A Winter'stale

It's about this time of year when I start to hate my socks.

It's about this time of year when my fantasies turn from what I would do if I won the lottery to dreaming of going barefoot.

It's about this time of year when I start to resent the time that winter wastes, walking home from school is an exercise in rage repression, and taking off all the wet layers coating my snow-loving child, usually all the way down to the underwear, makes me want to scream, cry, or both.

Last night and this morning was an ultimate boner parent move. I got all of Finn's cold, sodden clothes off and deposited them near the back door, swearing I would deal with them in a moment. Then I got the kid set up with some Justice League and a blanket so I could work on dinner, and the soggy pile by the back door  just slipped my mind. After dinner, Pete put it all into the washing machine and went to rehearsal. I put the boy to bed and watched "Grey Gardens (2009)" and forgot all about it because Edies.

This morning, Pete was crashing around in the basement, and I thought, "Is he cleaning the catbox? That usually takes him 30 minutes. They are going to be late for school." Then it dawned on me, "Fuuuuuuck... all Finn's stuff is still in the washing machine, and winter is outside the door, right where I left it.

Fortunately, we have a lighter winter jacket for him, and it's going to be in the high 30's today, which means that Minnesotans will be out in short sleeves. By the time they were leaving, the snow pants were dry, and we had him outfitted in other gear, but we had to get him over some tears at not having his everyday thing, and I was sitting in a pool of Mom Fail. It's a warm bath of soothing guilt and self recrimination I am all too used to, as no one can criticize me like I can. After all, I know my sore points best.

I'd love to chat about this more, but I have to head out to the grocery store before Winter Storm Abraxis or whoever descends upon the city this afternoon. Then, it's back to the freezer for us. Not the deep freezer, though, so we should be thankful, right?

Right?