How to survive Spring Break in 5 easy steps

...Or, our week in review

Step 1: Have Grandma and Grandpa(pa) arrive on Friday, the very beginning of Spring Break, and stay through Tuesday. Do all kinds of fun stuff with them, like watching movies at home, going to the zoo, going out to dinner, going to the movies, playing house, and teasing Grandpa(pa) about his bald spot.

Step 2: In order to keep grandparent withdrawl to a minimum, plan a playdate for the day after they leave. Ideally, the friends should have a child for each of yours (spares are okay, too), and a mother you are comfortable having constantly interrupted conversations with. Spend the whole morning and a good part of the afternoon with them. Walk to and from their house, a half mile away, (in the rain) so you’re good and worn out by bedtime.

Step 3: On Thursday, have friends over to play at your house. All day.

Step 4: Spend Friday morning running errands and the rest of the day playing games and completely ignoring all housework and other homemaker duties. Make pigs in a blanket for dinner, because it takes no work whatsoever and everyone thinks it’s funny.

Step 5: Saturday = errands day! Optional activities for this day include daddy-daughter dates to the well-loved Saturday Market and attempting to clean nail polish off of the toilet seat, stepstool, floor, and one very cute (and beautifully purple) two-year-old. (Look! I’m painting my toes! Oh, but I spilled a little. Actually, Mommy, I spilled a lot. See?”) FYI: it comes off the toilet, stepstool and floor easily. The two-year-old, not so much.

Possible side effects to this 5-step program may include: uncontrollable giggling, way too much fun for their own good, a messy house, exhaustion at the end of it all, and children who know that they're loved.