Lipstick

I always know when life has spiralled out of control because I start leaving the house without putting on any lipstick. Don't get me wrong I'm not a vermillion lipped diva with a Marilyn-style pout, but I do normally manage to at least slap on some lipgloss before I race out of the door in the mornings.

Recently I've been jumping into the car in a mild state of undress. I've managed to make sure that I've had my clothes on (although I will confess to having looked down to check that I am actually wearing trousers and not my P.J's!), but my lips have been totally naked.

Now I'm one of those people whose face looks instantly transformed by a quick swipe with a pale pink stick of Cover Girl (or whatever I happen to have open.) I instantly look 'dressed' when my lips are coloured, no matter how little other make-up I've used. I usually manage a spot of eyeliner and some mascara too, but the lips just seem to 'do it.'

Sadly, I have now become so busy that nakedness has been the order of the day in the lip department. I am achieving things, so it's not all bad, but I'm beginning to look like the wreck of the Hesparus in the process! It's my fault really. This is what happens when you have 3 children instead of the standard 2.2 or whatever the latest government statistic is. It's only when you finally hold number 3 in your arms that you realise that you just relegated number 1 to the crook of your leg when it comes to the heirachy of family hugs. Suddenly two arms are no longer enough and when they all want a cuddle at the same time, you have to learn to hug one of them with your leg!

Granted my oldest two are now beyond the age of competitive hugging, but they make up for it in other ways. They're quite happy to wait until I'm available before they claim their cuddle, but when it comes to hogging all their parent's attention, teens and American culture conspire to turn the tables on younger siblings. Suddenly 'the nipper' is forced back into his/her rightful place as 3rd in line to the Mamma Bear and the Mamma Bear knows it. She longs to spend time with number 3, but preparing number 1 for life in the big, wide world takes all her time.

This is the point I have reached now. I've made great headway this summer; The Little Guy has a newly painted room, DD1 is becoming a 'good' driver and both girls are about to leap out into the world alone next week on a trip of a lifetime to the National Lutheran Youth Gathering in New Orleans. But I miss spending one on one time with my son.

This past year with two kids in High School was so busy that I felt he was becoming overlooked. I longed for the summer, so that we could hang out together, but the demands of a High School Senior are encroaching on our time. Knitting has been all but forgotten in the chaos of life, but as much as it pains me to sideline my obsession, I don't really mind. Finding time for The Little Guy is the most important thing right now.

To that end we've borrowed a book from the library called "Lunch Money" by Andrew Clements. I'm reading it to him. We're finding quiet places to go in the house or the garden, where we can just sunggle and read. Hopefully it'll give us that time together that we both crave.