Bent Out of Shape

I woke up this morning earl-I-A this morning so that I could do S's hair.  I only came away with a couple of burned fingers and S walked away with ringlets galore.  She wore her new shirt and shorts even though it was cold this morning at 7 am when she had to leave for choir practice.

It is picture day at the elementary school.  The school has two picture days.  One at the beginning of the year.  The second is around this time of year.  Class pictures are taken for $10 in addition to individual shots in more casual poses with a more interesting background than the typical one color backgrounds of the standard school pictures.  Pictures are sent home for approval at a later date in a package of multiple sizes so parents can pay for as many as they want and return the rest or all of them.

We didn't spring for pictures at the beginning of the year because money is always tight during that time of year after paying for everything else that the kids need to start school.  I also was hoping that the second picture day would happen like it did last year.

A was not a happy camper this morning.  He was slow moving and I had a feeling that we were going to have issues.  Sure enough....  M trotted off with C this morning, taking her to school, and then headed off to work.  I was left to prod, plead, and yell at the boys to get ready for school.  Every morning it's the same thing...get dressed, eat breakfast, comb your hair, brush your teeth.  I have tried to just let them be and not nag them, but that never works either.

A had put temporary tattoos on his neck over the weekend.  I told him that they had to come off but, of course, he didn't want me to scrub them off last night or this morning.  I had a bitch of a time getting them off and, according to him, I hurt him unbearably doing so.  He refused to wear the plain blue T-shirt I had out for him to wear and instead came out with his Despicable Me Minions shirt on.  Now, I love the Minions as much as anyone but not on picture day.  He also had on his holiest of jeans which wasn't that big of a deal.

I barely got him out the door.  I made the motion of leaving him in the house pretending that I was actually leaving him.  He didn't believe me.  I would have really left to take Z to school, but I just imagined coming home to the police in front of my house because he hadn't stayed inside to pout.  At this point we were 10 minutes behind schedule and I had called Michael--a cry for help and another ruse to get A to shape up in fear of his dad.  When we got to his school, he wouldn't get out of the car right away.  More begging, pleading, cajoling--all this while the gym teacher looked on offering no help.  A wouldn't go into the school and at this point Z was going to be late.  I pulled A back into the car, shot the unhelpful gym teacher a look that could kill, called M again, and drove to the middle school to drop Z off.

I took A back home.  Murderous thoughts raced through my head.

See, that's the thing.  I have no power in this relationship or any others.

In my phone call to M, in which I yelled and then hung up on him (a mortal sin in M's eyes), I told him he had to come home from work and deal with A because I couldn't be late late to work or miss work.  I honestly didn't know if I could get A to go to school at that point, although the little poop head was showing a most aggravating sense of calm at this point.  Why not?  He had won.  I was upset.

A sat on the couch and I in my room until 8:30.  I was just ready to take A to school and was calling M when he walked in the door.  I got the warning, "don't ever call and yell at me like that and hang up."  He took A to school....I think he got there.  I haven't heard.

I'm bent out of shape in more ways than one.

I actually don't feel all that well today.  You know you're out of shape when you wake up with muscle aches because you pinned a quilt the day before on your hands and knees.  My butt muscles actually hurt today and so does my shoulder.  Pathetic.

I would never give up quilting even if I occasionally consider it.  It feels good to be in control of one small corner of the universe.  Quilting is my one small corner of the universe.  (I must give credit where credit is due.  This line is from G is for Gumshoe by Sue Grafton.)