A Visual

I have another visual for you. I was actually laughing out loud at myself and the kids on our walk to school this morning, so I thought it might give you a chuckle, too.

You may need a little personal background to truly appreciate the humor in this story. I've mentioned that I am a type A planner that enjoys being in control (to say the least). I run a tight ship with the children, and we are very schedule oriented.

Living in the hotel long-term has been a true test for me. It has really put a kink in the way I do things.

Today the babies were completely out of clean clothes, so I left them in their pajamas. Poor S did not even have socks on his little feet (there is a fleece-lined boot covering his seat in the stroller, so his feet actually stay pretty warm when we're out and about). I rationalized that once they had their coats on and they were covered up with their blankets in the stroller, nobody would realize what they were wearing.

And that is how it was when we left to walk G to school, precisely at 8:00. After dropping G off, the babies and I turned around for our walk back to the hotel. This is usually when S begins to get a little squirmy. Yesterday, S maneuvered his way out of the stroller's 4-point harness system and stood in the stroller seat for most of our walk home. I thought that I had outsmarted him this morning by criss-crossing the straps of the seat belt, ensuring that there was no way he could manage his way out. He proved me wrong again with his uncanny ability to find his way out of yet another mechanism whose purpose is to secure wiggly toddlers so that they cannot harm themselves or others.

This is where you have to close your eyes and get a mental image! Here I am (someone who puts a little effort into dressing each morning and who makes sure her children are always clothed in matching outfits) pushing this huge double stroller down one of the busiest London streets full of morning commuters and other moms on the school run, wearing not much more than pajamas myself. S is standing in the stroller seat, climbing his way out and over the top. He is about to go overboard, so I reach down to pick him up and carry him the rest of the way home. Now I am pushing the stroller with B in the bottom, carrying S, who is barefoot and in his pajamas, on my hip. You should have seen the looks that we were getting! I truly was laughing out loud at myself!