Mama said there'd be days like this...

Lows:

• Getting up with Cookie-Nut at 6:00 AM.
• Stripping Dangerboy's wet sheets.
• Losing Dangerboy at the farmer's market today while I was paying for perfect apricots.
• The kids not sleeping in the car as much as I'd hoped this afternoon.
  
• Having too-optimistically agreed to babysit tonight (alone, post-bedtime), having to deal with an exhausted son and baby. The latter screamed intermittently for periods of time, and when she finally settled down, the boys all ran back by her bedroom and woke her up. (If you're reading this, parents, your kids were really fine--it was mine who gave me problems!)
  
• After several time-outs through the course of the evening, hearing DB scream, "I don't love you anymore!!!" at me when I told him he couldn't have another graham cracker. Really wanting to spank him, or something. (Mom, you said this day would come).
• Making my dear husband feel bad for having a decent day (he's in Davis at a dissertation workshop). It was after 10:00; I was tired; I was cleaning smeared graham crackers of the chairs and ground-up popcorn from the carpet. It was hard listen to him talk about his day, but I should have tried. I'm sorry honey.
  

Highs:

• Playing with Cookie-Nut on my bed from 6:00-7:00 AM.
• Finding perfect apricots at the farmer's market.
• Finding a tearful DB at the farmer's market (after losing him, of course--a nice mommy was helping him look for me).
• Watching Cookie-Nut walk and push her stroller all over the El Dorado Nature Center (which was fun, BTW, and cheap). She walked more than I've ever seen her. Just charmed everybody.
• Reading Dangerboy this book at the Nature Center while Cookie-Nut walked around.
• Praying for patience, knowing that DB was just exhausted tonight and didn't need me to punish him; he just needed me to understand. Snuggling up to him for a bedtime story just a few minutes after his little outburst; his kiss on my cheek goodnight.