Friday FAIL

Friday is rightly regarded by most people as one of the finest days of the week. It marks the end of the work week and segues us nicely into the weekend. It's arrival is heralded by cries of "Thank God!" and simply "TGIF!"

Today, however, has not lived up to expectations.

I woke up groggier than usual this morning because JR had a nagging cough last night that repeatedly startled me awake just as I was drifting off to sleep. "Cough, cough, cough" followed by precisely the right amount of silence to have me snuggling back under the covers and floating away to dreamland only to be jolted back to full consciousness by "cough, cough, cough." Oh, the joys of marriage.

Upon waking I was comforted by the realization that Friday was finally here and that although I had a lot on my schedule today, I would be doing it sans Grasshopper. He attends preschool on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings this year, and it's been lovely. Particularly since his school provides the option of Chik-fil-a lunches on Friday meaning that I don't have to figure out what to pack for lunch that day or worry about how I'm going to keep his milk cold since I seem hell-bent on forgetting to put his wee chill-pack back in the freezer after he brings it home.

I allowed myself extra time to read blogs and sip my coffee after my shower since, you know, I didn't have to pack his lunch or anything. And as so often happens I got sucked in. Before I knew what hit me the little clock on the corner of the screen said 8:10 and not only was I not dressed or fed, neither was Grasshopper. I can skip breakfast. A three year old cannot.

So I proceeded to race around screeching at the poor kid to "Hurry, hurry!" and "Find your shoes! We're laaaate!" (always so effective when dealing with toddlers) I threw on clothes, and put some on him. I located the missing sneaker (under the entertainment center) and threw some Cinnamon Puffins cereal into a baggie for him to eat in the car. I even remembered to comb my (wet) hair.

We raced out the door and I was quickly confronted with having the wrong car keys because my car is at the dealership and I'm driving JR's Saab while he tools around in the loaner vehicle. Crap. Crappity crap CRAP! I made Grasshopper sit on the front step while I rushed back into the house praying that JR had actually hung his keys on the set of hooks in the kitchen that we use for key-wrangling. He had. Hallelujah!

We finally got underway about 5 minutes behind schedule. Which isn't too bad because traffic is often lighter on Friday mornings. Oh Friday, how I love thee.

On the drive to school I mentally rehearsed my schedule: Drop Grasshopper off and head to Sam's Club. Then go home to put away refrigerated foodstuffs and organize the paperwork I need to fax to the homestudy agency. Head to Target to return a shirt and buy a gift for a friend's daughter who is turning one. Go to the chiropractor for an adjustment and then drive up to JR's office to have him sign some of the forms and make a copy of his driver's license. Then use his fax machine to send it all to the homestudy agency and maybe squeeze in lunch with him before racing back to school to pick Grasshopper up for his three day weekend (yes, our school thinks Columbus Day is an ACTUAL holiday). Alot to manage, but doable, definitely doable.

Until, that is, I pulled into the school parking lot and saw....no one. That's right. Not one car in the lot, not one light on in the building, nothing. It was Not Good.

"Where my buddies?" Grasshopper asks.

"Um. Well, I think that they must be at home Sweetheart. I don't think you have school today."

"But it a School Day Mommy. It Chik-fil-a Day. I want to go to schoooooool!"

"Well, I don't think that's gonna happen today Grasshopper. I'm sorry."

"Wahhhhhh!"

I turn into a parking space and call JR at work and ask him to pull up the school calendar on the website for me. He does. It runs through September 14. Helpful, very helpful. He asks if I want him to call the school, but I tell him that there's no point, that school should have started by now and that obviously that's not happening today. He listens to me rant. He listens to Grasshopper scream about schoooool. And then he LAUGHS and congratulates himself on working outside the home. The man enjoys living dangerously.

So we headed back home. And I proceeded to check nearly nothing off of my to-do list while Grasshopper dogged my heels asking WHY he didn't have school today. Why Mommy? Why? Why? Why?

And I couldn't tell him.

Do you want to know why I couldn't tell him? Of course you do! This story is riveting!

Because when I switched the September school calendar on the fridge for the October one that was sent home on the 2nd (which was, incidentally, a FRIDAY) I apparently threw away October and stuck September back up. Oh yes, yes I did.

So Friday, I am officially putting you On Notice. Next week you had better live up to expectations or I am going to have to demand a do-over. And margaritas. It's really the least you can do.