The Flight of the Morning ADHD Pills

It's no secret, my three school-aged kids are ADHD. Some are medicated, some are unmedicated, some only medicate during the school year. We do what works for each child.

My always-medicated kiddo couldn't find his bottle of medication this morning. We tend to keep our meds in a basket on top of the microwave, it's so much easier than opening the cabinet door apparently, as when a cabinet door is involved, nothing manages to end up back in the cabinet. Even so, the frequently used medications tend to wander around the kitchen.

After looking for way too long, frustratingly speaking to said ADHD kiddo about being responsible, about actually looking for his medication, (and not playing with his brother's binoculars while he did so), retracing his steps - we were in the laundry room yesterday when I got so fed up with him for trying to fit inside the washing machine that I asked if he had taken his medication yet - and other mom-mutterings about how no one but me could seem to do anything in this house - I gave up and turned to the closed-circuit camera system. We use this of course as a mitigation to possible break-ins, but it is more often used to ensure the kids are honest about who started the fight, or who said the bad word, or who stole another coke from the fridge. "Big brother", I don't really like it, but it's a handy parenting tool.

More often than I'd like to admit, it's used to find keys, or lunches, or shoes, or other important things around our house.

So I tune into yesterday morning and watch Timothy get his pills from the microwave, take them to me in the laundry room bring them back and sit them on the kitchen counter. Ok, not where they go, but still a completely obvious place. We look there, checking under the pile of mail that was carelessly thrown their yesterday. They're not there. Nor are they under the cabinet or against the wall. Hmmm...

I literally start to watch every camera action for the day, my eyes trained upon this pill container that is on its side on my counter. Nothing happens until 2PM when my husband walks in, blocks the camera for a while, and hunts in the hardware drawer. When he moves away, they've vanished, (and there is a pile of hardware out on the counter instead - seriously).

I say his name accusingly as the revelation hits. "What?" he says. "It was you!" I said, "See? they were right there and then poof, they're gone".

No, my husband isn't some kind of drug addict, but the pills did end up in the hardware drawer, while the hardware ended up on the counter.

So twenty minutes later, we're running late, but my hyper kid has his pill and is ready to go to camp. This madness is real life.

Happy Summer,

Kristian

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Kristian is a mom of six, Program Manager by day, active Professional Photographer by trade, and a big believer in finding beauty in the everyday chaos.

Life in our house is loud, messy and full of literally everything. Love, noise, laundry, laughter, and definitely could use a bit more grace. I'm happily married to my best friend, grounded in my Catholic faith, and fueled by five to six hours of sleep per night and adrenaline.

I try to find joy in the everyday — even when it's wild, because without the little bit of joy, this life would be unbearable. This space is for the moms in the middle of it all: the ones juggling family, faith, work, and wonder. The ones that need someone else's messy life to make their own seem better or somewhat normal. You're not alone, and you're doing better than you think.

Welcome to Six Sweet Smiles — where we celebrate the mess, the miracles, and everything in between.