towels. By the time I got back, theyd discovered a can of hair spray I hadnt placed high enoughlike on the ceiling fixture perhapsand sprayed it over the entire room.
Hair spray dries quickly. I know this for sure because when I walked into the room, the floor was like a sheet of thin black ice. My feet went out from under me, the towels flew in the air as I tried to right myself and as I fell, I felt my head smacking hard on the toilet bowl.
I couldnt have been out long because when I opened my eyes and slowly reached up to feel the goose egg on my scalp, Tommy and Terry were standing over me giggling.
Auntie Suze hit the potty! Tommy said, his eyes wide.
Children have a puzzling love for references to bathrooms and underwear. When Tommy said potty , Terry broke into gales of laugher. Potty, potty, potty.
Dotty, dotty, dotty, Tommy rhymed.
Potty dotty, dotty potty. They fell on top of me giggling.
Auntie Suze, she went dotty, yes indeed she hit the potty, I muttered.
Im not much of a poet but the subject matter isnt all that profound either. I should be glad, I suppose, that I didnt have a concussion or brain damage from the fall.
Or maybe I did.
I soldiered through bath time and our nightly rituals. Bath, stories, back rubs and finally, prayers. Those prayers are getting me through the day. If there is anything sweeter or more trusting than a childs prayer, I havent discovered it yet.
Now we lay us down to sleepBless Mommy, Daddy, our new baby sister in Souf Amerita, Grandma and Grandpa Charles, Grandma and Grandpa Martin, bless Hammie, bless Chipper
The list can sometimes be ten minutes long, especially if they start naming playmates and stuffed animals. I cling to the hope that they save the best for last.
and Auntie Suze who hit her head on the potty.
And now shes dotty!
Yes, Lord, please do help me. If dotty is the worst I am by the time Mickey and Jeff get back, Ill be lucky.
The phone rang shortly after I returned to the living room feeling washed out as the towels Id just thrown in the laundry. It was Darla.
Hows it going? Are you going to make it?
Oh, ye of little faith.
Have you slept yet?
I attempt to stay awake while the boys sleep. After the long night, I take them to the sitter as early as possible so that I can get an hour or two of shut-eye before I have to go to work. I do it in reverse in the afternoon, picking them up as late as I can, sleeping outside the babysitters house in my car until the very last minute. I also try to get forty winks during my lunch hour. The schedule is wearing on me. Ive already lost four pounds.
Im getting some sleep, I prevaricated.
Im sorry I cant be there with you. Since my moving plans got pushed back, its been crazy here. If you can hang on a few more days, Ill be there to stay with you.
Hang on, Suze, hang on, like a shipwrecked sailor to a life raft in the ocean.
Im looking forward to it, I admitted. A good nights sleep seems like an impossible dream.
Don Quixote aside, Im worried about you. Youll ruin your health trying to stay awake like this.
But think of all the things Ive gotten done.
Ive organized my recipes, written letters to everyone Ive ever known and a few I didnt, found a chat room full of insomniacs on the Internet, seen every infomercial ever produced, purchased a new wardrobe on QVC and taught myself to crochet dishcloths from a how-to book. And thats not to mention that every drawer, closet and shelf in my house is immaculate. When I die of exhaustion and my family goes through my personal belongings, theyll be very impressed with how tidy Id become.
Go to see Dr. Grant, will you? He said hed find you a physician at his clinic.
Gotta go, Darla. Talk to you soon.
One of these days youre going to listen to me, Suze. Just dont wait until its too late.
Too late for what? I wondered. As I faced another long, weary night, my curiosity got the best of me. What was that story David had told about a family who couldnt sleep?
The best
Hair spray dries quickly. I know this for sure because when I walked into the room, the floor was like a sheet of thin black ice. My feet went out from under me, the towels flew in the air as I tried to right myself and as I fell, I felt my head smacking hard on the toilet bowl.
I couldnt have been out long because when I opened my eyes and slowly reached up to feel the goose egg on my scalp, Tommy and Terry were standing over me giggling.
Auntie Suze hit the potty! Tommy said, his eyes wide.
Children have a puzzling love for references to bathrooms and underwear. When Tommy said potty , Terry broke into gales of laugher. Potty, potty, potty.
Dotty, dotty, dotty, Tommy rhymed.
Potty dotty, dotty potty. They fell on top of me giggling.
Auntie Suze, she went dotty, yes indeed she hit the potty, I muttered.
Im not much of a poet but the subject matter isnt all that profound either. I should be glad, I suppose, that I didnt have a concussion or brain damage from the fall.
Or maybe I did.
I soldiered through bath time and our nightly rituals. Bath, stories, back rubs and finally, prayers. Those prayers are getting me through the day. If there is anything sweeter or more trusting than a childs prayer, I havent discovered it yet.
Now we lay us down to sleepBless Mommy, Daddy, our new baby sister in Souf Amerita, Grandma and Grandpa Charles, Grandma and Grandpa Martin, bless Hammie, bless Chipper
The list can sometimes be ten minutes long, especially if they start naming playmates and stuffed animals. I cling to the hope that they save the best for last.
and Auntie Suze who hit her head on the potty.
And now shes dotty!
Yes, Lord, please do help me. If dotty is the worst I am by the time Mickey and Jeff get back, Ill be lucky.
The phone rang shortly after I returned to the living room feeling washed out as the towels Id just thrown in the laundry. It was Darla.
Hows it going? Are you going to make it?
Oh, ye of little faith.
Have you slept yet?
I attempt to stay awake while the boys sleep. After the long night, I take them to the sitter as early as possible so that I can get an hour or two of shut-eye before I have to go to work. I do it in reverse in the afternoon, picking them up as late as I can, sleeping outside the babysitters house in my car until the very last minute. I also try to get forty winks during my lunch hour. The schedule is wearing on me. Ive already lost four pounds.
Im getting some sleep, I prevaricated.
Im sorry I cant be there with you. Since my moving plans got pushed back, its been crazy here. If you can hang on a few more days, Ill be there to stay with you.
Hang on, Suze, hang on, like a shipwrecked sailor to a life raft in the ocean.
Im looking forward to it, I admitted. A good nights sleep seems like an impossible dream.
Don Quixote aside, Im worried about you. Youll ruin your health trying to stay awake like this.
But think of all the things Ive gotten done.
Ive organized my recipes, written letters to everyone Ive ever known and a few I didnt, found a chat room full of insomniacs on the Internet, seen every infomercial ever produced, purchased a new wardrobe on QVC and taught myself to crochet dishcloths from a how-to book. And thats not to mention that every drawer, closet and shelf in my house is immaculate. When I die of exhaustion and my family goes through my personal belongings, theyll be very impressed with how tidy Id become.
Go to see Dr. Grant, will you? He said hed find you a physician at his clinic.
Gotta go, Darla. Talk to you soon.
One of these days youre going to listen to me, Suze. Just dont wait until its too late.
Too late for what? I wondered. As I faced another long, weary night, my curiosity got the best of me. What was that story David had told about a family who couldnt sleep?
The best
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