Appreciate What Matters

Woke up 4am, not feeling good, scratchy  throat, drink orange juice just in case, pop ibuprofen, polish final draft on a project for someone else, hit the send button... Gone! Need documents, go to print... Damn! Out of ink AGAIN! Go to the library, realize my tire is flat, air it up, can't find the valve for the air compressor, "mom, are you going to make our lunches?", make lunches for 4 kids, stop at the gas station on the way to library. Air up tire-note to self: sign says air is $1.00, only needs 3 quarters to turn on the same amount of time! Print docs at library, home, put in load of laundry. Hungry... no food. Didn't I just get groceries? Eat a string cheese and make a grocery list, pay bills, check emails, load dishwasher, need to go to the gym, get dressed for the gym,last minute call, on my way out the door, my editor has moved up a deadline on my 2nd rewrite, gym is out, glue myself to my IPad, oldest teen daughter is annoyed because I ignore her most urgent issues of the day, oh crap, Kylie still needs her blood tested for the week! Test her blood, drive to the bank and to express mail the blood, tire low again, DAMN-forgot it only needs 3 quarters! Forgot to drop off the express mail after the bank! Send Lopez to do it on his way to work. Laugh to myself when I notice where the elfie on the shelf ended up today when I walk in my house... his connected hands come in handy for a lot of positions, I would've made them Velcro... FOR GOD'S SAKE, STAY FOCUSED. Running out of time, kids home from school very soon, speak of the devil... call from the school, Isaac has detention for too many tardies, note to self: don't forget to pick him up! Hungry, still no food, tea instead, glued to IPad, folded laundry, put away kids clean clothes, got distracted, picked up dirty ones off their floor, now the laundry is full again! Previously frozen meal from the freezer in the oven for supper, looking like grocery shopping will need to wait, giving me anxiety, Thanksgiving in 2 weeks! Emailed finished work to editor, call right back, wrong format, reformat, re-emailed, think to myself that I really need to call my parents-miss them! Kids home, homework, projects, dinner, oh crap! Forgot Isaac! In my defense, I remembered before he walked through the door! Kitchen is a mess, lock myself in my room in an attempt to avoid needy kids, they text me instead. I write some more, got some supper, note to self: really need to get groceries tomorrow! Still not feeling too good, kind of feel worse. Fell asleep fast, woke up at 2am, couldn't sleep, pondered life's greatest mysteries as one can only do at 2am. Came up with a few things that could've made my day easier: not have had kids in the first place, had stuck with my easier, more reliable job, bought a brand new set of tires the day before and quit writing. Then I realized that all those things are why I even get up every morning. I am sure the reason the kids get up these days is the anticipation of what the elfie has been up to all night. Damn, that elfie really has it all figured out!