This post brought to you by the letter W for whine

I have been in such a funk today.

Just irritable and grumpy and do not want to talk to people and sure as heck do not want to smile at people.

Like the girl walking into Dick's Sporting Goods when I was on the way out today (after receiving terrible customer service and shelling out $20 for new soccer cleats because Ethan outgrew his sometime between October and February.) This girl was walking by and said (as people in the South are prone to do), "Hi! How are you" with a big smile. There was not one single cell in my body that wanted to smile back. Not even half a cell. So, I didn't.

Instead, I came home and spent all afternoon on the phone trying to clear up mortgage problems, cancel services (phone, water, etc.), change address for things, pay bills . . . all while children fought and cried in the background over urgent issues like whose doghouse made out of empty cardboard boxes was better.

And, we got our credit card bill today. Despite my trying VERY hard to spend very little money the past month, it was barely any less than normal. David said something like, "Keep spending like that, and you'll drive us into bankruptcy." "Good," I said, 'My plan is succeeding because that's exactly what I'm trying to do. Bankrupt us." He had the good sense to call back about 10 minutes later and apologize for being too hard on me and acknowledge that I sounded very frazzled and exasperated. I call him Sherlock. (On the off chance that you actually decide to read my blog this week, I love you, hon.) :)

To top it all of , Josh appears to have strep. Or more accurately, scarlet fever. Which is apparently just a really bad form of strep. Not diagnosed yet, but that's what the doctor on the phone tonight said it sounds like. Yesterday he just didn't feel well all day - took two naps, which is unprecedented - but he had no specific complaints (once his eye scratch was gone).

Well, last night he had a fever of 99, but still nothing hurt, so I didn't treat it. He slept fine and had no fever this morning, so I went ahead and sent him to school. (Yes, there is a 24 hr fever rule, but it was ninety-freakin-nine, and nothing hurt!) This afternoon he complained of being cold and tired (oh, and yesterday he had a headache), so I have him Tylenol and discovered he had a 101 degree fever.

About an hour ago, he came to me and said his stomach itched. He has an awful rash covering his entire torso, especially his groin and armpits. (I bet when he's sixteen he's going to love that his mom mentioned his groin on the world wide web.)

Called the doctor's office, and they said it sounds like scarletina from strep. (Yes, mom, I left out the scarlet fever part when I talked to you. It's just bad strep. I was going to tell you tomorrow if it turns out that's actually what it is.) She said to give him Benadryl, and if it went away, it was not strep, but if it didn't then bring him in first thing in the morning because it likely is. Great. Maybe my whole family will get it just to make moving even more fun.

I must now go clean my kitchen that looks like the only inhabitants of my house are toddler terrorists.

Josh wanted to make a "surprise drink" for me today. He wouldn't let me see what he was doing, and when he tried to come ask me for something, I shoo-ed him away because I was on the phone with the mortgage company. When I went to the kitchen to see what he had made, it was cherry Koolaid. He couldn't find a pitcher (which is what he was asking for, but it's already packed anyway), so he used . . . empty water bottles. Of course, what else?

I must say the koolaid on the floor and counters went well with the oatmeal on the table, the cheese on the floor, and the orange juice on the rug. We had a whole little motif going on. Maybe we'll be featured in Southern Living.