Treasure Hunt

I had an awful day yesterday. Not 100% rotten, but rather frustrating, confusing, and quite filled with hurt. I called home around 5:30 to let Dan know that I would NOT be home by 6, and I would be in need of a hot bath, a glass of wine, and some serious nurturing. Or else there would be tears before sleep.

I got home around 7, and Vi instantly burst into tears. She wanted to go play outside...again, I'll say it was 7:00. Windy, cold, grey skies...and almost bedtime. Outside? Outside? She kept crying and begging...I was so drained and could not bear the thought of bundling up for a 10-minute playdate.

I retreated to my "give more to get more" mantra, dug deep, and found a spark of energy in my heart to, at the very least, distract her from her disappointment with something else mildly entertaining.

We went looking for the cat.

Let me rephrase that - I said, "LET'S! GO! FIND! THE! CAT!!!!! WHERE IS SHE?!?" with a swinging-pick-up and a joyful cheek-kiss.

Note: Mitten was NOT missing. She was in plain site (as Spoiler Dan pointed out) in the kitchen. But, we looked under every blanket, pillow, behind every door, in the bookshelf, out the windows. Sometimes whispering "is she in here?" and sometimes shouting "MITTEN!!!" It certainly did the trick to distract, entertain, and please Vi. We did some dancing, we hid in the fort (similar to this), said hello and bye-bye to Popps on the phone, and then the yawns arrived. We wandered into her bedroom, she slowed down and waved out the window to Addeee and Dyleeee, and before I knew it....Vi was sound asleep, and I was eating dinner in my PJs, in bed, glass of wine in-hand...watching How I Met Your Mother.

My day - my Rotten Day from Hell - ended on such a sweet, high note. All because I was able to give a bit more than I thought I had in me. Just a bit...somedays, that's all it takes, I guess.