This is a photo of how I looked when I went OUT IN PUBLIC this afternoon. It was a day that made the top 5 of "what the??" kind of days. Here's the rundown.

1. Morning starts at 6:30 with Colin running down to tell us the potty in his bathroom was "overflowing"---which usually means that it's sounding funny or there's a poop that won't go down. So, I got up & put my contacts in...took my time...but then the kids started YELLING that it was an emergency. DUDE---it was like the movies. The bathroom floor was FLOODED (with clear water, thank God), and the toilet was still flowing over the sides. Flowing. I threw every towel in the place on the floor & tried to get the thing to stop flowing, but nothin'. Then I heard what sounded like a sink on, and realized in HORROR that it was coming from the kitchen. Ran down the stairs. Kitchen lights all POURING water out of the fixtures. Yelling to get Eric, he bolts down & turns off water...then there was much more drama and yelling and crying and standing there in like total shock. Had to cut some of the seams in the sheetrock in the ceiling to release the water & pressure. Long story short: don't know what caused it & don't care. Gonna deal with it.

2. Today's is Colin's birthday (I have an EIGHT year old!), and he was dismayed that the whole Niagra Falls in the kitchen thing was gonna put a damper on the hey-it's-my-birthday-and-there-better-be-monster-truck-shaped-pancakes-for-me thing. Soothed the situation with pancakes that were round --but they were served without me smacking anyone across the face with my spatula. The kids decided to consider that good enough.

3. Cleaning helps my mood & since it was so beautiful out, I decided to clean outside rather than in. Started a raking, weeding, mulching project that ended up taking almost 7 hours to complete. There were about 35 trips up and down the yard with wheelbarrows full of mulch. Looks great out there, but I can't feel my legs/back/arms. The kicker? I managed to upset a nasty swarm of ants...noteworthy because I am ALLERGIC to red ant bites. They were less than happy & stung me all over the place, causing my ears & neck to turn red, swell, and itch like you don't even understand. Ever see the movie Hitch with Will Smith? Yeah---like THAT. awesome.

4. THEN Eric lets me know that yes, in fact, I DO need to go to Staples and pick up his whatevers for his class tonight. And he needs them, oh, like now-ish. So, folks...I went to Staples. I've been out with only minimal makeup & with minimally clean clothes in the past. THIS was something else entirely today. I did not put on ONE BIT of makeup, had actual mulch between my flip-flopped toes, and let's not forget that my neck & ears looked like I just described in #3. Threw on an old hat & rolled. Colin went with me & looked over in the car and said, "wow--mommy--you don't look good at ALL". Thanks.

Honestly, there were a few other things, but you get the idea. I think I'm just gonna call it a day, not operate any heavy machinery (just in case), and hit it early.