One of those days...

Today has been one of those days....

One of those days where you wish family lived closer so you could drop the kiddos off and run away for a few hours. It all began at 7am when the sound of the boys fighting and crying come flooding into our peaceful bedroom. I had a feeling right away (call it mother's intuition) that today was going to be "one of those days".
Into the room came Blayne, holding his hand to his head, saying "Mommy, I got hurt.". We hear this phrase about 5-7 times a day because our littlest nugget is the biggest klutz known to man, he can barely walk a straight line or on level ground without hurting himself somehow. The phrase following his usual phrase was a new one however... "Mommy, I need chocolate.".

Upon further inspection I realized he already had a very pronounced ring of chocolate around his mouth.

Which could only mean....
Big Brother had been up on the counters and in the cupboards again. Xander is in the stage of 'I'm so big, I don't need help or permission.', he also has a very difficult time listening. I swear sometimes when I am talking to him all he hears is the voice of Charlie Brown's teacher "mwah, mwah, mwah" in different tones and inflections.
As I made my way into the front room Xander quickly pronounced his innocence claiming "Blayne do it! I don't have nothing!". He held his left hand, palm open, high up in the air... but his right hand clung tightly to one of his shoes. When I said "let me see your other hand" he quickly lifted it, dropping his shoe, and all the chocolate chips hidden inside. As I spend the next 20 min. preparing breakfast and cleaning up chocolate chips, they spent time in time out for doing dangerous things and not asking permission.
After Zach left for work the boys decided they didn't need to eat their breakfasts and only needed more chocolate, I then informed them that they would stay in their seats until their breakfast was done. They did eat, but with much accompanied whining and complaining that my food was "yucky".
The nicest part of the day was spent in IChat form singing Happy Birthday to my mommy. Thankfully, they were well behaved, and ultra adorable while talking to their Nana and Papa Kendell.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!! HOPE YOU HAD THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!!!
Shortly after turning the computer off is when the chaos began. They began screaming, crying, and fighting. After getting into something they know they are not to touch, and having a big fight they were both sent to their rooms to calm themselves down and have Time Out #2 for the day. After 20 min. I walked into Xander's room to discover that he was still screaming and throwing a fit for being sent to Time Out, and that he had destroyed his room in retaliation. *Usually a Blayne tactic.* He was quickly informed that that behavior was not acceptable and that he would not be allowed out of his room until he cleaned it up. Blayne on the other hand was unusually quiet so I opened his door to find that he had stripped his clothes off in frustration and was laying naked in the corner of his old room under the picture of Zach and myself. He stood up when he heard the door squeak and said "I be by you and daddy.". Blayne and I then had some nice time together, and I had a very enjoyable chat with my fabulous sister-in-law Tasha. Thank you Tash!!! Meanwhile... it took Xander 45 min. to finally calm down and clean up his mess. By that time it was lunch time and once again the whining and complaining that my food was "yucky" came into play.
They were sent to their room for nap time, which went without a hitch. Or so I wished.
I had to go in 3 times, because they were playing and yelling, to remind them that it was nap time and time for them to calm down and take a nap. Ten minutes after my last visit to their room I heard Blayne coughing and crying and walked in to find Blayne on the top bunk with Xander (apparently Xander has taught him how to climb up without the ladder-oh joy.) and little white balls EVERYWHERE. They had gotten hold of a small massage pillow a good friend had given to me, ripped it open with their teeth and thrown the itsy, bitsy, teeny tiny little white balls-the kind that stick to everything- all over the beds and themselves. They were stripped down, placed in the shower, and the 3 1/2 hour cleaning process began. They were sent to Blayne's old room to take their naps and stay out of my way while cleaning. But they decided not sleeping, and fighting was a better solution.
After sweating so profusely that my shower earlier that day seemed pointless, and having cramps from crouching on my hands and knees with a vacuum on both the bottom and top bunk beds, I threw dinner in the oven handed the boys some books and puzzles and raced off to the bathroom to get myself ready to go to work.
Then I received a call from my sweet and wonderful boss saying that she heard there was severe weather (hail, severe wind, and possible tornadoes) coming our way, and didn't want me coming in to work. She takes such good care of me. As we were talking I heard a large thump sound, and found the boys and all of their books from the bookshelf in a pile on the floor. They were sent to the living room while I picked up the mess and called Zach to whine hysterically for about the forth time today. Thank you honey for always taking my calls, even when you're dealing with stress of your own. You keep me sane!!
After the book cleanup it was time for the toy cleanup in the front room and another great chat with Tash telling me Zach's sister Aleshia had had her little baby girl! Congrats Lesh!!
Then, my hero of a husband came home and made everything better.
Like I said..... it was "just one of those days".
Maybe the next time I have that feeling in the morning... I will listen to it, lock my door, and climb under the covers for safety.
But more likely, I will remember that being a mom is a 24/7 responsibility, pray for the best, and try to only call Zach once with my hysteria.

Here's the proof of the little nuggets destruction:

See how teeny tiny the little balls are?
And they....


were...


everywhere!!


Both top and bottom bunk, and from head to toe on each nugget.


They seem so innocent don't they?