How The Weekend Set Out to Kill Me and Almost Succeeded

Seriously. I think Saturday was out to get it. It almost succeeded. I almost succumbed. In the interest of not dragging this blog entry out for hours (who, me??) I thought I'd do a timeline of how I spent my Saturday. This is a true and honest accounting. The overwhelming feelings for Saturday? Guilt, frustration, pride and exhaustion.

• 6:15 My husband woke me to go walking. I think, but I'm not sure, that I hit him.
• 6:30 I got up. Begrudgingly. Annoy-edly. Grumpily. But I did get up.
• 6:35- 7:55 we walked. It took me a while, but I think I started talking to the man about 10 minutes in. About 10 minutes after that, I think he regretted waking me.
• 8:00 - breakfast. Grumping because it's not a favored meal. Whatever.
• 9:00 dressing little girls for soccer. DON'T forget your shorts! French braiding hair. Can't find Gabe's Muay Thai pants. They are probably in the pile of wash on the sofa - a stellar 14 loads, awaiting their folding. I separate the wash while frantically searching for the pants. I may have grumbled about how.much.wash there is. This was not one of my best moments. Fold NOT.ONE.PIECE.
  
• 10:00 little girls soccer game. In the rain. Yay. I don't think anyone used a timer - this game went forEVER.
  
• 11:00 Mackenzie's soccer game. At a different field in a different city. I was so late - the little girls game ran so over - that I was there for the last two minutes of play. Which she was not in, so I didn't see her play at all. Sometimes I feel like the worlds worst mother. Most times.
  
• 12:00 Drive Allegra and her friend to the OTHER side of the city to drop them off. Stop at the grocery store for eggs, butter, marshmallow fluff and a Subway sandwich to fill my belly.
  
• 1:00-4:30 make eggplant parmigiana for family get together Sunday. This involves peeling and thinly slicing the eggplant, soaking it in heavily salted water for 10 minutes, dipping it in flour/egg/panko bread crumbs, frying in olive oil. Layer the cooled slices with sauce and slices of fresh mozzarella and shredded Parmesan. Top with more cheese. Partially bake to finish the next day. Make Perfect Party cake recipe into 48 cupcakes. 
• 4:30 drive like a bat out of hell with my son to meet his prom date and two other couples - I was the photographer for this really great group of kids who are at my house almost every day. Capturing shots like these:
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  Proving that, even in times of great drama, my son is still a goofball.
  
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  Refuse to get misty eyed. Instead, take the boys to the side and tell them the torturously dramatic tale of my own senior prom and remind them that this is a BIG day for the girls. Touch on subjects such as remaining calm, holding doors, pulling chairs the polite way, standing when their date leaves the table, and offering jackets in cold weather. Threaten to kill them if they are not perfect gentlemen.
  
• 6:00 SPAGHETTI dinner at church. Thank GOD I don't have to cook.
• 7:30 The prom goers return to my house for a touch up before the actual prom. We take more pics.
  
  
  
  
• 8:00 commence cooking again. Mix cookie dough. Make frosting. Decorate cupcakes.
  
• 9:00 stop to fold said (annoying) laundry. Put baskets upstairs.
• 10:00 begin to make Italian Herb bread dough.
• 11:00 punch dough down and shape into loaves.
• 11:30 put bread in oven. Upload Prom 2010 pics into computer, onto Facebook and tag everyone.
• 12:00 pull bread out of oven and collapse into exhausted sleep.
  

There's a reason I'm so wiped today. It's called OverAchieverWhoAlwaysTriesToDoWayTooMuch Syndrome.

Comments

[MB Squared]

Wow, and I thought I had a busy Saturday! You are my hero Carmen.

[Lise]

Wow, what a crazy-busy day. My hat's off to you. Especially since I bet that was a typical Saturday for you.

I finally solved the mountains of laundry problem by teaching my kids to do their own laundry. I haven't washed kids' clothes since 2000. I paired them up and assigned each pair two days a week. They could do laundry on both days or on just one, but having assigned days kept them from fighting. My youngest was five at the time. She was paired with her fourteen-year-old sister, but would drag her little step-stool over to reach the washer controls. She loved doing a grown up job. And I could justify my laundry aversion by calling it "Teaching the kids important life skills." Heh.

[Debby Pucci]

Awesome prom pictures. Awww....

I don't know how you do it all. So what was your husband doing all day?

[Heather]

Wonderful Prom Pics! You are Super Mom. I hope that I can do half of what you achieved in a day.

Wow, I miss Mom duty way too much... I'll be complaining once I'm out of the sick bed.

[Headless Mom]

Love the prom pics!

You're killing me with the over-achieving!!!!

[maggie]

Carmen, God bless you! You are awesome!

[BeeBelle]

I had a similar Saturday, preparing for one event today that was cancelled at literally the last minute, and another that was expected to be 1:00-3:00 and was in fact 1:00-7:00 ... so learning the hard way that everything else I THOUGHT had to be done today can actually wait ...

[Karen]

I'm pretty sure your life would kill me if I tried to live it.

(BTW, your son is very handsome.)

[Jodie]

You are awesome Carmen! Look at how much you got done in ONE day! If I accomplished that much in a week I'd be feeling pretty good. Your laundry makes me feel guilty for complaining about my 10 loads a week :)

[Young Wife]

Wow. That's a lot. The prom pics are too cute!

[Nicki]

*blink-blink* You managed to do all of that without running screaming from the room and eating the 48 cupcakes. You are my hero. :) The pictures are great! I hope they all enjoyed their prom.

[Mama Bear]

We had prom here on Saturday night, too. Take your list, a good share of it, and add to it: Chairperson of the After Prom Party, set up for the After Prom Party, and hairdresser for my daughter going to prom, and you've got my day. Wasn't it fun? Argh... hope your son was as tired and crabby as my daughter was yesterday. I was scared of her.

[Megan]

Carmen. Please. The "world's worst mom" would not enroll her little girls in soccer, break her neck trying to get to the games in time, make eggplant parm (which sounds absolutely delish) for a family gathering, take pictures of her son and his date and give him the mom speech, do 14 loads of laundry, need I go on? Nik and his date are very good-looking young adults -- he probably wouldn't like this, but I still remember him as this little red-headed toddler in mismatched clothes because "he dressed himself today."

[Brandy]

And I thought I was busy last week! You are a great Mom to do ALL of that for your family.

[Sarah]

Those were the days! Now I think I'm guilty of Dereliction of Duty!

[UKCraftySal]

Just thinking about your laundry load tally or mileage wipes me out! You are such a great Mum: all the stuff you do for everyone else.

Just look at your son: you did a great job!

[kyooty]

YAY! for Prom though, that means 1 down 5 to go? :)