Belated Day In the Life: Saturday

3:30 am: Lea wakes up and calls for me. I stumble across the hall, say "hi baby," fall into her bed and go back to sleep.

7:19 am: Lea wakes up and joins the spousal unit and her sisters somewhere on the other side of the door. I fall back asleep.

8:52 am: I wake up. As is his custom (and dear God, bless the man), the spousal unit has taken everyone to breakfast and the house is peaceful. I take advantage and jump in the shower.

9:07 am: I opt for wavy hair.

9:30 am: Family returns. Tales of hash browns, eggs, bacon, etc.

10:00 am: I take Lea to her Kindergarten playdate. Four girls, two boys, and their assorted parents are present. Most are newbies, so I am regaled with questions. This is mildly strenuous, since two of the families are on waiting lists at private schools and are terrified at the prospect of ending up at our school. "But do they do art?" one of the Dads asked me, concern etched all over his face.

*pause*
*biting of tongue*

I say, "Oh, yes," and explain the everyday art as well as Art in Action.

10:15 am: Am taking mild pride in Lea, as she is mixing and mingling quite well. Her sisters normally pave the way for her in social situations, so it is nice to see her hold her own instead of shrinking behind my legs.

11:30 am: Lea and I head home to pick up the big girls.

11:45 am: Off to the farmer's market. Purchased:

5 White Lady peaches
1 Quart blueberries
1 Small carton raspberries
2 Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion handpies
2 Yukon Gold Potato and Corn handpies
3 Pounds heirloom tomatoes
1 Vegetable tamale
1 Chicken tamale
1 Medium bag kettle corn

Total = $58

12:30 pm: Lunch!

1:15 pm: Spousal unit takes the girls to the driving range. They bring four dolls and the bag of kettle corn.

1:15 - 1:47 pm: A cursory glance through Vogue, stopping only to read the Winona Ryder article and the excerpt from Alek Wek's upcoming autobiography. Why? I do not know.

2:00 pm: Make blueberry crumb cake for my brother's 2nd despedida at right hand gal's house later this afternoon.

2:45- 3:00 pm: Blogging while baking.

3:02 pm: Cake is done! After cooling, I cut it up, put it on the cake plate, and dust with powdered sugar:


3:15 - 4:00 pm: Everyone gets cleaned up and made presentable. There is the brushing of teeth, the braiding of hair, the placement of hair bands, the tightening of ponytails. I somehow forget to include myself in this ritual and so leave the house looking rather wild and unkempt.

4:17 pm: Walk to right hand gal's house in single file with my children, cake plate held aloft. Upon arrival, we see that everyone is in the swimming pool. The girls stare at me accusingly. I call the spousal unit, who is ten minutes behind, to bring over swimsuits. I hightail it into the bathroom to tame my hair and tend to my eyes. FAILURE. Oh, well.

4:20 - 8:50 pm: A blur of lifeguard duty, conversations on the fly, delicious food, the re-living of quite hilarious pre-child moments with people I have known forever, and kids who disappear for an hour to play without incident which—quite mercifully—allows the grown-ups to avail of delightful cuss words to our heart's content.

9:00 - 9:10 pm: Get the kids into bed.

9:30 - 11:00 pm: Fun with surround sound! A man, you see, has been in my house for the past two days wiring and drilling and wiring and drilling and now? Now when I'm sitting in the den watching a movie, the sound thunders through the back of my head and, it seems, out through my eyeballs. Um, neat! But the spousal unit is enthralled, and who am I to deny him?

11:00 - 12:15 pm: Reading and, at last, sleep.