The Polar Vortex Effect

Well, folks, it just so happens that the Polar Vortex collided with my husband heading to the frozen tundra of Ames, IA for five days of continuing education at the CNHI (Case, New Holland, International) Training Center.  Although it might not seem like a long time to be away, the excursion coupled with the cold weather has forced me to cash in a sizable amount of my stock piled CP & G points.  It has essentially created a perfect storm for using every single resource available to me under the CP & G category.  You are probably thinking, "What on earth is a CP & G point?" Not only are they the most valuable currency any parent can possess, but they are easy to abuse.  People, I'm talking about Crock Pot and Grandma (CP & G) points.  This is how they work:

Me: Can I drop off the kids at 5:30 so I can meet with some clients.
Grandma: Sure! We have already watched them all day, what's a few more hours?
Me: OK, you don't have to feed them because my appointment should only take an hour and I have supper in the crock pot.

...2 hours 37 minutes later...

Me: Sorry it took so long!  Decided to try and meet with some other customers before the middle of the week when the weather turns worse. I bet the boys are starving.
Grandma: It was no trouble!  I didn't want to spoil their supper, so we went ahead and ate ours because they didn't like what we were having.  They had almost a whole bag of potato chips, so they might not be super hungry when they get home.
Me: OK, thanks. See you in the morning!

...10 minutes later, arrive at home...

Me: Boys, would you like something to eat?
Boys: We're not hungry.
Me (talking to myself): Great, what am I going to do with all this roast? (Searches desperately for enough plastic containers to store it all.)

...1 hour 37 minutes later while lying in bed...

Boy: Mom, I hungee!  
Mom: Would you like some roast beef?
Boy: No, hotdog.
Mom: One or two?
Boy: Two, with mustard. No, ch-etchup! I want mustard.

...sleep six hours and do it all over again...

You get the picture.  Those CP & G points flew out the door pretty quickly this week, and it is only Wednesday.  I could probably survive without the crock pot, but it would be a hard road without Grandma and Grandpa close by to fill in the gaps.  I try not to abuse the privilege, but we are fortunate to have a great support team nearby for these times when work takes my husband and me in different directions.  And, I'm lucky to have clients and customers who understand when my boys need to come along for appointments.  That is often the saving grace to ensure that I can refuel my Grandma points for use at another time. You all are so kind and generous to our family!

If my husband can get his pickup started tomorrow, he should be home in time to put the boys to bed.  I'll be sure to have supper waiting for him in the crock pot, just so I can use up my last few CP points before I hit the end of the week.  Maybe he'll take me out to supper this weekend to help build some CP & G points back up again.  I won't hold him to showing up at the door with any roses though.  Welcome Home.