I'm a daydream believer and a ... Ok. Scratch that. I'm just a daydream believer.

I was inspired and even excited when Ami suggested Corelle for the dishes situation. I went to Amazon to look around and even picked out my 3 favorite patterns. I figured I'd get some to mix and match, and they'd be so much fun to use.

Unfortunately, the entire time I was looking around, an uneasiness crept in, and I couldn't shake it. My husband had told me to order it, if I wanted, but I never got that far. The uneasiness just kept growing.

I realized I need to stop looking at dishes and try to figure out why I was feeling this way. Pushing it's way from a distant memory to the front of my mind was an image from when I was in junior high. I was in the kitchen. I'd just turned away from the sink, and I had a Corelle cereal bowl with little green flowers encircling it in my hand.

I lost my grip on the bowl, and it fell. It didn't just break. It exploded. It shattered into what looked like a million shards. Sharp. Pointy. Shards. We were finding pieces of it for weeks - often with our bare feet. The pieces couldn't be picked up without a little nick in the end of the fingertips. It wasn't a fun thing.

Over the years, very few pieces were broken. In fact, they're still in use at my parents' house. But every single time a piece broke, it exploded. Every. Single. Time.

And all I can think of is a piece exploding in front of one of the girls. They lack defensive reflexes, so they couldn't even turn away to protect themselves, if they saw it coming. It has the potential of seriously hurting them. Of propelling itself like shrapnel. And it would kill me, if either of them got hurt, lost an eye, had to have pieces of glass removed with slivers, when I could have prevented it.

Since I can prevent it, I will. We will not be getting Corelle. I'll be looking around for some fun Melamine to take the place of the heavier stoneware. There is such a wide variety available. It amazes me that some of it costs more than fine china. Then again, it looks like fine china! It does not look like plastic at all. My favorite pattern is entirely out of my budget.

We'll be going with something much more affordable than that.

Still..it's fun to dream. :)

Footprints in the sink.

Well, that's what it looked like to me. I found evidence of a herd of trolls in my sink when I was doing dishes today. Yes. Trolls roam in herds. At least at my house. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

Ok. No I'm not. We had just used most of the dishes, and I hadn't gotten to them for a couple of days. Ok. For 3 days. So I filled the dishwasher. Twice. Plus I still have a few kettles, knives, etc. that have to be hand washed. I don't like what happens to them in the dishwasher.

I don't have an over abundance of kettles or knives, but I am thinking I might have a few too many dishes, glasses and mugs. It's not like they're not all used, but that's the problem. When we run out of dishes, when everyone is sick, it takes forever to wash everything! It's handy that we rarely run out of dishes, but they can really pile up quickly. So I'm thinking it might be a good idea to purge some of the dishes. If we don't have as many, we'll have to wash the ones we have more often, and things won't pile up as easily.

I'm not sure exactly which ones I'm going to get rid of, though. We use the stoneware in the microwave, but it's so heavy! It really does a number on my neck to unload them from the dishwasher and put them away. Plus, they're heavy enough that our youngest has a really hard time walking from the kitchen to the dining room with even one plate, if she's helping to set the table. Not that we've set the table for awhile. But we will be again soon, and she needs to be able to help.

The Tupperware plates that we use the most can't go in the microwave. But they're so handy! Both girls can carry a stack of them, and they're not too heavy. They don't break, if they're chucked across the floor. Have I mentioned that our youngest has a bit of a temper? We've lost more than a few glasses, mugs, or dishes that way. She'd grab them from the table and fling them several years ago, if she was in the right mood.

I do pare down the number of mugs and glasses we have from time to time. I go through the mugs at least once a year and get rid of some. It's amazing how they multiply, though, isn't it? The glasses, though...that's a different story.

I have no idea why I like so many glasses, but I do! We probably have 24 glasses. For 4 of us, that doesn't necessarily sound like too many. However, the girls use water bottles almost exclusively. And since the hubby is at work most of the time, 24 glasses for my use seems like a bit of overkill. It's just so handy to not run out.

Still.

I must purge. It will make my life simpler.

I think the Kitchen Fairy died.

At least I'm assuming that's why she didn't do my dishes while I was sleeping last night.

My jaw aches tonight from being propped open to take care of my dental work. It's a little sore from the shots of deadening, too, but nothing a little ibuprofen can't handle. I'm hoping a good night's sleep will help it feel fine tomorrow.

I am frustrated tonight. I feel like I'm having a hard time getting back on track with the girls home sick. Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't send them to school sick, and I feel bad they don't feel well. It just feels like I can't make much progress with them home from school.

So tonight before I go to bed, I'm writing a list of things I'll be working on tomorrow. Things I can do when the girls are home and awake. Lists really do help me to stay focused on the task at hand.

Besides, I have a feeling the Kitchen Fairly will be a no-show again tonight.