This was one of those days that I would not want to relive, BUT….I promised this post, so here it goes.
Daisy’s 7th birthday party was two weeks ago. Last year we had only recently moved to Phoenix before her 6th birthday, so we didn’t have a lot of friends to invite. This time I wanted to make sure we had kids at the party, and due to the fact that it was Labor Day weekend I decided to over-invite, thinking some would be heading out of town. Wrong! Twelve girls later, plus Ainsley and Daisy….you could say my house was a 3-ring circus.
If you have been reading my posts than you are already aware that Jerilyn came home on Friday night after a 3 week stay in the hospital. Due to the fact that (A) I thought such a large group of girls screaming around the house would set off her sensory alarms, and (B) that “hello”…she had had lice at the hospital and I had basically de-liced and quarantined her before all the masses descended for the party; I needed another plan for her Saturday.
We had a plan set, or so I thought. My dad and brother, Paul, were planning to take Jerilyn and the boys (our boy cousins) out to see Captain America while we had the party. Fast forward to the party now, people are starting to arrive and my dad, who went to run an errand is still not back. Now, I am starting to stress because Jerilyn needed to already be gone, so we don’t have new transition issues and/or her blurting out anything remotely related to lice.
My dad now arrives and tells us that he has rented a jet ski for the day and that they are taking the kids (all 5 now) up to “Pleasant” Lake. I can tell you, from that moment, I knew the day was going to be a disaster. You don’t just take kids on a day outing like that without some planning involved….I know that, and I’m not even a “planner” type.
So now, my sister-in-law Vicki has to help get kids dressed and ready for the trip and I’m quite sure is thinking that she’d rather be going with them now, instead of helping me manage the 14 girls that have filled the house. I’m also aware that now, after we finish 3 hours of hectic party-ness, we are going to have to pile in the car and head up to Pleasant Lake.
The party went great, but as soon as the door closes with the last girl gone, we start scrambling to get out as well. By the time we are on the road we have been informed by my very frustrated brother that they are up there at some marina and there is no place for the kids to get in the water, so they are having to wait in 110 degree temps for their turn on the jet ski. Can we say disaster?? Can I say…“I told you so.”
Oh, and Jerilyn is not cooperating. Really? A kid with ODD (Oppositional Defiance Disorder) and ADHD is not patiently waiting in the desert heat for her turn on the jet ski?? Shocking. In case the sarcasm is not clue enough…I was pretty pissed that they had put her in this position literally hours after coming home from the hospital where our focus was on stabilizing her.
*Break* (For those of you who don’t know my dad, he is one of the best dads/papas on the planet and his heart was in the right place. He wanted to have a fun day with the kids, even if his ability to anticipate how this would inevitably go down was way off.)
Alright, so back to my diatribe. Vicki, Daisy, Ainsley and I are now on our way up there. Two hours later, after our GPS taking us the wrong way, we arrive at Pleasant Lake. They aren’t there. Nope…apparently my dad is not at the state park that has places to jet-ski and to swim. He is at some Private Marina 4 miles down the road. I didn’t even ask him how he got in there.
We call to let them know we have found the place and they then inform us that the jet-ski is now broken. So…let’s get this right. We’ve got children (and at least one adult) breaking down all over the place and now the jet-ski is joining the crowd. Seriously, I just wanted to turn the van back around and throw as many kids in the back as we could, go home and stop this day from getting any worse. Alas, that was not in the cards.
Vicki and I decide to take the kids to the actual Pleasant Lake and let them at least get in the water. We get over there finally, and the kids get in the water, but Jerilyn has reached her limit and we are going to need to come up with an exit plan fairly soon.
To make this long story, just a little shorter, I’ll just say that the day also included a missing gas cap and my dad’s idea of a fix (just stuff a plastic glove over it) and one last ride on the jet-ski that included getting a ticket for driving too fast. Oh…it was a doozy of a day. Definitely the kind of day that requires me to sit down with a beer or glass of wine or whatever I can get my hands on and try as hard as I can to forget it.
In order to end on a high note, I will tell you my one piece of “pleasant” news though. Lice was conquered! Thank God!!!!!!!
