We're in the top 40

For the past 4 years, my life has been overrun by the little rugrats that I birthed. Willingly. It's not like I had a choice: "You're dilated to 10! Push!" "Hell, no! Stick that little shit right back in there, I wanna have another 9 months of tortuous hell!"

All memories aside, my life has been overrun--I can't pee without a child standing next to me, fold my laundry without a toddler running around with a pair of panties on her head, or listen to anything other than...Kelly Clarkson.

So, it's my fault. We were at the Best Buy, and Big E requested a new cd. "Which would you like?" I asked, thinking, oh, it will be the latest Disney release soundtrack. "Since U Been Gone."
"Come again?"
"I want 'Since U Been Gone'."
"Kelly Clarkson?"
"Yes, from 'The Singing Show'," (which would be the title for 'American Idol,' in our house).

So, we buy it. Now, I constantly have to hear not only, "Play MY music! MY music!" but, "I want number 2! NUMBER 2!" "Number 2," as it were, is "Since U Been Gone." Both of my children, the spawn of a parent with a knowledge-base in English, are singing at the top of their lungs, in improper grammar. To add to the fun, my new car is very small, and it has turned into a virtual concert. I have a 4-year old screaming, "Since U been gone!" and a 2-year old chiming in with, "Yea, yeah!" It's like surround-sound. Why pay for tickets?

I heard Jenna singing softly to her My Little Pony this evening, "Here's the thing/we started out friends/it was cool/it was all pretend...yeah, yeah, since U been gone." I really hope that bastard pony didn't break her little heart.