Halloween Hangover, Still

Okay so apparently crazy birthday hell extended throughout the weekend. And past Monday. And into Tuesday because really, I’m still recovering. Or suffering. Same thing.

Should have figured as much, as Halloween will suck the life out of a normal mom with one kid, an OCD husband, housecleaner, full case of wine, health benefits, and car that starts on first go. So Boy’s actual birthday was cake, and too his party we take old school: our house, games, cheese doodles, silly string, and a few sword fights. But if one more kid threw one more pre-chewed grape, I calmly promised to beat them with the piñata stick, and old timers wisely believed me. Then onto Halloween for three kids with no costumes. With half-carved pumpkins half-dead on the kitchen counter, knives stabbing into eyeballs and broken teeth.

No biggie. We do this every year, but the year between deafens the blow so we do it again. And again, year after year. Ditto with labor, hence the four kids.

Except my clients apparently don’t have 11-year-olds jonesing for the be-all, end-all birthday party, complete with nasty, dead bug, slug slime scavenger hunt.

And they don’t have to make a Mr. Heat Miser, Yellow Tele-Tubbie and non-slutty Cow Girl before sunset. And they work weekends. Even Halloween weekend.

And so I selectively avoided emails and voicemails, but completed each and every assignment today. Before leaving at 2:00 pm for the afternoon rush of my other job: Mom.