Isabella: Wah, I’m tried, and cranky, and hungry, and thirsty, and hot, and Josh is looking at me and Emily’s elbow is touching me.

That was the scene in the car on the way home from Wonderland. That’s pretty typical for Isabella. Amazing, until she’s not anymore. The child is up early every day “Duh, I don’t want to miss out on creating something wonderful, Mama.” Up early, with epic bedhead, guns blazing, ready to face the world with full force and gusto. Usually in a tutu.

She loves everything…school, camp, family outings, heck, even errands and dentist appointments.

And she’s so good.

Until she’s not. Then she’s BELLEZILLA.

I suppose this is what parenting is like in general, right? So, so good. And then not.

It’s probably what living with me is like too.

Just ask my husband.

I’m perfectly (mostly) delightful…until the internet stops working. And then I get the shakes and then I’m not so delightful anymore. I’m… (alizilla?) but to my credit, we are now on day 8 of no internet or television at our house so things are basically Little House On The Prairie only we aren’t churning our own butter (yet) and I can still play this ridiculously addictive (and slightly embarrassing) logic game called Parks Seasons on my phone, and I can watch the DVDS (what are those?) of the first two seasons of Felicity. Yes, the one where she cut her hair all off.

And we have a trampoline.

And we can go to Wonderland, in our car. And I can take photos of my kids — who are braver and clearly have stronger stomachs than I do — ride all of the rides that I refuse to.

(The ones all the way on the right…you know the one with the goofy smiles on their faces while they twirl around IN THE SKY? Those belong to me.)

And I can go to Starbucks and drink free samples and try to mooch off of their shoddy wifi so I can, you know, do my job.

So really it’s exactly nothing like Little House on The Prairie.

Except that there’s no internet.

And sometimes there are bonnets.

And kids who whine.