So far, nothing of any note has occured today. Most of the time that is the way I like it because I feel the need for down time from a hectic work week. Today, however, I’m feeling rather antsy and, as usual, so are Michele, Keegan, and the other kids. Rather than just sit around letting the general mess and confusion get on my nerves, I think we need to go somewhere and do something. Trouble is, go where? and do what?

While I try to find an answer to those questions, let me point out that being a parent requires the patience (and capability to forgive) of a saint. Case in point: This a.m. my attention was caught by several large, deep scratches on the front of the dishwasher, inflicted by Cohen. Did I mention that we don’t own this appliance?! Then there was the lovely bracelet that Michele spent hours creating using beadwork, only to have Cohen get ahold of it and break it in a few minutes. Let’s see, what else? Some of my most valuable and cherished books, which I purposely put up on the highest shelves, were found the other day with pages and covers ripped off. A while back I discovered deep scratch marks on the screen of our iMac. Seems that Brinley and Cohen thought it’d be fun to carve up the screen using a handy letter opener. A few months ago, Keegan, for some odd reason, decided to sit on the sink counter in the bathroom downstairs and managed to break the entire counter. And I don’t know how many times we’ve scrubbed the walls to remove crayon, pen, and pencil marks. It’s a losing battle. Why is it that little (and big) children are so good at destroying anything of sentimental or actual value that we possess?