madhouse

On the last evening in March, Courtney climbed in bed laughing.

"So Ryenne had a good April Fool's trick planned," he told me. "She asked me if she could put saran wrap on all the toilet seats. She thought it would be really funny." Turns out, her teacher gave her the idea. Thanks Mrs. Wilkey.

Luckily for me (for although she insisted she'd clean it all up, I know better), he talked her out of it. But the whole conversation with Ryenne gave him a few ideas of his own.

After waiting a while to make sure everyone was sound asleep, the two of us did a little switcheroo to our sleeping girls.

Ryenne was moved to a mattress in the entry way.

Emmy landed under the computer desk. (The next morning, she questioned our judgement. "Those blinking lights kept me awake all night!" she said with disgust. I was sure to tell her it was all her Dad's idea.)

And Kate? Being our deepest sleeper, we chose the best spot for her. We all laughed the next morning when she sat up in the tub with a confused grin.

Turns out, she liked it so much she's hoping to be permanently reassigned to the bathtub.

All of this silliness really got the girls into the spirit of things. Ryenne wrapped a bandage around her arm to wear to school, hoping to fool everyone into thinking her arm was broken. Not one to do something halfway, she even had us sign her "cast". Kate was all giggles when she borrowed Ryenne's 'fashion glasses' to wear. She had everyone believing she got new glasses.

Emmy was a little bit confused about the whole concept of April Fool's Day. When she saw the girls plotting, she kept asking us things like, "I know! I can be a witch!" or "Maybe I should be a chef!" It was a little bit April Fools mixed with a touch of Halloween.

For dinner, we had mashed potatoes and gravy (vanilla ice cream and caramel), chicken nuggets (sugared donut holes), and mixed corn, peas, and carrots (green, orange, and corn sixlets). And for dessert? Vegetable pizza.

It's funny. At the end of the day I was thinking how April Fools provides an opportunity, once a year, to create a little chaos.

At our house? We embrace chaos. Go ahead- turn our lives upside down for a day.

We'll feel right at home.