I myself had an exhausting day at work, and the kids decided to challenge my patience just a little more once school got out. When I arrived to pick them up to go home, Madeleine had other plans.
MADELEINE: Mommy! I have to go over there to work on something with Lousy. We're making a SECRET HANDSHAKE!
ME: Well, you have a few minutes, but as soon as Julia comes out of school we have to leave. I've got a piano lesson to teach.
MADELEINE: (running off to find Lousy without acknowledging she'd heard me)
Meanwhile, a friend of mine had brought something for me, a hand-me-down coat for Julia, and had it in her van, parked by the back path to the school. She offered to have me walk with her to the van and grab the coat as we all headed home. When Julia appeared out of the school door, I called to Madeleine, who was off in the snow with Lousy.
ME: Madeleine! We need to go, right now!
MADELEINE: (shrieking) JUUUUUST AAAAA SEEEEEEC!
ME: No, now!
I began walking with Julia down the back path, turning every so often to see if Madeleine was following. She was not.
JULIA: Mommy! We need to wait for Madeleine!
ME: Honey, she's going to have to catch up to us, because I have to go grab the coat Sadie's giving you.
JULIA: But Mommy! She won't know where we are!
ME: I told her we were leaving so she should know we're on the path (craning my head to see if Madeleine was coming. She was not.)
JULIA: (stopping in her tracks) I'm gonna wait for Madeleine.
ME: Okay, fine, but let me go grab that coat.
After I had secured the coat, I turned around to look for my children. It took some time before they finally appeared up the path, and Madeleine grasped me like she had lost me forever, tears in her eyes and streaks on her face.
ME: What's the matter, honey?
MADELEINE: I couldn't FIND you.
I wonder why that is, Madeleine.
As we approached our house and I planned to quickly get the kids settled with snacks before my sitter came, I mentioned to Julia that the results were in from the weekend's swim meet.
ME: There was one mistake, I think, though. They recorded your breast stroke time as a 43 instead of 42, probably because it's hard to read the penciled-in handwriting of the timers.
Julia COULD. NOT. HANDLE. IT.
Next thing I know, she was a heap on the kitchen floor, sobbing hysterically, while Madeleine announced, "I need to POOOOP!" and headed off to the bathroom. My sitter arrived to find Julia and I together on the kitchen floor as I tried to console her over the disastrous one second error in the time results, and I had to leave for my piano lessons before things could fully resolve. Luckily, the sitter had brought Christmas gifts for the kids, including a new pair of super fluffy slippers for Madeleine, so that helped distract from the afternoon's various crises.
When I arrived home from work, things seemed calm, and the girls were in better moods. Julia went off to her room to practice her flute, and Madeleine did some reading for school. After Julia had finished practicing, she joined us in the living room, where Madeleine was practicing the piano. Madeleine played through the Arabian dance from the Nutcracker, and logically decided the next step was to perform an ad hoc song and dance routine for Julia and I.
MADELEINE: Araaaaabia, I looooove you..... (twirling and carthwheeling around, wiping out multiple times thanks to the slippery fluffy slppers)
JULIA: Do we have to watch the whole thing, Madeleine?
MADELEINE: Araaaabia, oh Araaabia - (face planting and nearly hitting her head on the fireplace)
ME: Madeleine. You have to stop flailing around because you almost hit the fireplace!
MADELEINE: Araaaaabia, oh Araaaaaabia, I looooove you - (turning to Julia and whispering) Get your kazoo from your flute case!
JULIA: No.
MADELEINE: Araaaaabia... (running off into Julia's bedroom)
Julia and I foolishly assumed the performance was over, so we moved into the dining room, when suddenly I heard the sound of a body hitting the ground, followed by the clatter of what I was really afraid was pieces of a flute falling onto the hardwood floor.
I was correct in what I heard. Madeleine had run to get Julia's flute case to secure the kazoo for her totally amazing and graceful performance, and had slipped YET AGAIN in the fluffy slippers, hitting the ground so hard the flute case popped open and sections of flute scattered around the living room. I put the flute together and had Julia try playing to make sure nothing was broken.
The F# key was broken.
Julia burst yet again into hysterical tears, while Madeleine declared, "No one should ever love me. I have to go into my room for the rest of my life" and went into her bedroom.
Big, big, biiiiiig deep breath to muster every ounce of calm I had left.
I brought Julia's flute to the town music store for repairs and had a long talk with Madeleine about how she had now learned that one must be extremely gentle with musical instruments and she is never ever ever to touch another person's instrument without consent. The girls were both full of remorse towards the other; Madeleine, for breaking Julia's flute and causing her sister such heartbreak, and Julia for seeing Madeleine so guilty and torn up. Everyone is friends again. The flute is still in the shop but I have been assured I can get a rental if it's not fixed in time for band. I am hanging on to every last thread of patience and hoping there are no more surprise issues for the rest of the week. Maybe, if I'm reeeeeally lucky, I might even get to the weekend without anymore surprise performances I have to sit through, either!
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