Did you get gas?

That is the question my husband just asked me as he peeked his head in the door looking at me with an odd look on his face. I thought he was happy that I did it because we are heading out early tomorrow morning and I wanted to do something nice for him. "Um do you know that you didn't put the gas cap or shut the gas door?" "OH that is because Helen was screaming the entire time I was pumping the gas and I must have been distracted."
Oh, my dear Helen  screaming again and it is bedtime. We all need to get up early tomorrow and really can't have your screaming away while everyone is trying to get to sleep. Not to mention it is really upsetting everyone. So why is Miss Helen screaming this time... the reasons are always so varied but I'm beginning to think it all comes down to her not having things go HER way. The script that she has so carefully written is not being followed.

We'll need to insert a little flashback to our movie:
Earlier today we went to a birthday party for my 4 year old niece. It was a very nice day spent with our extended family. It was the first time I was able to see and visit with my mother in law since she had a stroke on Monday. Everyone has been pitching in and helping out and the way that I help is by watching my nices so that Victoria can focus on her mom and the many doctor visits. So you can only imagine that Helen's outbursts and general disagreeability is not something anyone is in the mood for this week more so than normal. Today's ridiculousness was because I questioned what she put on after the kids went swimming. I noticed that she was wearing swimshorts and I asked why she was wearing them. She insisted she thought they were shorts. In the whole scheme of things whether she wears swimshorts as shorts is not a big deal at all to me. What bothers me is that she said she thought they were shorts. I'm pretty sure YESTERDAY she wore these same "shorts" white water rafting with us as a bathing suit. Again it doesn't matter but I just don't appreciate this ridiculous totally unnecessary lie. (I have 5 kids and can understand lying but I expect you to come clean when I call you on it... but as anyone out there with a kid who has RAD knows lying to them is second nature and seems to be a game to see if/how I'll react to it)
I let it go while we are at the party and wait until we get home to broach the subject.
"So Helen, I'm pretty sure these are the same "shorts" you wore swimming yesterday."
"I really thought they were shorts."
 "Fine. Let's go upstairs and you can show me where you got them from."
 I figured she got them from the pile of clean swimsuits from yesterday... and wouldn't you know, she takes me to her room and says, "I got them from my swimsuit drawer."
 "Well of course you did, thinking they were shorts, of course they were in your swimsuit drawer."
This lead to what I call the whirlwind of her screaming and insisting that she thought they were shorts.
 She REALLY REALLY did think they were shorts.

So here it was time for the kids to go to bed and again Helen was screaming. There is no stopping her when she gets going on the "really reallies". She either "really really IS telling the truth." "really really wants to do (fill in the blank)..." "really really cares about...(ususally me and after doing something that makes it clear that she really really doesn't) So we do our nightly prayers downstairs while she is upstairs screaming... FUN TIMES and I am already planning to take her out for a ride so the kids can have some peace... and then Rob goes upstairs to speak to her... He tells her to go out to the car, I go and grab a snack and head out with her. Tonight's outing leads me to the gas station to get the truck filled up and ready for us tomorrow. I usually tend to find a way to "help out" when I am frustrated and try to make positive use of the time. I cranked up KLOVE on the radio and sing praise songs to her screaming chorus in the background. (KLOVE is a Christian radio station that we almost exclusively listen to) Tonight is the first time I ever forgot to put the gas cover back on though. HMMMM... I wonder what could be distracting me... so many things to choose from. No harm done though.

I pulled into our driveway and ate the snack I brought with me. By this time she is done screaming. Helen goes inside and off to bed without a word. We can now all sleep in peace and get ready for tomorrow's adventures.

I can't wait to tell you about the very funny experience I had with the supersized cupcake cake I made my niece. I even have photos to share. But alas not tonight... I too need my rest. It will make for a rather amusing blogpost though... let's just say trying out a new cake pan for the first time (the ones on television commercials that look like GIANT CUPCAKES) and waking up to NO POWER made for a pretty amusing morning.

We are 5 & 2 Scotts,