Unbelievable

Some days are like this.

You know Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day?

Well, some days are like that, even at the Fletchers.

Some days are so bad that I almost have to laugh when they are over.

or cry

This morning started with me discovering, right off the bat, that someone had stolen money, somehow, from my locked office.... AGAIN. Then it progressed to me discovering that our son in Residential had lied to me . . . AGAIN.

Then I headed to Sioux Falls to get the Powerbook fixed and I found out that it may cost up to 800 to get it fixed.

I returned home to discover that one of my families that I had matched was back to square one after several months.

i then realized decided to go upstairs and rest only to discover that some of the boys had broken into the girls locked room . . . AGAIN.

I gave up and came downstairs. After school I got a call from Dominyk’s PCA -- they had been in a car accident. He had Dominyk with him, they were OK, but it was going to take a while to clear up. confronted the money from the office suspect and the girls room break in suspect. This resulted in, of course, several lies and defiance ... AGAIN.

Ricardo, my nearest to perfect son, all the sudden fell apart today. He didn’t come home from school. I called the school to see if he had left there and found out from his teacher that he had not completed homework, refused to bring his planner home, and crossed out the note in the planner she had written to me about it.

Fortunately, we discovered that he had been with Dominyk and the PCA had forgotten to tell me that, so he did come home. But then, much to my dismay, I found out that he had been part of the girls room breakin, in fact, he had found the key. This was a first for him. He admitted to neglecting his homework, leaving the planner at school, and crossing off the note to me.

I then headed to the 7th and 8th grade football game. On my way their I discovered that someone had ridden Kyle’s bike . . . AGAIN. I told the two little boys with me to stay by me, but they ran off . . . AGAIN. When I got seated I realized that my son who was supposed to be dressed and playing was sitting in his street clothes on the bench -- meaning only one thing ... he had skipped practice, unbeknownst to me. Therefore, I wanted to leave and come home, but instead I had to search for the two that had run off.

By the time we made it home, only to find the bike rider slash breaking and entry boy refusing to do what HIS PCA was telling him to do. I lost it and did way too much screaming in response to being called a f**** b**** three times. I quickly left for a second football game where I killed no less than 67 little black bugs a few of them before, and most of them after they had bitten me.

We lost the football game and during the football game I found out that the child who I had not suspected of taking the office money was actually the culprit and it only took me 30 minutes and wading through 6 lies to find out what actually happened and how much he had taken.

And during the interregation of office thief, a nice gentleman said to me, “Excuse me ma’am, did you know your son was playing with matches?” So I look over and three feet from me Dominyk is trying to light something on fire. Twenty minutes later, same game, I turn around and he has climbed to the very top of the high bleacher fence.

I returned home to face two more meltdowns, being cussed out by a different kid, and finding my bike, which I have only forced myself to ride 3-4 times, moved, apparently ridden, and most probably in need of repair.

And I checked my email to discover that another family that I’ve helped matched 4 times, has once again been let down.

And I have a cold and keep coughing up large chunks of flem, while fighting my own bladder so that I don’t have periods of stress-induced incontinence, and nobody in my house ever lifts the seat or wipes it when they pee on it.

and it’s HOT and in MN in October this is not typical.

And, as you know, last but not least, my husband is seeing the sites of Seattle and I am only a little over half way through with his 10 day absence.

So, when I go to bed tonight, if I ever get to, I will be glad that today is over.

And, the sad thing, is that there are many out there, professionals included, who would deduce that my parenting is what makes these kids act this way.

And this is the biggest tragedy of all.