Today began so simply. Up early, bugged out to breakfast so the housekeeper could kick some butt. Took home school work to do at the IHOP. All good.

Then it started raining. We got home to find the housekeeper freaking because the vacuum nearly caught on fire. And then Josh called: could he come over? Did anyone care that I actually had work to do?

I don’t care what anyone says, there is a difference between how boys play and how girls play. This day is living proof.

By 11:30, mom had stopped by to pronounce the vacuum officially “dead”. Oh yeah, she also needed ant killer. I am nothing if not the woman with everything.

By 12:30, the kids had completely dismantled the vacuum. CSI has nothing on what Josh managed to do to this thing. Plastic flying, wires akimbo; a total mess. The upside is Katie would never have gone after the vacuum in the way Josh did. I consider this dissection home school because they did get to see every stinking part in the machine including the mother board, wiring and the strange little thing that got caught in the motor – the “incapacitator”.

At 1:30 I sent them away to go get lunch. Thankfully the donut shop down the street sells sandwiches and there was a break in the weather so they needed to get out! Unlike some of Katie “girl” friends who aren’t allowed to go anywhere, Josh has more freedom. So off they went.

Apparently it was a great time at the donut shop as they met a veteran who has served as a Marine and they talked to him about the USS Hornet (both Josh and Katie have overnighted there) and they learned about his tour of duty on the USS Colorado. I just a little proud my two urchins were able to have such an informed conversation with the man.

By 2:15, the rain started again and Josh informed me he had powered down a whole Rockstar, “with 80 milligrams of caffeine!” I assured him under no conditions would he ever need an energy drink. Just giving him food was enough to wind him up. The action turned to Legos.

We have had Legos since Katie was tiny. They were deriguer in our house growing up. My mom was convinced Katie would love them. Nope. Never happened. But with Josh on board, they went nuts. Lots of building, fighting, arguing, creating, sorting, breaking, building and it all stayed in a relatively centralized location. Cool.

At 3pm, I could no longer take the noise. I had managed to get through a WebEx or two, pounded out a blog and worked on a presentation. Time to get them out of the house. Off to buy a vacuum (which I did – spent a fortune but it looks like a winner). Good outing – the ran like maniacs around the store and didn’t get in trouble. Whew.

At 4pm, Josh left to go walk his dog (the rain stopped) and Katie’s friend Rose came over. And the energy shifted. From the full-body contact sports of vacuum CSI and Legos to the quiet, contemplative, deliberate stuffy play of Build a Bear. Animals were everywhere with elaborate stories, lots of drama and giggles. Oh thank god, I could get just a little more writing done!

At 6:30pm, the day wound down with dinner – mac and cheese and apples – and lots of girly laughter.

I love Josh. He’s the son I never had. He reminds me so much of my brothers when I was growing up. He’s smart, high energy, a total pain in the butt. And he’s so good for Katie. At one point I was convinced they were going to end up in a big fight (as I also remember from growing up with brothers) but it never happened. I guess they had good talks as the day went on and I am grateful he’s around.

But man oh man, is the energy different!