Stahlke Adoption

Anesthesia

I manage to maintain my energy level until 9:30 pm or so on most evenings. But Friday night is the big exception. At supper, I start to nod, and it's clear that an after-supper chore for the kids or just about any activity for me is out of the question. The days when Friday night was the most exciting of the week are long, long gone.

Yesterday, Jonathan left around 3:30 pm for a football game near the Wisconsin border. Paul's team is in a temporary conference this year, and the games are often a great distance from Chicago. Jonathan picked Paul up after the game and drove him to a church retreat in a distant Chicago suburb.

I manned the fort at home with the other five kids. To prepare myself for a strenous Friday evening, I took a long nap in the afternoon. Jonathan had picked up a DVD from Blockbuster, and I shopped for frozen pizza and popcorn. I tried to bribe the kids into better behavior by dangling a reward before them--supper on the living room floor while watching the movie. They failed at improving their behavior, but I wasn't giving up on the movie, which was self-preservation for me!

We set up my laptop on the table at Jonathan's place, and I brought out the pizza. As soon as the movie started, the room was blessedly still and quiet. I was able to do a load of dishes, bake more pizza, prepare more popcorn, and breathe a little easier.

I do not feel in the least bit guilty for using the "idiot box" babysitter!

posted by Stahlkes @ 4:47 PM