Dear Sanity, I miss you.

Dear Sanity, I miss you. I've been trying to find you for over a week now, but it seems your M.I.A.! I was hoping that a hot bubble bath, cold glass of wine & a good book would bring you back but even that didn't tempt you to return. I fear you're gone forever. I can't say I blame you...
Today was one of the most stressful days I've had in a long, long time. Nothing went right. Bella woke up twice during the night due to teething pains. Both times she was able to calm herself down within minutes & go back to sleep but unfortunately I wasn't as lucky. I was wide awake all night.
Her teething pains continued through-out the day today & nothing seemed to help. Not the cold teething rings, or the Motrin, or the snuggling w/ Blankie. She was miserable with a capital M. She wanted to be held, but then she wanted to be put down. Up, Down. Up, Down. ALL-DAY-LONG. If I left the room she screamed. If I entered the room she screamed. I was in a lose/lose situation...
I went grocery shopping at 12p. The grocery store is 5 minutes away from us. I purchased 5 bags worth of groceries & loaded them onto the passenger seat of the Jeep. I drove home thinking about laundry, dishes & bills. At 4:30p I opened the fridge to get Bella a cup of milk. For a brief moment I was puzzled over the fact that there was no milk. I thought to myself "Did I forget to buy milk when I went to the store earlier..?" And then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I had forgotten all about the groceries in the Jeep!!! There they sat, for 4 1/2 hrs. Goodbye, Milk + Eggs + Cheese. Goodbye, Sanity. The fact that I had somehow forgotten that I had even gone grocery shopping during the 5 minute drive home from the store is mind boggling, isn't it?
As if that weren't enough to scare my sanity away - I was feeling pretty darn happy that Bella seemed happy. She had a good dinner, a nice bath & was playing happily with the toy kitchen set up in the playroom. All was perfect....until she pulled the ENTIRE kitchen over ontop of herself. She landed flat on her back, with the kitchen ON TOP OF HER. She cried & cried. And cried. And so began the Up, Down. Up, Down game. Nothing was going to make her happy. Finally, at 630, I put her to bed.
My poor little Bella Bug. Her demanding, high maintenance type of personality can really wear me down come the end of the day but I know it's not her fault. It doesn't help that she's teething. I spend all day trying to make her happy, keep her happy & bring her new happiness. At the same time, I'm a firm believer in "tough love". I refuse to attach her to my hip 24/7. There are times that I simply HAVE to let her cry, afterall. So unless she's crying because she's injured, or has been crying for a long time, I refuse to pick her up when she's screaming at me.
And my poor Kyle Crocodile. Not only does he have to listen to his baby sister scream & cry all day, but he's constantly being forced to "wait a minute". Wait a minute for a snack. Wait a minute for my help with some school work. Wait a minute for me to see a new Lego car he's built. He's such a good boy. His patience level is incredibly high given his young age. On Saturday, after karate class, I'm taking him out for lunch. Just the two of us. He deserves to be treated. And hey, maybe my sanity will return over a quiet lunch?? :) Wishful thinking, I know..