Mommy needs a time out

Ever seen that commercial where the mom puts herself in time out to have a break from her kids before she goes crazy? I have been feeling like that a lot lately. The stress from the move has been huge, having everything in boxes, having company in town, and wanting some form of Christmas in our home, even if it is minimal.
Last night some old friends of my parents took me, my mom, my grandparents and my kids out to dinner to Sizzler to thank my mom for something. Before we went we had a short talk about remembering to use our restaurant manners. Maybe the place where I failed was assuming Rebecca knew what "restaurant manners" were. We had to wait awhile in the waiting area and my kids went crazy. They kept running into the restaurant with Joseph running laps around the salad bar. Suddenly I looked to find Rebecca, in crouch position with her arms as chicken wings strutting around the restaurant saying : "Bock, bock, bock..." I have to admit, I had to laugh at that one even though I was so frustrated at how crazy my kids were being.
Warren wasn't there to help and my mom was trying to visit with the friends who had invited us, so I felt rather overwhelmed. Needless to say, the waitress put us in the banquet room all by ourselves, even though the restaurant only had about 5 other families eating in it. They had seen enough of my kids before we even sat down.
My mom keeps reminding me that my kids are doing rather well considering how stressful everything has been. I don't know. My patience sure runs out quickly these days.

In other news, Rebecca started her new Kindergarten this week. She has a sweet teacher and is blending in nicely. Kindergarten is shorter here, which makes for a less hectic morning for me. I don't know why starting your kid in a new school was so emotional for me, but I did it and she's happy and so now I'm relieved. This week is laid back because it's the last week before winter break, so it was a good time to start. They're just doing lots of crafts and having fun.

And finally, we once again have a land line, internet and TV! It's been almost two weeks and it was okay, except I did miss having the internet and staying caught up with everyone and venting my own stress now and again. Bit by bit we're getting through the boxes. But it's going to take awhile. One more thing. I was so determined to return all my library books before moving. I counted them to make sure I had the right amount of books. The library is saying I still have a book and it's driving me crazy! Why do I have such a hard time letting stuff like that go? It's only money, right? But sometimes it feels like it all adds up. Other than that life is great and you're all in our thoughts. Rebecca misses her friends. Stay in touch!