Now What?

When 7 of 10 of the kids are in school, what will be my excuse for not getting the house clean?

I can't chalk up all the not done stuff to an 8 month old, an almost 3 year old boy and a 4 and a half year old girl can I?

It would be...unfair.  

It's rather like when I'm not pregnant, I can't lose weight.  I'm the only person I know who gains weight after she delivers...because I eat like I still am, afterwards. 

So much of my life is wound up in getting these people to where they need to go, and to do what they need to do, that this feels surreal, serene even.   The baby is asleep in her crib.  The two year old is watching a show with talking cars, and the little girl is drawing at the table. 

Then the phone rings.  It's school.  Serenity is over.  It's gone.  Those were a nice two seconds.  I'll miss them.  The baby wakes and cries. The show is over and the boy needs a change.  My daughter has come to me asking for two pony tails, her shoes and if we can make brownies today.

Off the phone.  It seems I need to bring item X to child B by noon or the world as we know it will cease to exist.  Locate Item X.  While searching for item X, I find items Q, N and 344-1 part A.  I know these are critical to children A, D, E and H, but that none of the others have bothered to notice these things are missing.  Still haven't found item X.  Consider going to store with remaining children to get item X.  Now, if I don't make the extra trip, it seems lazy.   I put all that I find in the car, on the theory that if I find X, I will go, if not, when everyone comes home, I'll know where everything they might need, is.  That is, except for X. 

I make the pony tails, change the diaper and bottle the baby. 

"Mom?" my pony tailed daughter asks, "Can we give Rita the same hairdo?" 
"Yes, if she wants it." I answered. "Do you miss her?"
"No."  She shakes her head decidedly.  "When are we picking her up?" 

Meanwhile the almost three has climbed into the crib and the words "Don't sit on the baby" have left my mouth even as I'm moving to intercept.  He's undeterred and begins showering his little sister with stuffed animals.  When that's stopped, he begins to dump the laundry. 

Then my daughter starts drawing and decides I should watch.  It's my "break."  I say "unbreak" to type.  But when she says "break," I get to stop writing or doing what I'm doing and watch and do nothing else.  I....can...type...if...I...keep....my....eyes....locked....on....the....paper. I'm also having to super stealth tap the keys.  She's calling a lot of breaks, my unbreaks are about ten seconds long. 

I decide we're going to drop off the stuff at school even if I can't find X.

I'm also no longer worried that I won't have excuses if the house isn't clean.  I'll just explain, I'm on "break."