We had things all planned out. #2 daughter came down last night. We were going to meet my parents today for a late lunch, and then I was going to work in the evening. We would celebrate #1 daughter’s birthday tomorrow, and help her pack. Monday,#1 son would go back to school and #1 daughter would head off to her new job.

Most of these things have changed slightly. For one thing, #1 daughter’s new job called and asked if she could come sooner. They are going to Dallas this week and want to take her along, so they’d like her to travel tomorrow (her birthday) and start on Monday so they’ll be able to train her to do what they want her to do in Dallas.

And I am working in the afternoon, not the evening. That wasn’t a change, but simply a matter of my having misremembered the time. But it means that I can’t join the celebration with my parents, and that I have to make something for lunch. And #1 daughter’s change of plans means that I need to make a birthday cake this morning so we can celebrate this evening, instead of doing it all tomorrow. #1 son’s plans have also gone a little bit agley.

What’s more, my new plan with Erin has also gone agley. I stopped to count stitches on the fronts last night, just in cakethe usual way you do, and found that I had about a dozen more on one side than on the other. I set about fixing it while chatting with my kids, and I think I may have made it worse. There may be serious frogging in my future. Always sad when you’re talking about something as complex as Erin.

So this morning I have the grocery and the kitchen calling me, and I have to figure out what to do with #1 son’s  situation. I was calm about #1 daughter’s leaving on Monday, but I had imagined having Sunday with her. Not a big deal, but I am feeling a bit stressed.

This is the cake I am going to make. It uses a mix. I don’t usually believe in making mix cakes, but under the circumstances I think it is forgivable. The sun is coming up, so I had better get to the grocery.