The Best Day Ever

I wish all days with them could be this good. Today was an example of a great day with the girls.

It started off a bit rushed because I was coming from bikram and I had never timed it out before. I got to the bus stop half an hour early so I scarfed, literally scarfed, down some sushi on a park bench outside, freezing, before going into the school to pick up W. Nothing out of the ordinary- the same mothers I see everyday in the hall. There was one I noticed today that I haven't seen before. She had the largest rock on her finger of anyone I've ever seen, and she mentioned she lives on 88th and 5th ave. Oh my, my, my.

W came out and waddled towards me, not looking happy to see me. This has become an ordinary occurrence, one that I'm not fond of. She drags her feet along while we're walking to 7-11. I find it crazy that she wears cashmere pants underneath her Catholic school uniform and gets the cuffs dirty on the ground. No one seems to care that these are CASHMERE.

I'm trying to teach her manners and how to survive in this world without having everything done for you. I'm trying to do that with both of the girls actually, because I don't want them to grow up and think that they'll never have to carry a bag or open a door in their life. At 7-11, I put my foot down and told W she did not need the big bag of pretzels because she was not going to eat them all. She whined and whined, but I made her settle for the small bag, and she still didn't eat all of them. I won't do anything she asks me to do unless she says please. I asked her to hold the plastic bag with her chocolate milk and her pretzels at the cash register while I was getting other stuff, and she whined at me, "nooooo". You can bet she was holding that bag for even just 20 seconds to prove that she can hold it.

When we got home, the mother was with her personal trainer in the gym in the basement (!!!) and Mercy was picking up M from school so we had the house to ourselves. I wonder if I can use the gym for free...that would save me a lot of money monthly. I could get in really nice with the elevator men and bribe them to let me work out for free. Anyway, W was really sweet once we got home.

I snuck a few cherries from the fridge because I could, and geared up for another day at the house. Mercy, bless her soul, showed me where the coffee was because I needed a big mug of it. Of course, the mother has her own jar of coffee grounds, so I was left with the Folgers instant coffee that you add to hot water. Ew, ew, and ew. Maybe I should invest in some Starbucks via for the house. Full mug of coffee in hand and a few cherries in my belly, I was ready for action.

W wanted to play the nurse/house/assistant game again. I told her I would play if I didn't feel that I was being bossed around and if every activity I was asked to do was accompanied by a "please". It worked pretty well! She would start demanding me to do something as her assistant, and I would give her this look and she would say "please?". I "dusted" the room with a cooking brush. I felt like a 50's housewife, dusting the room and singing "Someone To Watch Over Me". I realized today that I sing there all the time. Maybe because I know the girls like singing and they'll sing along with me if they know the song. It's really fun. M's song of choice for the past few days has been "Under da Sea" from 'The Little Mermaid' and "Zippadeedooda". That was the first song I ever sang at an audition when I was M's age. It's a classic.

I told W I would play the imaginary game with her until her mom came home and then we'd have to work on her activity books and homework. She understood. M came home from school and the mom was still working out. I gave them both cherries for a snack which meant I got to have a couple more. Already, this was a better day than most!

M noticed the second she saw me that something was different about me. She's always been telling me to not wear make-up because she wants to see my natural beauty and says that I don't need make-up to be beautiful. Sweet girl, she is....little does she know...

So the second she saw me she said, "you look younger today". I told her it was because I wasn't wearing any make-up today like she had asked me to. (The only reason I wasn't wearing make-up was because I didn't have time to put it on between shower at yoga and going to pick up W). I asked her if she thought I looked worse without it on and she said no. W, however, gave me a sympathetic look and nodded.

Reminder: always wear make-up.

After the cherries I let M do her homework in W's room sitting next to W. W was coloring a picture of her room for her homework and M was coloring a calendar for her homework project. While coloring, M invited me to her school's show in which they're singing, "Under da Sea". I told her I would love to go but asked if I would be able to. She said enthusiastically, "Yeah! You can! It's for all family members" and I said, "but I'm not a family member" and M said, "Of course you are! You're a part of our family!" My heart= melted. This was ruined once they told me for some reason or another that whatever I did was the cause of a baby on the way. They quoted, "a baby is going to come out of you" I quickly shut out that notion.

When the mom came home the girls were both doing their homework, and very well, I might add. They were happy, I was happy, we were a happy family. Then the mom disappeared for a long time and I didn't see her again until right before dinner. I love that. I felt so left alone to take care of them and it was amazing. I gave them their bath right on time, got them to dinner right on time, got M's homework done right on time, and even had enough time to read 20 minutes of Harry Potter to her before leaving at 8:00pm.

We had an interesting moment in the bath tub tonight....M was sitting up washing her hair, and W slipped under the water and positioned her head right between M's legs. My jaw must have hit the floor. I really had to restrain myself from laughing. W is pretty fascinated with private parts now-a-days. She tickles my butt and I have to tell her she can't touch other people's private parts, only her own. This goes for when she tickles her sister in the va-jay-jay. I have to tell her that is not appropriate, even though she doesn't understand because she's her sister. Oy vey.

We sang together, we colored together, and tonight, for the first night ever, we ate together. The mom heated up their dinner but then didn't sit at the table with them. She and her husband were going out tonight, so she left right before bedtime and Mercy stayed at their house. Poor Mercy. When I left she was still ironing. She's a machine.

After the mom heated up their dinner, she went off to get dressed for her night out, so I got to sneak some of their dish in the kitchen. I also got them yogurt for dessert which was the healthiest dessert they've had thus far. The mom came in at one point to tell M about the tutor she was going to start with tomorrow. M was nervous that she wouldn't be nice and the mother said, "she's very sweet, just like Emma". I was like !!!! That was the first time she had ever acknowledged my hard work or being a nice person. Every time I clear a plate from the table to wash it or I get water for the girls, she says, "thank you, Emma", but this time I felt like I was being appreciated. I was even sitting in the head seat that the mom normally sits in. It was a gold-star moment for me.

Bed time was pretty typical except that the mother wasn't there. M did her homework while I read the fairy book to W. W could be a spoiled little girl all day (which she's not), but the second she rests her head on my shoulder while I'm reading to her, I could forget all about the bad things she's done and just feel at home. I love the feeling of a child or a baby resting their head on you. It's one of the most comforting feelings in the world.

I tucked W in, turned on her audiobook, kissed her on the forehead, and said goodnight. Then I went to read Harry Potter to M for half an hour. I asked Mercy to check on them to make sure they were sleeping after I left, and then I quietly ducked out, and went home.

It was a perfect day.