Mama's off the clock...

...or I will be very soon--the Girls' Beach Trip starts in 8 hours and 32 minutes (not that I'm counting down or anything!) Of course, I've been in list-making heaven in preparation for this drunken stupor....um, uh.. I mean, time of bonding with my best girls!

Swimsuits---check!
Pedicure---check! (complete with blingy little rhinestone daisies on my big toes)
Notes for My Baby's Daddy--check!
Pop taken care of---check!
Get cash at the ATM--damn, missed one!
Mimosa ingredients on the counter next to my boys' lunchboxes--check! (the Mimosas are for me, not them)

Hopefully, I'll return at the end of the week-end, relaxed, refreshed, golden tan, and ready to roll again...and with lots of stories to share! This is our 4th annual beach trip---I was hugely pregnant with Fat Baby on the first. My girlfriends hauled my big ass down to the beach on the golf cart & treated me like a queen the entire time. That being said, it's soooooo much more fun to be un-pregnant on the girls' beach trip! Out of all the trips, this will be the first that MBD has kept the boys home with him the entire time & not shipped them up to my mom's...I did leave an emergency babysitter number for him, just in case....in case what?!?! Hell, it's four freakin' days with YOUR. OWN. KIDS! If he went out of town, would I send the boys away or hire a sitter? Ummmmmmm.....no! And I am with them all the darn time. Moms and Dads are just wired so differently. He is a great dad, and they will all be fine. And yes, I did leave two pages of notes. And yes, I did set out pre-approved outfits to last the whole time I am gone...with additional alternate wardrobe changes. As I admit all this, I am reminded of just how much I really need this trip. I feel responsible for so much and so many. I am a control freak. I thrive on a plan and a routine. And sometimes I just need to let it all go for a few days & soak up the sun, read a trashy magazine or a good book, and have some drinks and laughs with my buddies. Sometimes I need to just let my kids wear whatever the hell they want to...and not worry about them being perfectly matched or seasonally appropriate. I need to let My Baby's Daddy figure out what to pack the boys for lunch on his own...and if he gets it "wrong" know that it's only one meal out of their whole life. But that's just not me!

This weekend, I will enjoy the part of me who is carefree & has no imminent responsibilities. I will not think about the extra calories I consume, or about the pile of laundry that will await me at home. This girl won't be worried about schedules, doctor's appointments, or homework.

I will call home, but just because I love them & want to hear their voices. Not because I need to remind them of "one more thing." I will bring home surprises. I will be covered in kisses. I will not want to leave them again....until next year!