Relationshipping.

R started day camp today.

With both kids gone again, I breezed through all the chores I wanted to do today and then some. The house is cleeeeeeeeeeean. And I am haaaaaaaaaaaappy.

Baby I and I read four books and he talked and sang with me. His elocution lessons are going splendidly.

T stopped home this afternoon to tell me to stop working (since it's technically my day off) and relax. She encourages napping on hot days. Unfortunately, I am too afraid to fall asleep and not wake up for three hours, so I used my two-and-a-half hour lunch break to text and watch Bridezillas, the greatest show on earth. I also watched an hour of Supernanny, and the brats on that show really put my life into perspective.

At least I don't have to chase my kids through the neighborhood apologizing to neighbors for them storming into random houses and punching pregnant women in the stomach.

T picked J up from camp and we took the two boys outside to play this afternoon. I spread out my outside blanket and Willie Nelson cozied right up with me to sunbathe.

When we were all good and sweaty I packed up J and took him to the pool.

Spending time one-on-one with the kids has been amazing. T encourages it and has since the first time we talked about how badly the kids were behaving for me.

J is sweet when not under the influence of his sister and he often comes to me to be held or kisses me or tells me he loves me.

At the pool today he sang to me and we swam together and he was downright adorable. The plastic moms seated around the pool kept "awwwwwing" at us. These women are always amazed when we show up, and I'm all glammed up in keeping with the unspoken Bayside pool dress code and then I jump into the pool anyway. They're all so afraid to get their hair wet.

For me, it's not a day at the pool until my hair is matted to my head and I'm all itchy from chlorine exposure.

On the way home we sang until he dozed off mid-verse. Old MacDonald had a...moo moo here...moo moo...here...

And then I called his name and he went, "WHAT?" all annoyed like and then he was gone.

I woke him up by putting him in the tub and he was wide awake when I left for my night off.

I went up the street to my new favorite pizza place and my favorite since two weeks ago coffee shop. I think it's actually a frozen yogurt place but they have coffee and it's magically delicious, and I don't care if that's copyright infringement. IT'S TRUE.

I also bought deoderant, even though I vowed not spend any money on toiletries in this state. I am running desperately low on a few things that I forgot to stock up on before I left PA and since I was supposed to be going away this weekend, but forgot about it and am no longer going, not shopping here was not an option.

I hope you enjoyed that run-on.

I made some phone calls to some siblings and friends. I think I have been in better communication since moving here than I have ever been before.

Being away from my family and living in a completely different social class has really made me value the people in my life.

I mostly miss all my kids, but that's always the case.

And I make it worse by moving and taking on new families and then moving again. I thought my move home was going to be pretty permanent (to Stroudsburg) and it almost was. And then I was sure my last move (to Camp Hill) was really it. I was close to Sister Steph and I liked that area and that was going to be where I set up shop.

And now I'm here...

And I like it.

And I'm learning to put genuine effort into showing the people in my life that I'm interested in them and their lives. And I am interested.

I'm still a little weirded out by the fact that I'm SO disconnected from most of the people I know, BUT I'm meeting new people, I'm falling for new kids and I'm happy to do it.

And while I grow into this new, strangely sophisticated person, I am going to make sure that all my child-like tendencies and unclassy behaviors stick with me.

And speaking of, I'd like to mention here my compulsion to check out every landscaper, gardener and delivery man I see in the neighborhood.

I may have watched too much Desperate Housewives in the past.

Most of the workmen I've seen in the area are considerably older than me, but in my head, I am holding out for at least a few fancy dinners with one really cute gardener or a spiffy water delivery guy.

I mean, I've lived in Long Island for almost a month now. Shouldn't my life be like a TV show?