Sweet Summer Fun - Part 6 (a.k.a. Now, THAT was crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

I take full responsibility for what I am about to report on. Really, it was all my fault. I used poor judgement and should've known better, especially when so many kids were involved. Oh my!

I have to say that I don't know when enough is enough. Jeff points it out to me many times that I should give up and throw in the towel way before I find that limit. But there is something in me that doesn't allow that to happen and of course everyone suffers in the end. Only this time I brought many innocent mothers and their kids in to my normal crazy day. Fortunately these are all good (no, make that GREAT) friends and they have a sense of humor.

Last Thursday, I planned a fun pool party for the afternoon and invited a bunch of our friends to join us. While at the pool, we'd order pizza for dinner. I even made cupcakes for us to enjoy afterwards. We had a great turn out and 6 moms and 16 kids were able to make it. This was not even including us!

The weather forecast called for a strong chance of severe thunderstorms. But when we started on our outing to the pool, the sky was crystal clear and sunny. I was at Wolf Trap the night before and saw a dark, gloomy sky above and had the good fortune that I didn't get rained on. I was hoping the luck would continue at the pool and whatever clouds appeared would continue to blow by.

We arrived at the pool at 2:40pm and the kids were having fun. At 3:15pm, the whistle was blown and the pool was shutting down. The lifeguard heard thunder and that was the sign it was time to get out of the pool. Yes, there were some dark clouds above. And, yes, I do agree, it looked like it was going to pour, but surely we'd have time to eat the cupcakes first, right? After going to the trouble to make these cupcakes from scratch, I was determined to let the kids enjoy them. Plus, did I really want to get stuck with 2 dozen cupcakes? No sirreeeee!!

So as everyone is scrambling out of the pool, I threw out my idea to gather around and have a cupcake. I've come to find out later that two of the moms thought my suggestion was completely bonkers. But I really did think we'd have enough time before.....

The rain, lightning, thunder all seemed to start in the same second. It was nuts. One second we were dry (well, actually still wet from just having been in the pool), and the next second, we were drenched and cupcakes were flying off the table from the high winds. It was out of control! The kids were mere seconds into eating their cupcakes. They got scared and we couldn't get our stuff together fast enough to high tail it out of there. We quickly made our way to the lifeguard/bathrooms/community center building and got our bearings.

Because we live so close, I walk to the pool. This time I not only had the two kids with me, but also my friend Susanne and her three kids walking too from my house. I pack a big wagon and fill it with everything but the kitchen sink. Now our close walk back to the house seemed like a continent away and getting there would require Noah's Ark.

I invited whoever wanted, to come back to the house; at the very least to dry off and get changed. My friend Carol came to our rescue and drove Ian, Sam, and me home. I left my wagon behind. My friend Dawn took Susanne and her 3 kids back to my house too. In both instances I am sure the kids were in shock getting thrown into the front seat of the car and taking off without even a thought of a car seat. (A quick reminder....I live literally around the corner...this would never be done in any other circumstance.)

Of the 6 moms in attendance, I had 3 moms and a total of 9 kids back at the house. There was a crazy number of towels being used in an attempt to get everyone dry. It was insane and the sheets of rain kept falling and falling without letting up. It was a monsoon! Once back in dry clothes, the kids quickly found themselves in our rec room playing. The four of us stayed in the living room area and hung out, sitting on the floor, recovering from the experience.

We ended up ordering pizza and making the best of the situation. Our playdate finally came to an end around 6:30pm. The kids had a fun time playing and the moms had a rare opportunity to sit and chat for a few hours without worrying if the kids were going to drown.

It didn't take long before we could look back on the situation and start laughing. Specifically when the pool has just announced it is closing and I say, "I think we have enough time for cupcakes." Yeah, right. Like I said, me and when 'enough is enough' don't usually see eye to eye on the first try.

Before the group left my house, we decided we needed to get together again next Thursday. Fortunately it appears my mommy friends don't know when enough is enough of me either. :)