Now that I've calmed down.......

Last night I had one of my most trying moments yet as a mother.  This may not have been trying for most of you.  Most of my friends are very together, easy going, mellow, take in stride types, but I am confessing to you all now that I am not one of those.  No matter how I may appear.  This is what happened:

Earlier this week I found a few packets of kool-aid in the cupboard.  I used one of them to make the play dough mentioned on a previous post during one of my "good mommy" moments.  Yesterday I decided to make a pitcher full of said kool-aid.  Olivia loves it.  She rants and raves about kool-aid every time she gets it at someone else's house.  So, in an attempt to be a hero mom, I made some. It was called Jamaican something or other. She asked if she could have some, and I said yes.  She filled up a cup with the heavenly stuff, put a lid on it, and brought it downstairs where we were all playing.  Everything was lovely until Molly came downstairs and was RED.  Really.  This is the list of things on Molly that were red:  her hands, her arms, her shirt, her skirt, her WHITE tights, her legs (it soaked through her tights),her diaper (all the way through), her face, and her tummy.  She was dripping in kool-aid.  I hurried and stripped her down and threw her clothes in the washer.  I then heard Olivia say, "oh my gosh. Oh no."  I considered ignoring her.  But, my curiosity won over.  Iwent upstairs.  Oops, apparently Olivia left the 2 quart pitcher of RED kool-aid on the counter.  Molly dragged a chair over and tried to help herself.  The ENTIRE pitcher spilled. Here is the list of things covered in RED kool-aid:  the counters, the cupboards, the drawers (it leaked in),  the floor, my rug, the stovetop, the oven door and bottom drawer had puddles, my kitchen rug, and the tile backsplash (which is tumbled travertine and has lots of nooks and crannies to welcome the RED (did I mention that yet?).  

I am freaking out.  I am not in nice mommy mode.  At all.  I look down and Olivia is frantically cleaning the mess.  With my brand new white towels and washcloths that I JUST PURCHASED at Crate and Barrel.  All of them.  

UGH.  This is the point in which I WISH I would have taken a few dozen deep breaths.  To give you the shortened version I asked Olivia, through clenched teeth, to take her sister and brother upstairs so they weren't trampling through the puddles of red while I attempted to clean it.  I then grabbed a laundry basket and every old towel and rag in the house and began blotting.  Then I started washing it with soapy water, but guess what?  Kool-aid stains!  Yep, it stains counters, sealants, grout, wood, and children.  Maybe they should sell it in hardwares stores.  After 45 minutes of using bleach and scotch-brite pads on my cabinets, they are PINK.  At least not red, right?  I guess it will help me get into the Valentine's day spirit.  Which I need a little of as I contemplate shipping off my children.  Further scrubbing has gotten MOST of it off of the cabinets.  But still, every time I wipe the counters my rag turns pink, and my slippers are still sticking to the floor after 6 moppings.

After I finished this ordeal, I made the kids' dinner and apologized for freaking out.  I thanked Olivia for attempting to clean up and showed her where the old rags are for future reference.  I also thanked her for getting Molly into a clean diaper and clean clothes while I was cleaning up.

Then I told her that we would NEVER have kool-aid in our house again.

So, for any of you who were still deluded into thinking I am a calm, sweet mom, this is me, coming clean.  Even if my kitchen isn't.