Last night was one of those just wow moments where I stop and think, oh my gosh, what is this? This is life. This is us, but in a really crazy funny way. This is my life now.

I was thinking back to when it was just my husband and I, the pre-kids days. Do you know, we didn’t even take a honeymoon?! What was that about? I mean, we had NO KIDS. And it’s not like we didn’t enjoy those 2 years of marriage before I got pregnant (and the 3 years prior dating), we did. But I look back and wonder, why didn’t we travel more? It’s baffling to me.

It’s just so different now. A beautiful, messy kind of different. Some days are just insane and it’s a miracle we manage to stay connected.

Like last night. Literally in a span of just 2 hours and 15 minutes all that went on, it’s truly just parenting and family life.

My husband was putting in a new toilet, finally!  We were long overdue for one for some time now and so when he told me he bought it I was, yes, ecstatic. For a toilet, yes. No I’m not being sarcastic.

So I get home with the girls after spending some time at my mom’s celebrating her birthday. The bathroom is a mess, because the new toilet is being installed but hey I’m happy.

That means figuring out dinner was on me. Sadly I am sometimes a bit of a dim wit when it comes to cooking. For all you top chefs out there, don’t judge, just see the humor in this.

I had left some salmon in the fridge marinating in some type of soy sauce. For more than 24 hours. Yeah, that happened. Somewhere in passing (this means one random day I was reading a recipe no doubt) I had read that chicken gets better flavor (or meat for that matter) when it’s left to marinate. I assumed the same applied to fish. I also assumed the longer it marinates the better. Didn’t I maybe read somewhere people leave meat marinating overnight? I don’t know. Point is I take out the fish and of course it’s ruined. Before I showed my husband (to get his agreement on what I already figured) I asked him not to judge and save any snarky comments. He said to toss it. Sigh. It hurt to toss it, but honestly it looked bad.

So now I was left scrambling to figure out what to cook since we didn’t have many other meat options and it was already 6pm. We had beef stew. If you’ve cooked this, you know it takes sooo long to cook. Well, I had no other choice so I threw it on the stove with some onions and diced tomatoes. And then that’s when time seemed to sort of stop but speed up all at once.

Somehow from 6pm – 8pm (plus 20 min) this happened:

• Dinner became beef stew, steamed white rice, leftover veggies.
• Elysse had a meltdown because she wanted me to play some game with her which for the love of me I could not understand. Except she kept giving me the jump rope and saying what I thought was either tie me or train me but it was neither because her frustration kept escalating, which escalated mine
• In jumps husband to take her with him while he walked Biggie (and make sure neither Elysse or I lose more of our cool)
• Toilet is almost installed but Jeopardy was about to start so toilet installation had to pause
• Toss bathroom mats into washer because hubby had thrown them on floor which is filthy from dog hair
• Jeopardy is playing, we all eat dinner, which thankfully turned out good (it’s the best when I hear husband say something I cooked has good flavor)
• Gave Celeste a shower even though the bathroom floor is dirty because remember toilet installation is on pause
• Throw bathroom mats in dryer
• Next in line for shower is Elysse. At which point toilet installation resumes.
• That’s when I am in full mission mode: get both girls showered because it’s now 8p and I need to start bedtime ritual that takes an hour every night
• Husband tells me I am exasperated I need to wait until he finishes so he can sweep the mess on the bathroom floor (which is true and very logical, except I’m past logic when I’m in mission mode. I know, I know. Shaking my head now too).
• I am hell bent on showering Elysse because I reason “I just use a tiny space in the corner of the bathroom” but husband says No, wait!
• Ugh, I huff and I puff, and walk away.
• Both girls showered, dressed in PJ’s, brushed teeth and ready for bed by 8:20pm. How? I don’t know.
• Girls get time with their Papa to see their nightly devotional
• Finally girls are in bed by 8:50pm.

It’s when I look back the next day (this morning) at moment’s like that which seem like a funny blur that I laugh and wonder, wow, how did that happen? Did that really happen?

Like I said, it’s a miracle we sometimes find ways to connect.