5 AM... our day starts at 5 AM. My fiancee drives a School Bus.

Yes, even at this time of year, it's still not light out.

I so look forward to the day my fiancee has a job that doesn't have us up so early and the usable portions of the day chopped into teeny little bits.

By 5:30... latest, the boyz are making their way down the stairs in typical zombie like fashion. Complete with foot dragging, tripping and groan-y, moan-y noises. By this time I've already laid out the clothes for the day, 1 kid per couch, breakfast is being poured, usually cereal or oatmeal, if I'm feeling energetic... Greg starts making lunches... I pass out Gummie-Bear vitamins...

6 AM Greg is outta here and I'm on my own.

Then the day really starts.

Usually at least 1 person has verbal objections to the food in front of them, then leading to a 2nd, usually younger child, who muuuuust agree 'cause they look up to said older sibling... This results in at least 1 or more children sneaking their food to a) the dog b) the bunny c) the trash d) another siblings bowl or e) behind a couch or some other hidden corner to be discovered days if not weeks later.

I can't have eyes on all 4 at all times.

There is a flurry of food, dishes going to the kitchen to be dumped in the sink (later loaded in dishwasher by yours truly), meds for 2 kids being doled out and recorded. Plus the requisite bumping, banging, swearing, 'he did this' & 'he did that' reports and general boy-ness that happens when you have 4 boys in such close quarters trying to get ready and out the door for the day.

Generally by 6:30 AM they're done eating and (hopefully) on to dressing...

Plus in this sliver of time we try to finish up any Homework, generally reading, that wasn't completed the night before.This is when I am in a constant battle with child #3: the child with major medical issues.

I get called 'bitch' and several other choice names more times than I can count before the sun is even fully in the sky. He's usually wrecked a toy or 2, ripped a book, started a fight or all of the above. Depends on the day.

All this while trying to keep the other 3 on schedule and from 'copying' his behaviour.

fun.

At 7AM my parents arrive to take 2 or 3 of the boys to school. Thank goodness, though I am unable to work, the daycare is still provided for. After the flurry of footwear finding(though funny they were all away when I picked up before bed myself...), coat searching, lunch bags & homework in bags, 'oops! I need this form I got a week ago & left in bag signed TODAY or else', 'he's pushing', 'so & so stepped on my bag', 'he looked at me funny', 'he's copying me! Make him stop' etc...-ing FINALLY a few of them are on their way to school with my parents.

*deep breathing*

I have #3 with me... still unmedicated, seeing as it takes at least 1/2 hour for the meds to kick in fully. (days I wonder if it's closer to an hour...)The vulgarities continue, the defiance continues... my ever decreasing Mommy self esteem plummets another few notches...

Oh yeah, fun times.

By 7:25AM my parents are back for round 2 of school deliveries... the chaos of the 1st trip ensues... (see above, add much more name calling and swearing, some directed at MY Mother by this point) and (hopefully) by 7:30 AM-ish (very ISH most days)...

I.

am.

finally.

alone.

Usually I just sit here stunned. Sometimes I cry, Sometimes I just stare, some days I seriously wonder if 7:30AM is to early to start drinking... I try really hard to remember to breathe.

Oh yeah... breathing's good.

I pull myself together and get some breakfast (for me this time) usually unload & reload the dishwasher while eating in the kitchen, wipe down counters, get sh-tuff out for dinner and a million & six other thing the 'men' in my life don't see, but yet... life in this house could not continue if I didn't do.

I might finish off breakfast playing on Neopets, Blog reading or posting my GiST. Let the bunny loose... get some much needed bunny lurving. Then I do a whirl wind of things in the precious, precious 'alone' time I have.

2 hours.

Fiancee returns at about 9:30 AM. We usually rush to get any 'out of house' stuff done before...

Child #3 returns home at 11AM.

The school sends him home in a board-provided-Taxi. The Mummy abuse re-commences...

We sometimes try to cram more 'out of house' stuff in but are limited as to where and what we can do with #3 along. Seems lots of people can't deal with all the stuff we do day-in & day-out... funny that.

My fiancee leaves again around 1:30 PM...

Then #3 and I are alone.

I do what I can the rest of the day...

#3 has to be constantly supervised. I pee with the door open... I take almost no PM phone calls and we get by for the day.

6 PM Fiancee returns with the rest of the crew after getting them at Daycare. (again, Thank Goodness for that...)

Evening is a BLUR.

Dinner, homework, Kinship Wednesdays, D&D for Fiancee every 2nd Friday... occasionally other plans, baths, showers, bed-time for kiddos, dishwasher on, laundry... maaayyybe if the night is good or I ignore a bunch of other sh-tuff, some TV... picking out clothes, picking up after the evening whirlwind... and eventually, blessedly... BED.

Then the 5 AM alarm goes off...