Children, however, respond to this type of weather quite differently. Just as a shrieking toddler at 8 p.m. is a sure sign that bedtime is nigh, as she is so tired she's working extra hard to keep herself awake, children in the "calm" zone of low pressure systems tend to ramp things up. This was evidenced not only in my own house but in my classroom. It's like they all get an extra-sensory kid memo that says, "Weather conditions are excellent for tornadoes. Go be one."

Sierra had lots of extra energy today, to the point that she fell asleep in the car about three minutes after I pulled out of our school's parking lot. She slept like a rock all the way home, 60 minutes later, even after I picked up Jenna, who decided that today was the day to occupy her mouth with her sister's name. "Sierra ... Sierra ... Sierra! ... SIERRA! ... Siiiiiiiieeeeeeeerrrrra ...." I am blessed with the fact that Sierra is able to sleep through tropical storms, fireworks, and barking dogs at the foot of her bed. Now we can add persistent little sisters to that list.

Jenna, on the other hand, is just plain feeling better after starting her second course of antibiotics for a stubborn ear infection. She's ready to take on the world. The only problem is that most of the world isn't ready for her. We're all grown-ups. We're all asleep today. Could you please join us? It's comfy on the lazy side of adolescence. We know you won't be on this end of things for a couple of decades, but we can dream, can't we?

The icing on the cake, at least for the girls, is that Rob has had extensive dental work done today, so he has a sore mouth. This means comfort food for dinner. We'll be having the quintessential kid cuisine staple of macaroni and cheese with tuna, and crescent rolls. At the behest of an adult. It'll be like child heaven.

Maybe the sun will come out tomorrow and the kids will be more centered. Then all the adults can go back to their neurotic, angst-ridden, I-have-a-million-deadlines-today lives. And the kids will go back to suffering through dinners consisting of lima beans and pork roast.

Enjoy the clouds while they last, little ones.